Rock 'N Soul

Initially was going to rare this a 3 but this guy's voice is so soulful I've gotta go for a 4. Can't believe I hadn't heard of him. Similar to a Sam Cooke with such a rich voice, you get lost a little when he's singing. Very good stuff

What a great voice. Not usually a fan of this era but boy can he sing.

1960s Soul: Another "not my genre" unlocked! (Not fair. Much more my genre than Britpop or pre-post-punk or alt-noise or whatever else this thing has fed me.) Good voice, though.

Enjoyable oldies listen

What a singer.

Impossible not to love it. Great energy, voice, and rhythm

This was a great listen. Not my usual style but given the historical context it is really impressive. Such a beautiful voice

¯\_(ツ)_/¯ sounds like any other soul album, it made me feel a bit sleepy honestly -- boring.

Bro is versatile stylistically speaking

I had previously heard of Solomon Burke but was not familiar with his music. I was disappointed in this album. From the title, I was hoping for more of a rock and roll or soul sound, but this is something else. There's some Spanish guitar, brass and strings, and background singers that I wouldn't associate with either rock and roll or soul. There wasn't anything wrong with this, but I didn't enjoy it and would not listen again.

Pleasant, soothing, easy listening soul music.

Good soul album, just not great.

Awesome stuff.

Great album, excellent from beginning to end

5/5

I have to say, I didn't know much about Solomon Burke before today. Obviously, I immediately recognised "Cry to me", but interestingly I also recognised The Rolling Stones. I know they've covered him before, and even played live with him on stage, but it's moreso that I recognized the building blocks of that early Rolling Stones sound: the bright clean guitar soloing away as the singer continues, not waiting for a break, but working together; and the seamless switching between speech and singing; I couldn't listen to "If you need me" without hearing "Time is on my side". All that is a good thing. I'm a big fan of the Stones, and I can see why they're big fans of Solomon Burke. An amazing voice, great energy and fantastic songwriting. Happy to have discovered this.

comme le nom l'indique

Burke’s importance in the history of soul music is without question, but the soul is mostly absent here. The songs lack an energy and intensity that the genre itself practically demands. Redundant and uninspired arrangements are the main culprit, but Burke’s effort does little to pick up the slack. Nothing on the album warrants repeated listening.

Yes, very groovy

I can’t believe I’ve never heard of Solomon Burke before today. Rock N Soul is just a beautiful example of soul music from the mid 60s. The opening song Cry to Me is an interesting song that incorporates a somewhat Caribbean feel that seems to contradict its lyrics.

I really liked this. It is soulful and bluesy. It is an album of its time and I won't have it on high rotation but I did like this album. Burke's voice is clear, articulate, and soulful. You can hear what would come after him.

Maravilloso!

I didn't have strong feelings about this album. I liked all of the songs but none of them stood out to me. Solomon has a nice, soulful voice. Lyrics were pretty generic. 6/10

Decent album not likely to check it out again.

I've never heard of this artist before. But I really enjoyed this album. Really chill soul vibes probably a 7.5/10

Was good! I honestly dont have much to say lol, really fun album 6.5 or 7 out of 10. Enjoyed front to back, nothing that blew me away.

*1964. Rock and soul. *Sounds very 50s/early 60s. *Enjoyable enough, but won't revisit. RATING - 6/10

Very nice classic sound, very nice

Shaking my head This isn't bad, but why is it on the list. What makes it so special I have to listen to it? I'm sure dude had his fans, but it's just kind of there, and at times, not very good. 1.8 rounded up to 2.

It was really enjoyable . a singalong album if only I knew the words

Fun old timey stuff. Pleasant listen

I was expecting not to like this at all but pleasantly surprised. Nice, easy listen.

The guy can sing, but the music is mediocre and uninspired. In addition, some of the lyrics I managed to catch aged like a lecherous old man. Overall this album is nothing memorable, just a good singer making mediocre music with an annoyingly repetitive back-choir. It's a nice one-off listen, nothing more.

This is solid.

Crazy-good '60s soul here. God damn this rocks!

Pretty solid

some good oldies here. 3/5

Really like this, knew one song, now he's in my 60s R&B rotation

6/10

That classic rock. Elvis could learn a thing or two

It's fine, it's nice for 50s rock n roll. It's classic, it's singles heavy, it is what it is

love wins :-)

Nice

Really enjoyable. Good stuff that I've never heard before and that will go into rotation.

Certainly not unpleasant, just a bit stuck in time

I thought I hadn’t heard of Solomon Burke until the first song Cry to me came on and I was like I know this. Unfortunately even though he has a great voice and there were some good other songs nothing quite hit the high of the opening track. The rest sounded a bit samey but on the whole an enjoyable listen.

Nice! (I think)

Amazing too

3.5

Very similar in vibe to the Elvis we just did, this one is also pleasant enough, good voice but again nothing massively jumped out

Balsam!

Better than Coldplay

I have only heard the hit song 'Cry to Me' from this album before today. That song is great but there are a lot of other great songs on the album too. I thought 'Won't You Give Him (One More Chance)' was a great song too. Great beats and his voice is very smooth, the lyrics are good too. Definitely enjoyed this one and will be listening to it again.

unlucky that this had to come after aretha franklin. also, not a huge fan of this type of soul. not a bad album per se, but for sure outside of my taste.

Nice sounding oldies, could be in fallout. More soul than rock

Pleasant 60s rock and soul from a guy who had a major impact on the way soul went. Happy to have listened, probably won't return.

Decent soul record

Solomon Burkes melodic voice and lyrics kept me enthralled the entire album. I loved it!

An amazing voice. A beautiful album and a great experience Fav song - Can't Nobody Love You 4/5

Solomon Burke was an obviously talented singer and performer, and this album has some very good songs on it. I think that the arrangements of some of the songs are less than ideal, especially those cheesy backup singers that do their best to ruin a bunch of Ray Charles’s songs. But when it’s straight ahead soul/R&B, and when Latin influences are mixed in, this album is enjoyable and fun. However, I think there is a reason that Burke - while he may have been amongst the first - is not considered to be one of the first tier soul and R&B artists. Still a 60’s soul and R&B second stringer is better than the entire starting lineup of a most other genres.

