LP Review: Extension of a Man
Released: 1973
LP Charts: #18 R&B, #69 pop
Yep, this is peak Donny Hathaway. Artistically at least. Commercially we’ve already hit the peak with the dreadful Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway (D). But who cares about commerce in the long run? Extension of a Man is an example of how you solidify a place in soul music history.
After the album Donny Hathaway (B-) leaned suuuuuper heavy on covers and outside songs, Extension of a Man found Hathaway back in the writing game in a major way. He (co-)wrote six of the 10 songs here. Wisely, he also gave over full production duties to Arif Mardin. Mardin had produced half the songs on Donny Hathaway providing a richness that was lacking on Hathaway’s somewhat clunky debut album Everything is Everything (C+). With full production control, Mardin’s ability to enrich Hathaway’s ideas further escalates on Extension of a Man.
This is a great example of how giving up a little control can jump-start an artist’s creativity and quality of output.
That production sheen from Mardin and the inspired mind of Hathaway are immediately on display with the opening “I Love the Lord; He Heard My Cry”, which is an operatic, cinematic instrumental. Strikingly gorgeous as a choir sings voicelessly while oboes, tubas, and other instruments typically unheard on soul albums go to work. The instrumental segues via twinkling electric keyboard right into “Someday We’ll All Be Free”. Honestly, when I first heard those two songs back-to-back, I never wanted to hear “Someday” by itself ever again. It NEEDS “I Love the Lord” as its 5:30 intro to fully reach its potential.
I dunno, I guess that “I Love the Lord; He Heard My Cry” sounds like the birth/creation of the universe and then “Someday We’ll All Be Free” is humanity coming into being in that universe and trying to make sense of existence. Maybe I’m reading too much into it? Eh, it sounds great to me whatever the meaning Hathaway intended for it all.
After the heavenly first two tracks we get more great stuff with the easy-listening “Flying Easy” and the jazz-funk “Valdez in the Country”. The latter is purely instrumental while the former has bouncy lyrics befitting the title. In both Hathaway’s elegant electric piano dances wonderfully.
“I Love You More Than You Ever Know” (#20 R&B, #60 pop) is the album’s first cover… and wooooo weeee does Donny chew into this old Blood, Sweat & Tears song. I really like the original, but this cover supersedes it in every way. It just gets so raw and bluesy and filthy in a way that the song’s original singer (and author) Al Kooper couldn’t convey.
So Side One of this album is one of the best in ‘70s soul music, which means Side Two couldn’t possibly live up to that standard… or could it?
It couldn’t.
But that doesn’t mean it’s a total collapse.
“Come Little Children” (#67 R&B) is satisfactorily funky R&B that overstays its welcome by a good minute. Meanwhile “Magdalena” sounds like a left over track from the Come Back, Charleston Blue soundtrack (which I’m not reviewing cuz it stinks and is a waste of my time) and hearkens back to ragtime. Not a bright moment for the LP, obviously.
Far more pleasing to the ear is the melodic and hypnotic “Love, Love, Love” (#16 R&B, #44 pop). Easily the most pop-friendly song Donny ever recorded. Hathaway also essentially revisits his song “The Ghetto”, but in smoothed out bluesy form via the “The Slums”. Instead of focusing on Latinized percussion and keyboard soloing, Hathaway has a blues guitar complement his piano work.
The album concludes with the shimmering ballad “I Know It’s You” written by Leon Ware. I think it’s the one time on the album where Hathaway tries to oversing, but thankfully the backing vocalists are there to keep the song on track. And the string arrangement is superb.
ALBUM GRADE: A-
If not for the marring presence of “Magdalena” this would be an A album. Overall just a great great great soul LP and the last official piece of music released in Hathaway’s lifetime.
Song Scores
I Love the Lord; He Heard My Cry: 9/10
Someday We’ll All Be Free: 8/10
Flying Easy: 8/10
Valdez in the Country: 8/10
I Love You More Than You Ever Know: 8.5/10
Come Little Children: 6/10
Love, Love, Love: 7.5/10
The Slums: 7.5/10
Magdalena: 4/10
I Know It’s You: 7/10