The late Brook Benton was said to be a magnificent singer who could handle anything from blues, jazz and soul to country, pop and standards. His version of Tony Joe White's 'Rainy Night In Georgia' – an international smash in 1970 – remains a timeless classic in may people's ears.
There Goes That Song Again is the first ever in-depth study of his life and career as one of America's top hit-makers, and is the result of digging deep into his whole life, as well as the collaboration of two Austrian music experts and long-time Benton fans. Originally published in German in 2010. it has been fully revised and updated, and is now available in English from Music Mentor Books.
The biography by Herwig Gradischnig is based on an album of newspaper cuttings personally compiled by Brook Benton. These contain the singer's views on a wide variety of topics. as well as reviews of his work. Personal interviews conducted in the USA with members of Benton's family have also been included. Much of the text is dedicated to detailed discussion of his recordings and analysis of his distinctive vocal style.
The exhaustive discography compiled by Hans Maitner identifies more than 660 known recordings by Brook Benton. In this, it far surpasses all others published to date, which generally account for only around 300.
The book also contains many rare photographs made available to the authors by the late singer's family.
The entire work was authorised by Brook's widow, Mary, and daughter Vanessa, both keen to see it published.
Weakened from spinal meningitis. Brook died of pneumonia in New York City, aged 56. April 9. 1988. He was survived by his wife, Mary Benton, and five children.
Russell Newmark, The Beat (June 2015)
Originally published in Germany in 2010, this revised and updated version in English is now available for the first time from Music Mentor Books. Clearly a labour of love for its two authors, many will be delighted by this book's appearance. Certainly Brook Benton remains a popular figure, maybe a singer who never received due credit for some fine albums as well as an impressive run of hit singles. Often compared to Nat King Cole, while superficially his smooth baritone is similar, Benton was certainly no copyist. Perhaps he suffered from the same fate as many artists who achieved 'crossover' status, leaving audiences never quite certain of his position in the musical spectrum of the late fifties/early sixties. His hit singles, obviously aimed at the younger pop market contained much more overtly blues and soul styled vocals with a rock beat, whereas his albums tended to be more adult affairs with the emphasis on standards. When, inevitably, the hits dried up, his albums sales were never strong enough to warrant Mercury renewing his contract and thus began the label hopping that would be the pattern of his subsequent career.
As the book details, Benton, born Benjamin Peay (the surname being a slave name harking back to the time when his ancestors worked on a French plantation in South Carolina) was no overnight success. Always wanting to be a professional singer, with musical roots in his church choir, he left his rural home for New York City, where one of his sisters lived, at the early age of 16. Although he returned soon afterwards, he tried his luck again a year later and became a member of a gospel group, Bill Landford & The Landfordaires. Touring with them for three years, the group made some recordings for Columbia before Benton left to join a couple of other gospel groups before rejoining Landford in 1953. They were recorded by RCA in Nashville but were not a great success, so Benton returned to NYC and worked in a variety of jobs, including driving a truck in the garment district. Joining another quartet, The Sandmen. he made some more recordings, including some as a solo, this time for Columbia, but again without any success. He later signed up to RCA and had some recordings issued on the parent label and their Vik subsidiary; again they were all flops. During this period he was also writing songs and it is estimated that he made over 500 demo recordings to try to sell them to other artists. It was his friendship and songwriting collaborations with Clyde Otis that eventually led to his contract with Mercury, when Otis became A & R man at the label. After a decade of trying, Brook hit the jackpot with IT'S JUST A MATTER OF TIME and thus ensued a golden period for him after a decade of struggle.