Loved this

Really loved this one!

Motown sound. Burke has a powerful voice, and some of the songs really showcase how emotive he can be. There’s definitely some late 50’s/early 60’s garbage pop songs here too. The notables are Cry To Me, Goodbye Baby, If You Need Me, Someone To Love Me, He’ll Have To Go.

chill oldies vibes, similar to sam cooke

Never heard of Solomon Burke before, which does seem odd. Amazing voice, somewhat standard soul/rock sound but thoroughly enjoyable album. I like it! 3.5 rounded up Heard before? No Owned: No, 7/1001, 7/28 (25%) Will I get? Maybe Recommend: Sure

Great voice with an impressive range. Kind of a bummer of an album, though. 2.5 stars. I didn't hate it, but the criterion I've been going by is how many tracks I saved in my library, and I saved none. Listened before? N Saved to library? N Favorite track(s): N/A

Objectivement bon mais un peu boring 🤷🏻‍♀️

This is the music I grew up with! I have not heard of Solomon Burke but I enjoyed the songs.

i love soul, this soothed me when i was feeling lonely and missing my lil kitty 😔

For better or worse, a collection of true golden oldies. To me, it felt like I'd already been listening for 30 minutes by the time I got to the sixth song, and I checked to find I was only halfway through the album, which has a total runtime of 34 minutes. I should clarify that none of it is bad. It's just old and sounds old and feels old and all is slow and just not exciting at all.

Yeah Solomon. Þetta er fínt soul. Basic að mestu leyti en Cry to me er alveg up there hvað varðar early soul classics. Tímamótalag sem lifir ef til vill betur í minningunni útaf Dirty Dancing. SWAYZEEEE.

Mjög fínt sólrokk.

muy nice

Perfectly servicable. Burke clearly has an excellent voice but there wasn't anything here that'd keep me coming back.

Geiles Album hört sich aber alles sehr gleich an. Trotzdem viel soul zum runterkommen.

boring soul

Sweet voice. Nice atmosphere. Delivers on the name

Cool old sound

Good album that just warms your soul. Great for a night at home when it's raining outside. My favorites were "Cry to me", "good bye baby", "you're good for me", and "beautiful brown eyes".

I feel like I just heard the same song 12 times in a row

I feel like I've already listened to this album like 10 times

Burke's warm, easy voice and straightforward style gave me chills front to back on the basis of the emotionality he baked into every verse. Tugged at the heart and plumbed the soul amply, with each song capturing the essence of a universal theme effortlessly. Without having heard this before, it felt like I was listening to the inspiration for many songs from the last 20, 30 years or more, and that realization made me enjoy this album all the more. Much like reading a foundational work in a literary genre then suddenly realizing its fingerprints were all over some of your favorite novels. Will be listening again. 4/5

Diner music. Enjoyable enough when it’s just one of these songs, or in the right atmosphere, but kinda samey and tough to enjoy in 2025.

I'd heard of Soloman Burke but wasn't really aware of his work. Hes got a great voice and this was a nice, easy Saturday morning listen. Researching him online, it says he chose the title of this album as he was uncomfortable being associated with rhythm and blues, which he believed had "a stigma of profanity", because of his clean lifestyle and strong spiritual beliefs. Imagine my surprise on the catchy Hard, Ain't It Hard when I could of swore I heard him sing "that shit's hard" but according to the original lyrics it's actualky "that's sure hard". I'd give it a four if he had been a formative influence on gangsta rap but it's a very solid 3.

Okayes Album gibt einige Songs die ich mal gehört habe

I'll give a 5 to every southern soul album on this list! "Cry to Me" is a classic and my other pick was "Beautiful Brown Eyes," which seems to preview what's to come for a lot of future deep soul ballads. Great listen and glad Burke has an album on this list!

NOT BAD!

I really enjoyed listening this album as soul had been a genre I was interested in, but never knew where to start. Solomon has a great voice and the tracks are very simple and melodic which will instantly hook you. The instrumentation might get repetitive at times or similar message, but over all these are great tracks and solid album to throw on and listen to. My top 3 songs are probably If You Need Me, Someone to Love Me, and You Can’t Love ‘Em All

Al eens geluisterd. Redelijk oke, maar niet super boeiend

3 08.15.2025

This was really fun! Short and sweet, lots of songs about dances and sweethearts. I had never heard of Solomon Burke before, but you can definitely tell his influence on R&B/Soul.

Piękne to było. Nawet nie wiedziałam ile z tych utworów jest gdzieś głęboko w sercu. Zaśpiewać je z taką dawką emocji i kokieterii... wow. Niesamowity album, mięsisty, melodyjny, spójny. Słuchanie go jest jak przesuwanie dłonią po aksamicie. 8/10

Maybe it’s because this album seemed to match my mood today, but I really enjoyed this one. He’s got the type of voice that I tend to like. I don’t even know what to say about it really, except that I loved the way it sounds. I was only familiar with the song Cry to Me, but then song after song was a win. The very last song He’ll Have to Go was probably my favorite overall.

I listened to it a few times, i love it, first favorite from this list.

3/5

It was as expected

Cool soul!

Decent album. -3/5

A fine album for its time. Not a fan of the genre, but I appreciate it for what it is.

Got the blues babeeeeeee

Fun stuff. Classic rock. Classic soul. Great voice

pretty pretty good

Great voice, and I love the old blues/soul sound. I can't fault it but somehow doubt I would listen to him again.

Really good classic soul sound. Great vocals. Will revisit this

Very nice. Knew the name but didn’t know his was the King of Rock and Soul. Good tunes, will come back for more.

I don’t really have anything interesting to say about this kind of music. It’s all kind of the same to me. It hits me the same way that Leon bridges does - polished and pleasant but in the end, sort of empty.

