Soul Survivor - a Biography of Al Green by Jimmy McDonough

 

As much of a rock'n'roller as I am, I have always loved Soul Music, as presented by the greats of the 60's and the 70's, including the sweet, lovin' soul of Al Green. Jimmy McDonough (who also wrote the Neil Young Biography, Shakey) warns the reader right from the start that this will not be a sweet story, though, referencing Al's "autobiography", Take Me To the River, that Al admits he had little to do with, and mentioning his apparent multiple personalities and, an especially compelling story, the death of a woman that he was involved with (ruled as suicide) in his own home. As a minister in Memphis for over 40 years now, Green remains a man of mystery and McDonough does what he can to break down that wall and reveal a bit more of the man that the inconsistent "autobiography" showed.

Strangely, McDonough extensively quotes later-era Gizmos guitarist Dale Lawrence who, as far as I know, has nothing to do with Green, his style of music or his locale. Obviously, McDonough must know Lawrence personally, but it certainly made me do a double take as the first quote is on page four! Jimmy does also quote various other musicians without stating their qualifications other than as "musicians", which is fine, just a little odd.

There are a couple of chapters solely dedicated to Hi Records and the Royal studio and house band, which certainly does have plenty to do with the Al Green sound and is a fascinating tale in and of itself. Once Green was ensconced at Hi, there was a bit of trial'n'error before they starting making hits, but once they did, they were on a roll! Superstardom struck and stayed, bringing Al fame'n'fortune. Since he could not bring the Hi Records studio band on tour, he picked up a group - described as raggedy - that was led by guitarist Larry Lee, probably best known for being part of Gypsy Sun and Rainbows, Jimi Hendrix' Woodstock band! 

McDonough gets into Green's personality, as well, and we find out that along with being a tremendous womanizer, he was not respectful to his musicians or staff, which I was a bit surprised by, for some reason - maybe his laid-back vocal delivery. But, women loved him, to the extent that a crazed fan/ lover actually committed suicide (apparently), which caused his career to start faltering right as it was reaching new heights.

Once he found religion he started his own church and decided to only release gospel records, which led to several Grammys, but a lot of uninspired music. While there is some crazy drama - sex, drugs, violence - during this period of his life, it is less interesting to me than his star-studded soul days. But Jimmy does his best to keep you absorbed throughout these years, as well. I do wish that I had been able to get to Green's church the one time I was in Memphis - it sounds like it is still quite the experience!

As McDonough disparages other writers' version of the Al Green story, I suppose that one should take his interpretation with a grain of salt, as well, but he tells it well and seems to have done his best to get to the true heart of the tale. I'd recommend it!