Dedicated to wife
Ann Peebles
,
Don't Give Up on Love
is
Don Bryant
's first secular album since 1969, the same year he placed a co-writing credit on
This Is Ann Peebles
.
Bryant
also recorded several singles for
Hi Records
during the latter half of the '60s, but he settled into penning songs for other artists and spun some gold with his partner, exemplified by "I Can't Stand the Rain." Long after
devoted all his musical energy to the church,
Hi Rhythm Section
drummer
Howard Grimes
persuaded the singer to perform with him in
the Bo-Keys
's return to R&B felt so right that it led to
. Recorded in Memphis with several of
, including
Grimes
and fellow
Hi
veterans
Charles Hodges
(organ) and
Hubby Turner
(keyboards), as well as bandleader
Scott Bomar
(bass), it stays true to the tradition of late-'60s/early-'70s Memphis soul. Much of that has to do with the enduring might of
's voice. It seizes attention on the opening cover of
Vernon Morrison
and
Don Robey
's "A Nickel and a Nail" -- popularized by
O.V. Wright
, for whom
wrote material -- and seldom loosens its grip through a set that is mostly originals composed by
either alone or with
Bomar
. Out of the new songs, "How Do I Get There" is the standout, a resolute hybrid of gospel, blues, and soul where
sings about the promise of the afterlife.
also goes all the way back to 1960 for an update of "I Got to Know," which he wrote for vocal group
the "5" Royales
, and revisits his "It Was Jealousy," recorded separately during the early '70s by
Otis Clay
Peebles
. This is one pleasant and pleasing surprise. ~ Andy Kellman