Etta James discography
| Etta James discography | |
|---|---|
 James in 1990 | |
| Studio albums | 30 |
| Live albums | 3 |
| Compilation albums | 6 |
| Tribute albums | 1 |
| Singles | 58 |
| No. 1 Singles (Overall) | 1 |
| Other appearances | 28 |
The discography for the American singer Etta James consists of 29 studio albums, 3 live albums, and 12 compilations. She has also issued 58 singles, one of which, "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)," reached number 1 on the Rhythm and Blues Records chart in 1955.
As a teenager in San Francisco, California in the early 1950s, James formed a singing trio, which attracted the attention of Johnny Otis, who helped her sign a recording contract with Modern Records in 1954. She recorded "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)," an answer song to the Midnighters' "Work with Me, Annie," with her vocal group, the Peaches, singing background vocals, which topped the R&B charts for four weeks in 1955. The Peaches eventually left the label, and James recorded as a solo act. She had a second Top 10 hit, "Good Rockin' Daddy," in 1955. She recorded for Modern until the end of the decade, without much further success.[1]
After beginning to date Harvey Fuqua, a singer for the Moonglows, James signed with Argo Records, a subsidiary of Chess Records. Producer Leonard Chess believed James had crossover potential in the pop market and backed her material with orchestral arrangements. With this new style, many of James's songs became hits on both the R&B and the pop charts, such as "All I Could Do Was Cry, "At Last," and "Trust in Me."[1] She released her debut album, At Last!, in 1960. It was followed by The Second Time Around in 1961. In 1967, James recorded with a more soul-inflected style and had her first Top 10 hit in three years, "Tell Mama," which was followed by an album of the same name.[1] In the 1970s, her popularity declined on radio, but she remained at Chess records, recording five albums for the label, departing from them with 1975's Etta Is Betta Than Evvah.
After battling drug and alcohol addictions, James returned with her first studio album in nine years in 1989 titled, Seven Year Itch on Island Records. Her two albums in the early 90s for Island and later Elektra, varied in style from contemporary to Soul, but James eventually settled in on the Private Music label.[1] Recording a total of ten albums for the label between 1997 and 2002, her albums included variations of contemporary blues to traditional Jazz, such as her 1997 tribute album to Billie Holiday titled, Mystery Lady: Songs of Billie Holiday. In 2004, she signed with RCA Victor and released Blues to the Bone that same year, followed by a Pop standards release, All the Way, in 2006.[1]
Albums
[edit]Studio albums
[edit]| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [2] |
US R&B [2] |
US Blues [2] |
US Jazz [2] | ||
| 1960 | At Last!
|
68 | — | — | — |
| 1961 | The Second Time Around
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1962 | Etta James
|
— | — | — | — |
Etta James Sings for Lovers
|
— | — | — | — | |
| 1964 | Queen of Soul
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1966 | Call My Name
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1968 | Tell Mama
|
82 | 21 | — | — |
| 1970 | Etta James Sings Funk
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1971 | Losers Weepers
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1973 | Etta James
|
154 | 41 | — | — |
| 1974 | Come a Little Closer
|
— | 47 | — | — |
| 1976 | Etta Is Betta Than Evvah!
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1978 | Deep in the Night
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1980 | Changes
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1989 | Seven Year Itch
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1990 | Stickin' to My Guns
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1992 | The Right Time
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1994 | Mystery Lady: Songs of Billie Holiday
|
— | — | — | 2 |
| 1995 | Time After Time
|
— | — | — | 5 |
| 1997 | Love's Been Rough on Me
|
— | — | 6 | — |
| 1998 | Life, Love & the Blues
|
— | — | 3 | — |
| 1998 | 12 Songs of Christmas
|
— | — | 5 | — |
| 1999 | Heart of a Woman
|
— | — | 4 | — |
| 2000 | Matriarch of the Blues
|
— | — | 2 | — |
| 2001 | Blue Gardenia
|
— | — | — | 1 |
| 2003 | Let's Roll
|
— | — | 1 | — |
| 2004 | Blues to the Bone
|
— | — | 4 | — |
| 2006 | All the Way
|
— | — | — | — |
| 2011 | The Dreamer
|
— | 41 | 2 | — |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||||
Live albums
[edit]| Year | Album details | Chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [2] |
US Blues [2] |
US Jazz [2] | ||
| 1964 | Etta James Rocks the House
|
96 | — | — |
| 1980 | Etta, Red-Hot & Live
|
— | — | — |
| 1980 | Blues From The Big Apple
|
— | — | — |
| 1981 | Live from San Francisco
|
— | — | — |
| 1986 | Blues in the Night Volume One: The Early Show
|
— | — | 10 |
| 1986 | The Late Show: Blues in the Night Volume Two
|
— | — | — |
| 1986 | Jazzvisions: Jump The Blues Away
|
— | — | — |
| 2001 | Burnin' Down the House: Live at the House of Blues
|
— | 1 | — |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | ||||
Compilation albums
[edit]| Year | Album details | Chart positions | Certifications (sales threshold) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [2] |
