From a Whisper to a Scream

Esther Phillips’ singing career began in 1950 when she headed out on the road at just 14 years old with the Johnny ‘Godfather of Rhythm and Blues’ Otis band. Her 1972 album on Kudu, the first of seven she’d record for the label, is a 100% bona fide classic soul outing, nominated for a Grammy that eventually went to Aretha Franklin, who promptly presented it to Phillips. Less jazz than the rest of the label’s output, at times the album’s simmering, close-mic’d production, swamp-guitar lines, clarion call horns and country electric piano sound like southern soul, while other tracks are draped in trademark Kudu velvety, high-end orchestration. Phillips’ voice — astringent, taut, swaggering, uncompromising — does exactly what the album title says, moving from soft, hushed and unhurried to snarling and confrontational, changing from dangerous to vulnerable at the change of a chord. Superb album, perhaps her finest.