In 1997, Fantasy combined two of
William Bell's classic Stax albums,
Wow... and Bound to Happen, on a single CD. The albums found the soul man in two notably different settings. The last
Bell album that was produced by organist
Booker T. Jones, Bound to Happen is a Memphis-oriented treasure boasting a number of songs that should have been major hits but weren't, including the sweaty "All God's Children Got Soul" and a magnificent remake of
Albert King's "Born Under a Bad Sign." And under
Jones,
Bell shows us how well
Sly & the Family Stone's "Everyday People" works in a Memphis soul setting.
Wow..., meanwhile, marked the first time
Bell didn't record in Memphis. Instead, he recorded in Muscle Shoals, AL under Stax's
Al Bell and went for a consistently sleeker sound and more of a Northern soul orientation.
Wow... isn't quite as strong as Bound to Happen, but it does have its share of impressive material, including "Penny for Your Thoughts" and the hit "I Forgot to Be Your Lover." As it turned out, that sleeker approach would be a primary direction for
Bell in the '70s. ~ Alex Henderson