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First things first. The late Luther Ingram’s 1972 hit “(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don’t Want To Be Right” is as good a single as has ever been recorded. It’s got it all: stone cold lyrics, inventive arrangement, devastating vocal, meticulous playing and such an ominous feeling of overpowering emotion that all these years later, it’s remains a chillbumper of the highest order. But beyond that, few other hits were heard from Luther Ingram, unless you troll the soul music hotlines with undying enthusiasm. Lo and behold, though, the man was an inspiration on almost everything he ever recorded, going all the way back to his first singles for Ko Ko in 1966. His music, which parallels some of Al Green’s greatest years, is almost his equal. Ingram’s voice is so full of feeling that he makes us an instant believer on crying towel ballads, mid-tempo burners and much, much more. The Muscle Shoal musicians behind him are right there, laying in and laying out in their unerring way of turning notes into a natural wonder. All the way up to the last song, released in 1978, Luther Ingram stood tall knowing that when it came to soul men, no one walked prouder. Hallelujah.