Just discovered Burke a few weeks ago when a friend sent over his cover of A Change Is Gonna Come. Really soulful and long career This was huge at its time, but it doesn’t stand out too much from similar 60s stuff - otis Redding for example. 2.5 stars for me. Rounding up because its easy listening

Love Solomon Burke. Had listened to Cry to Me a lot before during some of my big Motown phases, but hadn't gone deep on any album. I'm not sure how much historical significance he had in the R&B genre, but as someone who loves Sam Cooke I appreciate his range (Sam is great but pretty one-note and safely written, almost sterile manufactured songs). Solomon has some edge to him - love the rasp at the high end of his range. Nice harmony on You're Good For Me - not sure who the other vocalist is but I dig it. Good find!

How is this guy not way more well known? Maybe he is? I could listen to him sing anything. Loved the first half of the album.

A lot of fun and great vocals. Never overstayed it's welcome. Only a couple filler songs.

7.5/10 Does exactly what it says on the tin. Good stuff, slightly more heavy on the soul than the rock, but that’s maybe because it was still in early rock days. One of those albums that does a load of short good times then gets out before it hits 40 minutes. Best: Someone to Love Me

Good 60s vibes

Good voice and well executed, but hardly groundbreaking. There's a lot of other artists that do the same thing better.

Bro is a true lover

no man with a voice this sultry should be threatening to touch me

Enjoyable little album.

Its not bad but definitely nothing special. Quite generic honestly. Favourite Song: Hard, Ain't It Hard

another solid r&b/soul album, just an enjoyable listen.

pleasant to hear

Nice classic rock and roll with a voice full of soul - the first few tracks really stand out to me, very listenable - the middle / last chunk kinda blended together to me - I'd give it a 2.5 / 5 if I could.

Sounded like generic 60s rock. Nothing stood out, and it sounded like a bunch of other stuff I've already listened to.

Solid soul album.

Legends are usually legends for a reason. This is a good piece of evidence therein.

Good album, but no song I would specifically pick out and listen to

decent blues soul

Wow old music is awesome!

Great recording, excellent playing, wonderful voice! Ain't nothing wrong with that!

Really liked this one. 4 stars.

Wonderful, laidback soul. Solomon Burke is new to me. He’s got an understated, soulful style on a lot of these tracks, but his charisma shines through. And he’s got power behind his voice too. Depending on the song, he can really belt. The rest of the band is great too. You can’t ask for anything more from this vintage soul style. Great performances all around.

Ooof this album is pulling at my heartstrings. I used to listen to vinyl records in the basement with my mom and brother back in the 90's after my father passed away, and this was one of them- or atleast it was this artist. I never knew who this was, and I had no idea going into this on a Tuesday in August at 9AM that I'd be getting some pretty heavy nostalgia hits. My mom would put on these records, mostly doo-wop, she would crank the volume, and we would all dance around in the basement. I'm sure it was very cathartic for her. This was a throwback! The songs are great, and his voice is incredible. Naturally I want to give it a 5 because it unknowingly has meant a lot to me, but I feel comfortable with it being a 4. It's a beautiful album.

The songs blend together as there isn’t much variation in style but what a great voice.

Fantastic...what a voice

Excellent. Love the first track but didn’t know who sang it. Rock ‘n soul is a perfect album title. He does early rock and roll, doo wop, and early soul with a masterful touch. Will listen again!

This was a pleasant album. The songs are all croony, silly, sort-of love songs but the sound is just excellent. I really enjoyed the listen and the performances. Very much a product of 1964, with pleasant but forgettable guitar riffs bookending common phrases. Performances were great. Loved some production decisions, including the warm distortion for particularly emotive moments of vocal performance. I really enjoyed goodbye baby and the closer. I don’t have a tons of context for this album. The songs were largely beautiful if not world-bending. I’m not sure this would have been received the same way when it was released. I think the style was more subversive at the time. But there are still choral callbacks to music that dominated two decades prior.

Some of these older albums that are selected are the "sound old but also sound modern" variety ... not this one, this old. We once again see the resurrection of "little girl" (*pukingemoji*). Also You Can't Love 'Em All is both problematic and wrong - of course you can when they all got the eyes for you like he says. 2/5

Listening Notes: -Can't Nobody Love You: at this point, it started to feel that this was generic, if well done, soul music. Nothing very new or fresh. Of course like most soul music, the vocals are incredible. But I feel like everything here has been done before. Doesn't help that Burke directly references a few artists in this song who have said almost the same thing as him (But he's gonna say it better, he says) -In general by the end of the album I'm mostly just bored. This would be fine background music, but what has been accomplished here? -Out of reach feels like a combo of the worst of soul and the worst of Frank Sinatra. In general it took society longer to figure out slow slongs than it did to figure out fast ones... -On the other hand goodbye baby is much more defensible. Review: Frankly, maybe I'm not enough a soul fan, but I just don't really see what we've added from earlier soul records. I know with the benefit of being 60 years later that Mayfield and others will do crazy things with the genre, but this mostly feels like it's stalled in the wake of Redding or Cooke, but with less energy. It's absolutely fine soul, but the bar is high if you aren't going to do more with it.

Sonically, this is good soul. I'm always down for that kind of throwback sound and glad when we get it. Burke is clearly good at it and knows how to master his instrument to make it do what he wants it do, so good for him! That said, it does suffer from some of the lyrical tropes of the genre and time. These may be at odds with Burke's personal ethos (he was married to the same woman without cheating for 40 years during which he released this album - and he came of retirement to release an anniversary album for her). But at the same time, these are not great tropes and I'm docking a star for it.

this was a really warm album, but it also didn't register much for me. i mostly remember feeling comfy so I'll give it a 3

I dunno, it was probably good at the time. Hard to hold up for 60 years.

This is #day359 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and… this was a pretty cool-sounding rock'n'soul, if you will. That's a classic record in the category of a 3 out of 5 to me. That is, I appreciate the historical value, and I don't mind listening to it, even though the music itself is quite outside of my wheelhouse. Love the bluesy undertones, though. Looking forward to #day360.

