Solomon Burke Goes to "Nashville"
by Rex Rutkoski
When you call yourself "King" and can get away with it, you must have something pretty special going on.
Enter Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member and Grammy winner "King" Solomon Burke, a musical legend over a very, very long time—almost six decades.
It could be argued that "taste" and "Solomon Burke" have been synonymous in all of the 55 years that the multi-genre singer, songwriter and performer has been sharing his talent with the world. He's been called "the golden voice of heart, wisdom, soul and experience, one of the architects of American music."
If it's true that you can glean an idea of the quality of a person by those with whom he or she chooses to surround themselves, consider that this Philadelphia native's friends included the late Otis Redding, Sam Cooke and Wilson Pickett.
The music that this artist feels in his heart has no walls, no barriers, whether he is expressing himself in soul, gospel, country, jazz or another genre.
"Music is a healing instrument, a healer around the world for everyone," he says. "It has no color barrier or creed. It just has a message: 'If you like me, I'm here. If you don't, stay tuned, something is coming next.'"
Through Burke's storied career, there has always been something coming next. At 67, he remains vital, vibrant and doesn't seem tempted to coast on his accomplishments. "There's lots of songs," he says. At last count, he says, he has recorded 687 of them, the latest on his current album, Nashville.
When he sings the words of others, as he so often has done, he takes his own approach to making a song his own.
Burke says he looks for songs that will tell a story that "will forever be in the hearts of people." On Nashville he is telling those stories again through country. It is his first all-country release.
Buddy Miller, who has collaborated with artists such as Steve Earle and Emmylou Harris, produced it in his Tennessee home, inviting Harris, Patty Griffin, Patty Loveless, Gillian Welch and Dolly Parton to take part.
Burke says he went to have a good time and to renew his spirit and faith in music, and he did. "I wanted to break through into a new market and say 'thank you' to a generation of music supporting me since 1960. I was happy to come to Nashville with Buddy and do a fantastic album. With five country music female royalty, it was just incredible."
Burke says he has been a country fan since he was a child watching Gene Autry and Roy Rogers on Saturday morning TV in Philadelphia. His grandmother permitted two hours of television on Saturdays and Gene and Roy were his companions.
Patsy Cline and Hank Williams are among his favorite artists. Burke had his first Top 10 R&B hit on Atlantic in 1961 with what had been a country ballad, "Just Out of Reach." He also recorded soul-infused interpretations of Jim Reeves' "He'll Have to Go" and Bobby Bare's "Detroit City."
"Country has a way of telling a story within a three-minute period," he says. "It is a fascinating way of expressing your love and sadness and joy. Atlantic Records opened the door to country being played by black artists."
There are some who may believe that Burke has not received the credit that he has deserved through the years. He is philosophical about that. "Credit and recognition are two different things. I'm very grateful for the recognition I received," he says, adding that longevity "is the secret. My grandmother always told me the race does not go to the swift but to those who endure. I've been embraced with so much love and I'm so grateful and thankful and try my best to send that back."
