1975 - Millie Jackson - Still Caught Up

1975 - Millie Jackson - Still Caught Up (Flac)

Following on from 1974’s concept album of backbiting, recriminations, infidelity and jealousy, “Caught Up“, which had Jackson singing first in the role of mistress on side one, then as the wronged wife on side two, here she reverses the situation, the wife begins the album, the mistress ends it. It is easily the equal of the first album, if not its superior, crammed full of soul and passion and a fantastic sound quality. Jackson’s voice throughout is simply superb.

“Loving Arms” is a superb, mega-soulful, kick posterior, emotional opener. It is one of those tracks that, for some reason, is doctored to make it sound like it is a live track, which it was not. “Making The Best Of A Bad Situation” is another excellent soul ballad, with the wife getting on with it, despite her no-good husband still having his affair. “The Memory Of A Wife“, is a thumping, punchy attempt by the wife to tell the mistress of her good points and what a great wife she has been to her feckless husband. The wife’s last stand is on “Tell Her It’s Over“, telling her husband to tell his mistress he is coming back to his family. (FunkMySoul)

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1974 - Millie Jackson - Caught Up

1974 - Millie Jackson - Caught Up (Flac)

Taking the drama of a love triangle to logical extremes, Millie Jackson's Caught Up turns the pitfalls of tainted love into the basis for a concept album (the seeds for soul music's explicit treatment of the topic having been planted by James Carr's "Dark End of the Street"). While the "other woman's" view is taken up initially on cuts like the R&B hit "If Loving You Is Wrong I Don't Want to Be Right," the wife's plight is covered on the second half of the disc with revealing titles like "It's All Over but the Shouting." Jackson also delivers some of her patented racy commentary on the appropriately named "The Rap," while showing equal vigor in the album's wealth of fine vocal performances, including an impressive cover of Bobby Womack's "I'm Through Trying to Prove My Love to You." Caught Up's standout track, though, is the version of Bobby Goldsboro's "Summer" that closes the record. Seemingly out of sync with the overriding concept, the song touches upon a girl's loss of innocence to an older man. One soon realizes, though, that beyond sexual awakening, Jackson is really emphasizing the point of no return: After the epiphany, one is sent hurdling toward the power struggles and politics of adult relations, including, potentially, the moral crossroads of infidelity. Luckily, as soon as your mind overloads from pop semiotics, the in-the-pocket grooves supplied by the Muscle Shoals Swampers provides the needed salve. Jackson shows both brains and soul on this fine release, creating what might be the only concept album one can dance and drink to. (AllMsic)

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