Solid! Especially if you're into old rock and roll music. Had no problem listening to it. I love old school music thanks to my grandparents.

Красиво, хорошо, плавно

Great voice, of course. The production is so . . . old-fashioned, though. And not in an appealing way. For instance: songs that are spoken more than sung. Or: background singers that would make more sense these days in an amateurish radio ad. Etc. This is an album that looked backward (to the 50s) and not ahead to the R&B and rock revolutions that were already breaking.

Definitive ‘60’s soul. A bit darker lyrically than most of his peers in that era, but still quite beautiful. Easy five stars.

Wikipedia says he’s the fourth best soul singer, though they don’t mention Sam Cooke. Still – I’m surprised I’ve never heard of him. He has a fantastic range, and a good voice when he goes more bluesy. I can do without the Nat King Cole adjacent songs. But the other stuff is really good.

Great album! Mix of rock, soul, gospel and funk!

Atlantic's rawer sound is my kind of soul.

Absolutely brilliant voice. Some of the arrangements are a little too schmaltz for my taste but others are just classic soul

pristojno, solidno, al nije moj đir

What a lovely voice. Unfortunately I’ve decided I will drop at least one point for instances of “little girl” or anything creepier in a romantic song

It’s light and airy, first track is a banger

4/5. Good blues sound, I like this album !

It was nice, really nice voice, I would put this album while I cook or a family reunion

drei bis vier

Great voice, massive appearance

This was a treat. Solomon has a great voice, very soulful and smooth. It was a lot of fun to listen to.

#DÍA 12: 1001 Discos Que Hay Que Escuchar Antes De Morir (English Translation Below) Yendo bastante atrás en el tiempo, a un momento del que he escuchado poca música, así que es genial poder empezar a explorarlo. Solomon Burke fue nombrado como el “rey del Rock ‘N Soul”, un término que deriva del matrimonio entre ambos estilos musicales (aunque aquí en AOTY se menciona como Rhythm and Blues, mejor conocido como R&B). Ha sido enriquecedor escuchar muchas ideas que serían tan influyentes en literalmente toda la música por venir, ya sea los Beatles, el R&B más contemporáneo o el Hip Hop, fijo que algún sample se ha hecho de este álbum. Es una lista completa de canciones de amor, sea de un corazón roto, amor imposible o un deseo incontrolable de amar. La voz de Solomon Burke es cálida y expresiva como poco, emociona con facilidad y puedo entender con facilidad por qué se le dio tal título en su día. Por otro lado instrumentalmente es bastante sólido, me gustaría buscar quién tocó la guitarra de este LP porque me ha parecido un estilo encantador. Eso sí, no es la experiencia de álbum más increíble que exista, aunque es normal dado el entendimiento que había por entonces del formato. En general ofrece temas sólidos del género, bien sentidas y que dan una imagen de época interesante. Favoritas: Cry to Me, Goodbye Baby (Baby Goodbye), If You Need Me, Can’t Nobody Love You, Won’t You Give Him (One More Chance) Menos favorita: Hard, Ain’t It Hard #DAY 12: 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die Going quite a ways back in time, to a moment from which I've heard little music, so it's great to start exploring it. Solomon Burke was named the "King of Rock 'N Soul," a term that comes from the marriage between both musical styles (although here on AOTY it’s mentioned as Rhythm and Blues, better known as R&B). It’s been enriching to hear so many ideas that would become incredibly influential in literally all music to come — whether it's the Beatles, more contemporary R&B, or Hip Hop — I’m sure some sample has been taken from this album. It’s a full list of love songs, whether about heartbreak, impossible love, or an uncontrollable desire to love. Solomon Burke’s voice is warm and deeply expressive — it stirs emotion with ease, and I can clearly understand why he was given such a title in his time. On the other hand, instrumentally it’s quite solid; I’d like to find out who played guitar on this LP because I find the style to be quite charming. That said, it’s not the most incredible album experience ever, which is understandable given the limited understanding of the album format at the time. Overall, it offers solid tracks of the genre, pretty heartfelt, and giving an interesting picture of the era. Favorites: Cry to Me, Goodbye Baby (Baby Goodbye), If You Need Me, Can’t Nobody Love You, Won’t You Give Him (One More Chance) Least favorite: Hard, Ain’t It Hard

Rock & Soul – Solomon Burke (1964) | Soul / R&B | Avg: 8.75 | Favorite Song: “Cry to Me”* Rock & Soul by Solomon Burke is one of those records that feels like a masterclass in delivery. Nearly every track on here hits, and Burke’s voice carries it all—he’s equal parts preacher, crooner, and soul shouter. “Cry to Me” is the clear standout, and honestly, it’s one of the most emotionally resonant performances in ’60s soul. But even beyond that, the consistency across the record is striking. Most of these songs hover around the 8.5 to 10 range, which tells me this album never really loses its grip. There’s a timelessness to Burke’s phrasing and the way he leans into every line like it matters. Whether it’s an upbeat R&B shuffle or a slow-burning ballad, he finds the pocket and owns it. This isn’t flashy soul—it’s soul with weight, grit, and conviction. The record is short, but there’s no bloat, no filler. Just twelve tight, impassioned cuts. It’s easy to see how this laid the groundwork for later soul giants, but even on its own, Rock & Soul holds up beautifully.

Best Song: Cry to Me Feels like it could be the Bull Durham soundtrack. I liked it! This dude's voice must have gotten him all the women or men, whatever he liked.

Not for me. Probably too 60s.

coherent album, just no songs I'd put in my daily playlist.

