''Man of My Word'' is an album by the American musician

Johnny Adams Laten John Adams Jr. (January 5, 1932 – September 14, 1998), was an American blues, jazz and gospel singer, known as "The Tan Canary" for the multi-octave range of his singing voice, his swooping vocal mannerisms and falsetto. His biggest ...

, released in 1998. It was his ninth album for

Rounder Records Rounder Records is an independent record label founded in 1970 in Somerville, Massachusetts, by Marian Leighton Levy, Ken Irwin, and Bill Nowlin. Focused on American roots music, Rounder's catalogue of more than 3000 titles includes records by A ...

. ''Man of My Word'' was released shortly before Adams's death; it was recorded while his cancer was in remission.

Production

Recorded at Ultrasonic Studios, the album was produced by Scott Billington. Adams's band was headed by

Walter "Wolfman" Washington Walter "Wolfman" Washington (December 20, 1943 – December 22, 2022) was an American singer and guitarist, based in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. While his roots were in blues music, he blended in the essence of funk and R&B to crea ...

, who played guitar on the album. " You Don't Miss Your Water" is a cover of the William Bell song. "Never Alone" is a duet with

Aaron Neville Aaron Joseph Neville (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer renowned for his distinctively smooth, vibrato-heavy tenor and a genre-crossing career that spans R&B, soul, gospel, jazz, country, and pop. He gained national prominence with hi ...

. "Looking Back" was written by

Brook Benton Benjamin Franklin Peay (September 19, 1931 – April 9, 1988), known professionally as Brook Benton, was an American singer and songwriter whose music transcended rock and roll, rhythm and blues, and pop music genres in the 1950s and 1960s, with ...

. Adams became familiar with "Now You Know" through

Little Willie John William Edward "Little Willie" John (November 15, 1937 – May 26, 1968) was an American R&B singer who performed in the 1950s and early 1960s. He is best known for his successes on the record charts, with songs such as " All Around the World" ...

Critical reception

The ''

Los Angeles Daily News The ''Los Angeles Daily News'' is the second-largest-circulating paid daily newspaper of Los Angeles, California, after the unrelated ''Los Angeles Times'', and the flagship newspaper of the Southern California News Group, a branch of Colorado ...

'' wrote that the album finds Adams "in stirring voice, singing as beautifully as ever and maintaining the high standard of excellence in terms of both musicianship and material he set years ago." The ''

Orlando Sentinel The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is the primary newspaper of Orlando, Florida, and the Central Florida region, in the United States. It was founded in 1876 and is currently owned by Tribune Publishing Company. The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is owned by pare ...

'' noted that Adams's "tone is powerfully earthy and rich, and the high notes rise as naturally as columns of smoke." '' The Evening Post'' deemed ''Man of My Word'' "a classic soul album." The ''

Vancouver Sun The ''Vancouver Sun'', also known as the ''Sun'', is a daily broadsheet newspaper based in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The newspaper is currently published by the Pacific Newspaper Group, a division of Postmedia Network, and is the larg ...

'' praised the "funky" "Going Out on My Mind Sale". ''

JazzTimes ''JazzTimes'' was an American print magazine devoted to jazz. Published 10 times a year, it was founded in Washington, D.C., in 1970 by Ira Sabin as the newsletter ''Radio Free Jazz'' to complement his record store. Coverage After a decade ...

'' determined that Adams "sings with pure, soul-stirring emotion ... eis back in classic belting form." ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' concluded that "Never Alone" is "a gorgeous gospel lullaby for those on the brink of Heaven... A swan song has never sounded so sweet."

Track listing

Personnel

*Guitar: Michael Toles,

*Bass: George Porter Jr. *Keyboards: David Torkanowsky *Saxophone: Jim Spake *Brass: Craig Klein, Scott Thompson *Drums: Donnell Spencer Jr. *Backing Vocals: Charles Elam III, Elaine Foster,

References

{{authority control Johnny Adams albums 1998 albums Rounder Records albums