- Included among the Record Descriptions of Favorite Albums (Part 1).
- Brook Benton’s laid-back R&B stylings and distinctive vocals, not to mention a knack for songwriting landed him on the pop and R&B charts numerous times.
Brook Benton – The Incomparable Brook Benton (1976): This collection of Brook Benton songs is a TV promotional album (it actually came out on TVP Records), and that probably means that the songs are all new recordings rather than the original versions that came out in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s. The upside is that the recording quality is likely better, and there are 20 songs presented here. Typically, “greatest hits” albums have 12 or fewer songs. Brook Benton’s laid-back R&B stylings and distinctive vocals, not to mention a knack for songwriting landed him on the pop and R&B charts numerous times. His best-known crossover hits are “The Boll Weevil Song”, “Rainy Night in Georgia”, and “Shadrack”, a retelling of the Bible story about Shadrack, Meshach, and Abednego.
But Benton had many R&B hits in 1959 and 1960 also, including “It’s Just a Matter of Time”, “Thank You Pretty Baby”, “So Many Ways”, “Kiddio”, and two delightful duets with Dinah Washington, “A Rockin’ Good Way” and “Baby (You’ve Got What It Takes)”. All are included on this album except the two duets.