4.5

3.5

3.5

Great collection of songs, strangely cohesive despite being recorded over three years. (At least in early 60s terms.) I absolutely love his style does remind me a bit of early James Brown before he was the Godfather of Funk. But Brurke really does have his own stamp as well... Solid 60s soul album 9.1 ★★★★½

Olz-tiney soul, quite good. 3.5 stars

This is my preferred flavor of soul music -- the early 60s southern soul that inspired a lot of the British rock bands of the 60s. It's a great album with seven of the albums 12 tracks becoming hit singles. "Cry to Me", "If You Need Me", and "You're Good For Me" are the clear standouts here, but the whole album is quite strong. 4.5 stars.

3.5

Old King Solomon was a merry old soul… yeah, man! His personal life on quick glance is ‘massively’ more interesting than this album in fact. He ended up fathering 21 sprog which is a figure Elon Musk is still a third of the way to matching and on top of that he had 90 grand sprog. In the time leading up to his death from pulmonary embolism after being warned not to travel he weighed 350 pounds, looking like a cross between Ceelo Green and Jabba The Hutt and he insisted on performing on a throne which he had to be wheeled, forklifted or even air craned onto. In terms of this record specifically and its musical value, it’s a somewhat warm, amiable, silky sixties soul venture that gets just a little crusty and samey over its runtime. The key high points are Cry To Me because it’s a bit more classic and impassioned and is used in Dirty Dancing, Won’t You Give Him (One More Chance) because it’s janglier and parts of it sound like Sunny and also Jim Reeves cover He’ll Have To Go because Jim Reeves and He’ll Have To Go. Not a rock solid 4 overall. More of a shaky 3.5.

2.92

you listen after a break up or at a slow dance at a wedding

If You Need Me to tell you to listen to this album, then Goodbye Baby.

Thought this album was gorgeous. I love his voice. I think the songs were sometimes a bit repetitive but I didn’t mind too much because I liked his voice so much. Fav song: Cry to Me Least fav: Won’t You Give Him (One More Chance)

Have respect for him because he sung one of my favourite songs in the wire (fast train) but not hugely into this album. Didn’t move me Specific rating- 3.3 Fav song- cry to me Least fav- he’ll have to go

Very nice chill vibes! relaxing and calm; good for cleaning

What an incredible voice! Which is why it's a shame that some of the songs on the album don't have him demonstrating how amazing his voice is. Favourite song: Cry to Me Least: Hard, Ain't It Hard

This was really soulful and really positive. Mo-town vibe, great vocal performance. Unfortunately, my son came up to me and spent most of the album listening to Roald Dahl's 'The Enormous Crocodile's on my knee (an excellent performance from me!). It provided suitable accompanying music to the excellent voices I used to Humpy Rumpy and Mugglewump the monkey. 4 Stars.

It's fine. It's a good soul (or Proto-Soul?) album from 64. It has a lot of the "sameness" throughout the album as a lot of these early releases did. I enjoyed it quite a bit, but it didn't really grab me as much as Sam Cooke's live album, or Isaac Hayes' debut did. 2

Se forja un sonido desde el sur. Solomon Burke es quien prendió la luz del nuevo género Rock ’N Soul en pleno auge de los derechos civiles en EE.UU. El nombre del álbum ya es un statement en sí mismo, y le da el lugar que merece en esta generación azarosa de discos. Ayudó a que Atlantic Records se convirtiera en una meca con santos de mi devoción: Aretha Franklin, Isaac Hayes, Otis Redding o Sam Cooke. Su timbre de voz, los coros góspel y sus letras son un claro ejemplo de que es imposible escuchar este disco sin ser arrastrado a los años 60 —como elogio y como límite. Es un álbum que parece pausado en el tiempo, una cápsula perfecta para romantizar la nostalgia de una época no vivida. “If You Need Me” y “Cry to Me” muchos las reconocen por su aparición en Glee (o películas románticas), pero fueron piedras fundacionales del soul sureño en los años 60. Están lejos de ser simple relleno melódico. Es un gran disco si se lo toma por lo que es, sin exigirle más: un álbum de su época con una performance vocal exquisita, que va del discurso empoderado de iglesia al susurro cariñoso de una caricia. Siento que le dedicaría una canción de Solomon Burke a alguien que amo, para exigirle un dulce abrazo que contenga despues de volver a casa de estar romantizando la nostalgia por tanto tiempo que hasta hizo delicado el sonido de extrañar.

Really enjoyed his voice Best Song: If You Need Me Rating: 7.0/10 (Good) Stars: 4/5

I like the space on this album. The songs are deceptively simple but each element is carefully crafted. It is a little one note though. Cheesy lyrics but that’s what this music is. Nice voice and harmonies too. Fav tracks - Cry to me - Just Out of Reach - Won’t You Give Him One More Chance - He’ll have to go

Meh

A little more gospel-y than I would like

It is really hard to judge these early rock and roll albums because we are so much more familiar with all that follows. But this is a gem. It might be even better because I didn't know all of the songs, but regardless "Rock 'N Soul" is an apt title as Mr. Burke delivers gutsy vocals. And the production value (though naturally spare) comes through marvelously. This was a real treat!

The Good: We get Soulful Rock! The Bad: Turns out to be Rockful Soul… The Ugly: Last name not being Grundy… Obviously it is a great thing when one get’s to listen to some soul music after the amount of shit that I’ve had to endure through so far… however, any album, and I mean ANY album, by Otis Redding blows this out of the water… so why am I listening to this one? Sure, the opening tune is a fucking gem, and should be on everyone's 5* playlist. Yet the rest of the album is neither fish nor fowl… and I really wanted to have a religious experience while listening to Mr Burke preach to me… Also, as a Public Service Announcement to all who might be curious… don’t go playing the album which finally got Solomon a Grammy… what a piece of shit that was. His voice is stellar, and we know he’s got soul… but this album is just… not worthy of more than 2*… but I’ll bump it up thanks to Cry To Me 3*

Probably could enjoy a bit more if it was the type of music that I listen to.

