- Some of the best soul sound you’ll ever hear – natural, full-bodied and present, with the kind of richness and smoothness you only get from vintage analog
- It’s Withers’ most consistent album, with outstanding sound for the two big hits – “Lean On Me” and “Use Me”
- 5 stars: “It’s warm and easily accessible, but it has a depth and complexity that reveals itself over numerous plays — and, given the sound and feel of the music, from the lush arrangements to his comforting voice, it’s easy to want to play this again and again… the greatest testament to his considerable gifts.”
- If you’re a Withers fan, this is a Must Own Classic from 1972 that belongs in your collection.
- The complete list of titles from 1972 that we’ve reviewed to date can be found here.
Many of Withers’ best songs are on here, classics of the ’70s canon such as ’Use Me’, ‘Who Is He (And What Is He To You)? and ‘Lean On Me.’
This killer early Sussex pressing was one of the best from our recent shootout. It beat practically every other copy we put up against it (on side one anyway) with superb presence, top-notch clarity, full-bodied vocals and serious energy. I don’t think you could find a better sounding Bill Withers album no matter what you did. I wish there were more ’70s soul albums that sounded as good as this one does.
The vinyl is about as quiet as any Sussex pressing ever is. Finding these good sounding early pressings in audiophile playing condition is not easy as I’m sure you can imagine. (more…)