There have been many useful compilations of his earlier recordings. BROOK BENTON - THE EARLY YEARS (Jasmine JASCD784) compiles 62 tracks from the start of his career, giving plenty of attention to his gospel roots and his demo recordings. The late lamented Taragon label issued THE ESSENTIAL VIK AND RCA VICTOR RECORDINGS (TARCD 1082) in 2001. Jasmine issued IN THE SILKY SMOOTH TONES OF (Jasmine JASCD687) which contains 5 of his Mercury albums, while LET ME SING AND I'M HAPPY (Jasmine JASCD744) has four more albums and some non album singles. Both these sets cover the bulk of his early Mercury output, but unfortunately the copyright extension law is likely to deprive us of ever seeing his subsequent Mercury albums like BEST BALLADS OF BROADWAY, ON THE COUNTRYSIDE and THIS BITTER EARTH released on CD. When he moved on to RCA, this association produced three albums, MOTHER NATURE, FATHER TIME which I do not think has ever made it to CD, next, a fine album of standards, THAT OLD FEELING and finally, MY COUNTRY, these two being coupled on a CD as part of RCA's short lived two on one series about ten years ago. A brief interlude at Reprise yielded one album which sunk without trace (LAURA, WHAT'S HE GOT THAT I AIN'T GOT before he moved to Cotillion, cutting a series of soul based albums, one of which TODAY, contains his last big hit, RAINY NIGHT IN GEORGIA. There were more recordings on minor labels, remakes of his hits for TV promoted packages but his glory days were well behind him and his recording career sadly petered out before his untimely death in 1988.
The book is divided into two main sections. The first, by Herwig Gradischnig, is biographical, but not in a strict chronological sense. It is divided into chapters which are devoted to particular aspects of his life such as his childhood, a survey of his recording career with analysis of his albums, his stage appearances and other headings such as his personality, social commitment, civil rights etc. This non-linear approach has the merit that it is easy to dip into certain parts of the book in any order the reader chooses. The writer has some interesting points of view, whether he is examining Benton's vocal technique in some detail, explaining the celebrated rift between Benton and Dinah Washington or offering his opinions about why Benton's stint at Reprise did not work out.
This format is also sensible because Benton appears to have led an unremarkable existence – he came from a large, closely knit family, there were no scandals, drink or drugs, and the story of an exemplary family man married to the same woman from 1955 until his death in 1988 and with three sons and a daughter, all of whom he was devoted to, would not necessarily make very interesting reading, for all its perceived rarity in the world of showbusiness.
This part of the book takes up the first 212 pages, with the remaining 200+ pages given over to a discography and other statistical information by Hans Maitner. I must confess I turned to this part of the book first because I had lost track of much of Benton's post-Mercury career and found a veritable mine of information here. I did not know, for example, the full extent of the sessions for RCA with Billy May in Hollywood in 1966 which yielded an album's worth of material, most of which has never been released, although five alternate takes did emerge later and appear on the RCA Camden CD THAT OLD FEELING (74321 423542). What would fans of Benton (and Billy May for that matter) give to get their hands on those recordings!
Apart from that revelation, the authors have established that there is clearly a great deal of Mercury material that has never been issued and which I do not suppose will ever see the light of day now, together with some sporadic late recordings which would be interesting to hear. A career which involved more than 600 recordings certainly deserves to be taken seriously. Who knows, perhaps Bear Family might be interested.
Following on from the discography there are lists of USA, UK and worldwide releases in all the various formats - 78s, 45s, LPs, cassettes, tapes, eight track cartridges and CDs, along with copious photographs of record sleeves etc. There is also a section on chart positions in the various categories in the USA, from which I was surprised to see how little success his albums had in terms of chart positions. There follows a list of his recorded compositions and his songs recorded by other artists, all an indication of what a prolific composer he was, providing Nat King Cole with LOOKING BACK, BECAUSE YOU LOVE ME, NOTHING IN THE WORLD and THANK YOU PRETTY BABY for example, Clyde McPhatter with A LOVER'S QUESTION and Johnny Mathis MAY I.
This is an impressively researched and constructed book which will afford endless pleasure to those who admire this artist. It will almost certainly send you, as it did me, to examine your collection of Benton's records, to play some Brook Benton music not heard for a long time and to check what you have and have not got from his discography. Searching the internet proved rather frustrating - those post 1962 Mercury albums are elusive, his Cotillion recordings are not all available and bits and pieces of his later work are poorly represented. And it turns out, I think I have a remake, not the original of A RAINY NIGHT IN GEORGIA!