I quite enjoyed this

Good... not first 60s soul record I'd reach for though.

kinda boring imo. i mean i guess it was perfectly pleasant? sometimes i wonder why i am doing this

🐣🤷🏻‍♂️

Tältä aikakaudelta on kyllä parempaakin kuin tämä

Ny alkais riittää tää kaipuun unhous ja menetetyn rakkauden palvonta. Voisko joku laulaa välillä viskistä, ruosteesta ja panemisesta....no tän pysty sentään kuuntelemaan vaikka laulu ei vaihtunutkaan

Kyllä tää ihan groovas! ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Tykkäsin! Helppo kuunneltava, ei tullut epämiellyttäviä ylläteitä tällä albumilla.

Solomon Burke had great voice, there's no disputing that, and this is a good listen but it's no more than that for me. This album lacks variety, with most of the songs sounding somewhat similar. Also the cover of this album is awful. Three stars. Would I listen to this again? No. Would I buy this album? No. 1. "Cry to Me" (Bert Russell) – 2:27 - 4 Stars. 2. "Just Out of Reach" (Virgil Stewart) – 2:46 - 3 Stars. 3."Goodbye Baby (Baby Goodbye)" (Wes Farrell, Bert Russell) – 3:16 - 3 Stars. 4. "If You Need Me" (Robert Bateman, Wilson Pickett, Sonny Sanders) – 2:29 - 3 Stars. 5. "Can't Nobody Love You" (James Mitchell) – 2:30 - 3 Stars. 6. "Someone to Love Me" (Sonny Burke) – 2:59 - 3 Stars. 7. "You're Good for Me" (Don Covay, Horace Ott) – 2:45 - 3 Stars. 8. "Won't You Give Him (One More Chance)" (Joseph Martin, Winfield Scott) – 2:31 - 3 Stars. 9. "Hard, Ain't It Hard" (Woody Guthrie)[10][12] – 2:45 - 3 Stars. 10. "You Can't Love Them All" (Bert Berns, Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller, Nugetre) – 2:40 - 3 Stars. 11. "Beautiful Brown Eyes" (Sonny Burke, Bert Russell) – 3:42 - 3 Stars. 12. "He'll Have to Go" (Audrey Allison, Joe Allison) – 3:16 - 3 Stars. Total - 37 Average - 3.08

It was okay. It was good,but not my thing to be honest. I enjoyed it, it's good music, but nothing which says great music.

Gorgeous, great diy music as it happens! But who hurt this man

joohoh harvinaisen laimeaa settiä. en nyt odottanutkaan mitään nobelikirjallisuutta mutta miten voi sanoa näin vähän asioita. solomonin ääni toimii enemmän instrumenttina kun minään kertojana. piispa piispa mitä saarnoja tällä kertaa jahas ei mitään? ööh marttini ja skotti ja muut kynäviekot nyt vähän vähän pudottanut diskopallon käsistään lattialle.. ehkä pappi vois ensi kerralla jotain omaa materiaalia kokeilla rustata heh.. missä vaiheessa kolme pistettä on muuttunut kahdeksi pisteeksi uskomaton paradigm shift tapahtunut eikä koskaan edes.. näinknö se kieli muuttuu old english to knew english.. cry tome

kind of dope? dude has a great commanding voice

When I saw the year of this album and the name, I figured I would recognize a few of the songs, but I was surprised that I didn't know any. I don't know this generation of music very well, and although it was pleasant, it didn't seem too amazing or outstanding compared to a lot of other songs from this era that I know. It didn't make it bad, but it didn't seem super special to me, but it's entirely possible it was groundbreaking at the time.

give this to me more then like a year ago and i wouldn't of liked it - give it to me now and i'm enjoying it - it's rock and roll but has SOUL in it. and not just soul, but SOUL.

Even though not directly related to this album when I played it was whilst in the beautiful countryside of Australia after playing in the snow with my girlfriend for the first time which felt like a movie and this album just added to the experience. It touched a perfect moment with some sweet and groovy 60s rock and roll with beautiful lyrics. Couldn’t have it any better.

That was an ok listen. For me, born in early 1970s, it's old people/parents' music.

"Cry to me"- es un temazo increíble, una voz impresionante, mucho mejor que Elvis

Very good

The writer of the signature **Blues Brothers** track _Everybody Needs Somebody_, a song I know inside out as a friend and I would regularly perform it on karaoke (I was Jake). So this was a good opportunity to get to know more from the man and, as a fan of early blues, soul and R&B, this is very much in my wheelhouse. Probably doesn't sound as groundbreaking as perhaps it did in 1964 but gave enough on first listen and one to explore further.

I really did'nt absorb this but it was soothing for my morning emails.

Good! Historic R&B

Another exposure album. This one is good and it turns out historically important. What a legacy!

Not too bad for an older album

Good soul for your soul

It isn't something I will probably listen to again but I enjoyed it for what it was. Soothing tunes, not boring.

Dikke prima

This album gives soulful vibes of a soldier in a far off land, sitting in a dimly lit dive bar at 1am drowning himself in rye while thinking of ladies back home. Thoughts of his current girl and memories of former flames circle in his thoughts, while in the back of his mind he knows he’ll be on the front lines mere hours from now.

Amazing and diverse vocals, everything from silky smooth to rough rock vocals. Songs are good, but not expectionally good. Backing vocals and band are also really good. Really enjoyable listen, but maybe could have more varied song material, especially in the latter part of the record.

More soul than rock. Not my cup of tea but still listenable.

Good fun! I love me some Atlantic Soul but had somehow managed to overlook Solomon Burke, although I recognised quite a few tracks when I had a listen through.

Best song: Cry to Me Worst song: Won't You Give Him (One More Chance) Added: 4/12

Good vibes

Love and soul is in the air! That timbre in his voice!

Never heard the name, but was familiar with some songs. Back when albums were a compilation of songs rather than a theme/concept album. Some good ones on it though.

I will come back to this one.

Great start but quickly turns to mediocrity

This starts off strong with the classic “Cry to Me” but, having reached that peak so early, I felt it quickly descended into mediocrity.

