Daily Miscellany


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“Bill [Withers'] studio albums were great. I’ll even go to bat for the late ones that no one (including Bill himself) liked. But let’s talk about his live album. It’s called Live at Carnegie Hall, and it’s a document of a show there from late in 1972, though it wouldn’t be released until the following April.

Though it’s not usually mentioned among the best live albums in soul music history, it should be. Withers delivers intense versions of his hits, sometimes leading into the songs with extended commentary (called ‘raps’ in the liner notes). I memorized that record down to the last second. To this day, I can re-create the two-and-a-half-minute spoken intro that leads into ‘Grandma’s Hands.’ "

Music is History by Questlove