It would be nice to think that this book will lead to an upsurge of interest in a singer who now seems sadly neglected. Whether or not it does, his fans will no doubt be delighted with this impressive and fact-filled volume, packed with photos, memorabilia and easy to follow information. Well recommended.
Gerry Stonestreet, In Tune International (July 2015)
The music shelves in bookshop have been groaning under the weight of pulp that extols the virtues of the latest pop sensations for far too long. As a result, the balance of talent to the written word can be so disproportionate, true trailblazers of the industry like Brook Benton rarely get a look in. To date, this supreme song-writer with the gilt-edged larynx has been largely ignored by the 'rock' cognoscenti and the media in general. Aside of Carol Wilson Mack's card-carrying compendium 'Fan Loyalty', which appeared back in August 2013, the man has warranted very little penmanship of any real significance. That is, until now.
'There Goes That Song Again: Brook Benton'. by Herwig Gradischnig and Hans Maitner, is a generous 427-page overview that sets out to correct the asymmetry once and for all. The two Austrian-born authors are devotees of long standing, and together they've come up with a businesslike biography/discography that does right by the former Benjamin Franklin Peay. The way in which the guys have gathered their facts is unusual to say the least, as they've been given access to a collection of newspaper cuttings that the artist himself accumulated over the years. The engaging content brings about a rare insight into Brook's beliefs and opinions on a wide range of issues, along with many reviews of his recordings and live appearances. The newly-discovered detail is distributed throughout the chapters ('Brook Benton the Family Man', 'Brook Benton's Social Commitment' etc), thus offering an entirely new viewpoint on this vanguard of vocal excellence.
As far as NDT readers are concerned, the narrative goes well beyond the point where Brook launched his career at the dawning of rock n roll. Yet the detail that unfolds remains fascinating and enlightening throughout. In its efforts to present the facts, the discography section is so precise it takes up the entire second half of the book. Starting in December 1949 with the gospel sides that Brook made with The Landfordaires, and running through to his final sides from the mid 1980s, the draft itemises over 600 recordings.
The big plus, though, has to be the wealth of period-tight photos (particularly a shot with The Rat Pack) that illustrate the layout admirably. One good friend who'd undoubtedly appreciate the content, would be mastering engineer Malcolm Davies. Back in the mid-'90s, I paid a visit to Malcolm during the time he was working at PRT Studios in London's West End. On the day in question he'd been given a rap single to master and he was bored out of his mind. Looking to regain his sanity, he stopped what he was doing and lined up a couple of Benton tracks he'd already mastered. Cranking up the volume, he took great pride in demonstrating the tonal resonance that Brook delivered so precisely when he was at his peak at Mercury. We both agreed that the clarity and finesse on show were nothing short of extraordinary – living proof, in fact, that the microphone clearly loved the man. In a not dissimilar fashion, fans and new hands alike will love Herwig Gradischnig's and Hans Maitner's welcome biography. Published by Music Mentor Books, 'There Goes That Song Again: Brook Benton' comes highly recommended.
Stuart Colman, Now Dig This (August 2015)
Originally published in Germany in 2010 as the last word on Brook Benton's remarkable recording career and equally colourful private life, "There Goes That Song Again" is now updated and republished in English as a tall paperback (April 2015) by York's 'Music Mentor Books'. And I have to say it's a magnificent tome that comes buffed up with a stupendous Worldwide Discography stretching an impressive 200 pages (it has also has info on chart hits, him as a songwriter, sheet music, his songs recorded by other artists, his TV and Film appearances etc).
Not quite Soul nor Rhythm 'n' Blues, South Carolina's Brook Benton was often viewed as Easy Listening by his record companies and I suppose by his public, but this serious work of affection goes a long way to arguing that his vocal prowess and way with a tune means he should now be seen on the same par as the greats, like say Sam Cooke. Yet like Jackie Wilson and Bobby Womack, Benton is a Black American Soul Singer and First Class Entertainer who's in danger of being a chart/hitmaking footnote instead of being revered – a talent that time has forgotten and criminally so.