Firstly: what a beautiful voice. Genuinely, heartbreakingly, lovely. Cry To Me was great, particularly the honky-tonk piano bits. I also loved Won't You Give Him (One More Chance) and You Can't Love 'Em All, with its mariachi style brass accompaniment. Also I have weak spot for that 60s slightly-shouty female backing vocal thing that happens on a lot of these songs. I was generally less keen on the slower tracks than the more upbeat ones, as I don't think they lived up to the rest, so that brings down the overall score for me. Every song on this album sounds like it's a hairs breadth away from appearing on an Edgar Wright film soundtrack. As is so often the case, I would like a half mark (3.5) but in the absence of that option: 3/5

Really enjoyable album for the most part. There’s a few tracks that need a couple of listens. He has an amazing voice though. Top Track - Cry To Me

All sounds very similar. Still like the genre.

Приятный голос. Баритон? Я не силен в стиле Soul и не особо он мне по душе. Прослушал альбом бегло. Честно говоря не вижу за что зацепиться. Если бы это было записано в 20-ых годах, вероятнее всего это была бы бомба, разорвавшая все чарты, но альбом 1964 года! Годом ранее Битлы выпустили With THe Beatles! Не понимаю чем же этот альбом заслужил войти в список с громким названием - 1001 альбом который нужно услышать перед смертью.

Great soulfull record. Burke has an amazing voice. Sounds very much like it's time. Which is charming, but also limiting.

Fun but not what I’d often choose to listen to.

3/5

I loved some of the songs on this, but as an entire album, it really dragged. I'll add a bit to my regular rotation but I don't think I'll be revisiting the whole thing.

-Repetitive theme -Nice chorus It's alright

It is targeting mostly for women who felt lonely in general and lean on him.

Pretty standard soul stuff but there are some bangers on here

Hit or miss, late-game “my baby left me and I’m so blue” songwriting. Done better by many others before it

This album is great for demostrated the connection between early rock n roll and soul music. As the title suggests, Solomon Burke had a foot in both worlds. While the later half of the 60s would see rock music shoot off into strange new directions, Burke maintains the classic style and does it perfectly. Burke's sweet and powerful crooning alone is worth a listen. While it's not my favorite album out there, there's definitely something classic about this one.

Great voice but the music as perfectly serviceable as it is - feels restrained to me and lacks much excitement. I imagine the hit singles (all 7!) sounded pretty good in 1964 coming out of the car radio and all sound good in 2025 but never great. A one-off listen as I'm having a difficult time finding anything bad to say about this album but also a difficult time finding anything great to say other than he has a thundering voice too bad the music never matches that voice.

Solid album but felt a little boring after a while. Definitely well made just repetitive and slow paced.

Light hearted but predictable

Listened through. He’s a good singer. Obviously old production

First song slaps then idk meh

OK, not my thing but easy enough

Silky, soulful and rockin. Timeless.

Pleasant enough for a listen but probably won't return to it.

Umm...not much to say about this one. It's good. He seems to have influenced quite a few others, even if not achieving the same popularity as them.

I really liked the album, not enough to listen to it again, but was a great listen!

Man, I love the blues, and I'm so glad this album list has had so many bluesy artists.

I enjoyed this album but didn’t know any of the songs though some of them sounded vaguely familiar.

Solid throwback

Sunday-roast music... I mean it's pleasant enough background music at least. 2/5

Beautiful

I've heard a few of these songs before, but I loved listening to the entire album. The album was really short, only 34 minutes!

Solid soul album. Definitely need to be in a certain mood to appreciate it, not a regular listen for me.

Listening to this album was a treat for the ears. Solomons range with his voice kept me hooked and I favorited a majority of this album.

Another artist I’ve never heard of before. First things first, this guys voice is absolutely incredible. It’s just unbelievably smooth. The backup vocalists? Also incredible. My biggest problem with this album as a whole is simply that nothing stands out, and it’s very similar the entire way through. That isn’t a big problem, I just don’t particularly love it enough to give it anything past a 3. Objectively this guy is a fantastic singer, and I can easily appreciate that. Personal enjoyment though, it’s just ok. Would I listen to it again? No, but that’s also ok. Not really my thing, but I’m very glad I listened to it in general. Favorite song? I also have no idea. Let’s go with “You’re Good for Me.”

Hard to be impartial with anything from the "Dirty Dancing" soundtrack. Otherwise, the rest was all new and just OK. Better than most of the last three weeks' worth of albums, but not something I'd revisit.

One of the tracks is on the Dirty Dancing soundtrack. As far as I’m concerned that gives the album a baseline of 3. There wasn’t much more to this that I could give it higher. Nothing grossly offensive to knock it down.

This one was pretty to listen to. I knew the first track bc or virality but the others were so good. Listened while I was doing my final summer school assignment and it was a great time.

I think this is one of the greatest albums ever made. Yeah that's about it.

Soul

Good vibes Solomon

Strong album this

This is that just absolute pure, beautiful music that I'm after, joyous.

Great voice, incredible range. Otherwise not that interesting

Yeah, this is a beautiful album. A relaxing listen with high quality music. Solomon Burke has a voice that sounds equivalent to someone you love giving you a hug. The only fault, but it's nitpicking' is that sometimes you feel like there isn't much variety between songs. Still it's a great listen. 4/5

Mainly had on in the background but it was enjoyable. May well give it another crack

If you want to go dancing, this is probably exactly what you need. I don't want to go dancing.

This was soulful and really good for an oldies album. Listened right after the Mariah Carey one and was pleased with the more variety showcased here than on the previous

Big voice. Great tunes. Appreciated the Woody Guthrie feature. Standout tracks are: “Cry to Me” and “Hard, Ain’t it Hard”

Not much for the genre but it’s an ok listen. Probably was the first time I’ve listened to Solomon Burke and could be the last - not something id go searching for.

I’ve never heard of this. It feels like I’m looking at an album from an alternate timeline. Yes indeed, it’s Solomon Burke who is rising up the charts here faster than a speeding bullet. Move on over Patti Dervitz and Patches Muldoon, it’s Burke’s time to shine. The only differences between our universe and that one are the music and of course, the ruling of the gargantuan wart hogs that have humanity under their cosmic spells. Throw on your gas mask, we’re transcending universes. Cry to Me - This was the music Frank Zappa was poking fun at on the Mothers of Invention album. I miss that album. Nah, this is fine. He has a nice voice. The vocal freak outs are pretty great. Unwillingly dragged me into the song. Just Out of Reach (Of My Two Empty Arms) - Speaking of unwilling?? Running from me?? Chains?? This would go pretty hard as a soundtrack introducing the villain of some stalker movie/show. I’m available for hire Hollywood, or Nollywood if I am truly blessed. Goodbye Baby (Baby Goodbye) - These are simple songs. They’re nice though. Good ol’ Solomon is putting the emphasis on SOUL in the horrific amalgamation of words “Rock N’ Soul.” The lyrics remain dumb, but the performance here is great. Like, this song is about going to your girlfriend’s party, TOUCHING (??) her one more time and then dumping her, because, and I quote, “I fed you candy, and you fed me dirt.” Still a banger (banger it was). If You Need Me - The boredom has returned. Nothing to write home about here. Can’t Nobody Love You - Oh my word. Don’t say little girl after all of this. Whoa he’s beefing with every singer of every love song ever. Yeah. Fuck you Ray Charles. Great singer. Some of the most questionable lyrics thus far. Someone to Love Me - This is like an engine that won’t turn over. I found I found I found listen huh I found some listen uhh yeah I uhhh. What was I talking about? You’re Good For Me - NOOOOO. If there is a phrase I never need to hear again, it’s “You’re a bad little girl.” Tragic. One of the worst ones here. Won’t You Give Him (One More Chance) - the backup singers have laid down the gauntlet. One more chance. That’s ALL he needs. He won’t say “little girl” again he swears. Hard, Ain’t it Hard - I just uhh don’t care about this. You Can’t Love ‘Em All - I wonder if this is the same street Nate Dogg referenced in seminal G-Funk epic “Regulate.” This mythical street where groups of women wish to fraternize with every singer to ever release music. Imagine a woman singing this song. Conservatives would get mad, even today. But ol Solomon? Go ahead and love them all you little scamp. Beautiful Brown Eyes - What does Ol’ Joey have to do with this. Joe, pour me another one, listen there was this girl “Did ya love her Solomon.” DONT TALK, JOEY. HOW MANY TIME DO I HAVE TO SAY, THIS IS THE SOLOMON SHOW. Now, this girl, what a girl, she had eyes. The colour? Brown. Isn’t that incredible, Joey? I’d like to raise a glass to my friend Ol’ Joey, and that girl with the normal eye colour and no other discernible features. Wherever she may be. “Can I stop holding this drink now Mr. Burke?” *Glass breaking noises* He’ll Have to Go - Yes, he will. Normally I love a good tearful ballad hating on some cheating scum, but this is a boring closer. This is the kind of album that peaks EARLY. See the highlights for reference. Where there is energy and life for a couple singles, these albums do not deviate off of the theme of obsessive love to the point where it’s so unappealing. It may be induce some eye-rolling but modern courtship and relationships have evolved leagues and eons past whatever is going on here. I found a lot of the pining to be unlikeable and manipulative, and a man can only take so much. Leave this in the alternate warthog dimension. In our quest to consume the succulent meat of the porcine overlords of the other galaxies, we will have to bring some ear plugs. 2-2.5 HIGHLIGHTS: Cry to Me, Goodbye Baby (Baby Goodbye)

A lovely soul album.

One classic song and the rest kind of average but still fun to listen to.

Never heard of him, but it's great! Like a melding of Sam Cooke and Smokey Robinson. Spotify played one song over and it was Everybody Needs Somebody, covered famously by The Blues Brothers.

I mean what can I say, a good ass time

Pretty relaxing voice and in general music. 9.5/10

This is cool. Blends country, soul, rock and funk with great vocals. A good listen.

Grei musikk, ikke noe mer eller mindre.

Nicht meine Art von Musik, aber nett zu hören.

Solomon Burke is legit fantastic. Pretty much classic oldies of the Back to the Future era. Solid songs and just a joy to listen to

I enjoyed the songs you're good for me and you can't move them all - which has a really fun Spanish guitar and brass. Very soulful

Maso

Pretty good some nice old school jazz reminded me of Charles Bradley specifically changes

This one felt like accidentally walking into a bar with some old folks slow dancing with their lovers; you just can't help but smile and let your body move to the beat. It does lack variety between the songs almost giving the sense of the entire album being one long track but it grows on you after a while.

What a find - I've heard of him before but never actually ventured into his work. I absolutely loved it, it's so colourful and full of soul, very lively while feeling honest, not a fabrication. Really enjoyable stuff

Great voice!

Knew I'd love it from the first "goodbyeee" on track one. Feels like I've stumbled on the best hidden gem, and it's easily now one of my favourite albums

Relaxing listen

This album was pretty good. Not my favourite genre but he sang with passion.

i know i write this in a review like once a week, but Cry to Me might be one of the lowkey best songs ever (case in point it was in Dirty Dancing). Solomon Burke has a really great, timeless soul voice and I feel like is very under the radar compared to the greats

Never listened to Solomon Burke but really liked this album. His voice is like a different flavour of sam cooke.

pretty good. what else needs to be said

I love older music and this album is not exception. I’ve always loved how genuine soul music is and this album hits the mark perfectly.

Beautiful voice and beautiful sound. Totally enjoyed and would listen to again.

Probably good for it’s time but not today

His voice is amazing. I love rock n soul music. Enjoyed listening to this in the morning.

Good soul music. Enjoyable listen

It's a solid R&B album. It made me way too sad though haha that's the blues, baby. Not something I'm going to seek out again. "Cry to me" was super familiar, but I can't tell if I've heard the song before or the melody was ripped off by someone else.

3/5