Penned by Austrian authors and lifelong fans Herwig Gradischnig and Hans Maitner, you get 434 pages of in-depth study that includes interviews conducted with family members. Part 1 visits his early childhood, his rise to fame on Mercury, RCA, Reprise and Atlantic's Cotillion Records, his Stage Craft, his Personality and his social commitment to youth projects. The text from Pages 22 to 212 is peppered with great black and white period photos – on stage with Ella Fitzgerald and Dinah Washington – his 1959 tour bus – with Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin of the Rat Pack – in the studio with Margie Singleton and Damita Jo – posters for concerts with Mary Wells and The Penguins – mobbed by audiences in South Africa's Johannesburg in 1971 and so on... The last few pages even reproduce the American Funeral Service of 1988, Obits and a final shot of his headstone (Brook Benton, 1938-1988).
The Discography has 660 entries (apparently 300 more than previous printed efforts) and begins with his December 1949 recordings with Bill Landford, The Sandmen and Chuck Willis in 1954 and 1955 and his own debut with "Ooh" in 1955 on Okeh 7058. It then goes into his long and productive stint with Mercury Records (duets with Dinah Washington) and there's even US Radio Spots and Transcription Discs. The exhaustive US Discography is followed by a UK equivalent, then a Worldwide section which features countries like Angola, Hong Kong, New Zealand and one LP from Uruguay! Smartly, the endless lists are broken up with LP sleeves, label bags, demo copies etc...
American columnist Dick Kleiner said of Brook Benton's deep affecting tone - "...He has a rich soft voice and a way of using it that makes a sound like a breeze though a field of cello strings..." After reading this wonderful book - I'm inclined to think he was so much more. An absolute must own for fans and a great read for the curious. Well done to all involved...
Mark Barry, Mark Barry's Books on Music (August 2015)
Considering Brook Benton's immense popularity in his native U.S.A. during his heyday, it is sad that the task of writing a book about him has been left to two Austrians. But academic Gradischnig and former DJ and record producer Maitner have risen to the task well in this extremely thorough book.
Born Benjamin Peay in Carolina in 1931, Brook followed a career path common to many black artists of his era: a teenage apprenticeship in gospel groups, a tentative time with a secular vocal group (The Sandmen) who backed Chuck Willis on disc as well as cutting their own numbers, before signing with Epic and Vik with only moderate success, before arriving at Mercury in 1959. The label recognised the suitability of his velvety baritone voice for interpreting ballads, and his run of hits (some of them written by him with long-term collaborator Clyde Otis) began. He was a chart regular throughout the 1960s and into the 1970s and remained musically active until shortly before his death from meningitis at the sadly early age of 56.
But this book is not a biography. Rather, it is an appreciation. The first half discusses every Benton album from 1959's 'It's Just A Matter Of Time' to 1983's 'Beautiful Memories Of Christmas', whose very title smacks of a career well past its peak. During these essays, Brook's singing technique is explained in detail: his rhythmic tension, his sense of swing, his smoothness, his broad vocal range which went right down to a low D, his careful articulation, his expression of emotions. We learn the reasons for Brook recording only four songs with Dinah Washington despite their tremendous commercial impact, and get a taste of his activities cutting radio and television commercials for Miller Beer inter alia.
After brief sections about Brook's religious faith, his social conscience (he was a strong supporter of youth charities and movements), his family life and his stagecraft, the book launches into Maitner's complete Brook Benton discography. The epithet 'complete' is not used lightly: there's 150 pages of it, with comprehensive personnel listings which spring some surprises (vocal groups The Moments and The Sweet Inspirations, drummer Panama Francis, guitarist Mickey Baker) and an exhaustively researched section of international releases – if you want to know about his record releases in Angola, Taiwan or Jamaica, a country in which he influenced numerous younger artists, you've come to the right place. Handsomely produced and fully illustrated, this scholarly book tells you just about everything you wanted to know about Brook Benton, and more.
Mike Atherton, Blues & Rhythm (October 2015)