US Blues [2] |
US Jazz [2] |
UK [3] | |||
| 1963 | Etta James Top Ten
|
117 | — | — | — | |
| 1986 | R&B Dynamite
|
— | — | — | — | |
| 1992 | My Greatest Songs
|
— | — | — | — | |
| 1997 | Her Best
|
— | 13 | — | — | |
| 1999 | 20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection
|
32 | 3 | — | — | |
| 2000 | The Chess Box
|
— | — | — | — | |
The Best of Etta James
|
— | — | — | — |
| |
| 2001 | Love Songs
|
— | 2 | — | — | |
| 2005 | Miss Etta James: The Complete Modern and Kent Recordings
|
— | — | — | — | |
| 2006 | The Definitive Collection
|
— | 1 | — | — | |
| 2007 | Gold
|
— | — | — | — | |
| 2010 | At Last: The Best of Etta James
|
— | — | — | 22 |
|
| 2011 | Who's Blue?: Rare Chess Recordings of the 60s and 70s
|
— | — | — | — | |
Heart & Soul: A Retrospective
|
— | — | — | — | ||
| 2019 | Collected
|
— | — | — | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | ||||||
Singles
[edit]| Year | Song | Chart positions | Certifications | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [2] |
US R&B [2] |
CAN [7] |
UK [3] | ||||
| 1955 | "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)" | — | 1 | — | — | Miss Etta James: The Complete Modern And Kent Recordings | |
| "Hey Henry" | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Good Rockin' Daddy" | — | 6 | — | — | |||
| "W-O-M-A-N" | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1956 | "My One and Only" | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Shortnin' Bread Rock" | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Tough Lover" | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Good Lookin'" | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1957 | "The Pick-Up" | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Come What May" | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1958 | "Sunshine of Love" | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1959 | "I Hope You're Satisfied" (with Harvey Fuqua) | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1960 | "If I Can't Have You" (with Harvey Fuqua) | 52 | 6 | — | — | Etta James | |
| "Spoonful" (with Harvey Fuqua) | 78 | 12 | — | — | |||
| "All I Could Do Was Cry" | 33 | 2 | — | — | At Last! | ||
| "My Dearest Darling" | 34 | 5 | — | — | |||
| 1961 | "At Last" | 47 | 2 | — | 39 | ||
| "Trust in Me" | 30 | 4 | — | — | |||
| "Fool That I Am" | 50 | 14 | — | — | The Second Time Around | ||
| "Don't Cry Baby" | 39 | 6 | — | — | |||
| "Seven Day Fool" | 95 | — | — | — | |||
| 1962 | "Something's Got a Hold on Me" | 37 | 4 | — | — | Etta James / Etta James Top Ten | |
| "Stop the Wedding" | 34 | 6 | — | — | Etta James Top Ten | ||
| "Fools Rush In"
"Next Door to the Blues" (Non-album B side) |
87
— |
—
9 |
— | — | Etta James Sings for Lovers | ||
| "Would It Make Any Difference to You" | 64 | — | — | — | Etta James Top Ten | ||
| 1963 | "Pushover" | 25 | 7 | — | — | ||
| "Pay Back" | 78 | — | — | — | Non-album singles | ||
| "Two Sides (To Every Story)"[A] | 63 | — | — | — | |||
| 1964 | "Baby What You Want Me to Do" | 82 | 35 | — | — | Queen of Soul | |
| "Loving You More Every Day" | 65 | 7 | — | — | |||
| "Breaking Point" | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Mellow Fellow" | — | 34 | — | — | |||
| 1966 | "Only Time Will Tell" | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | |
| 1967 | "I Prefer You" | — | 42 | — | — | Call My Name | |
| "Don't Pick Me for Your Fool" | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Call My Name" | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Tell Mama" | 23 | 10 | 22 | — | Tell Mama | ||
| 1968 | "Security" | 35 | 11 | 46 | — | ||
| "I Got You Babe" | 69 | 32 | 46 | — | Non-album singles | ||
| "You Got It" | 113 | — | — | — | |||
| 1969 | "Almost Persuaded" | 79 | 32 | 71 | — | ||
| "Miss Pitiful" | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Tighten Up Your Own Thing" | — | — | — | — | Etta James Sings Funk | ||
| 1970 | "Sound of Love" | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Losers, Weepers (Part 1)" | 94 | 26 | — | — | Losers, Weepers | ||
| "The Love of My Man" | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1971 | "I Think It's You" | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1972 | "I Found a Love" | 108 | 31 | — | — | Non-album single | |
| 1973 | "All the Way Down" | 101 | 29 | — | — | Etta James (1973) | |
| 1974 | "You Can Leave Your Hat On" | — | 76 | — | — | ||
| "Out on the Street, Again" | — | 84 | — | — | Come a Little Closer | ||
| 1976 | "Jump Into Love" | — | 92 | — | — | Etta Is Betta Than Evah | |
| 1978 | "Piece of My Heart" | — | 93 | — | — | Deep In the Night | |
| "Sugar on the Floor" | — | — | — | — | |||
| 1980 | "Mean Mother" | — | — | — | — | Changes | |
| 1961–1996 | "I Just Want to Make Love to You"[B] | — | — | — | 5 |
|
The Genuine Article: The Best of Etta James |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||||||
Collaborations with Sugar Pie DeSanto
[edit]| Year | Song | Chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [2] |
US R&B [2] | |||
| 1965 | "Do I Make Myself Clear" | 96 | — | Non-album singles |
| 1966 | "In the Basement (Part 1)" | 97 | 37 | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | ||||
B-sides
[edit]| Year | Song | Chart positions | Certifications | A-Side Single | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [2] |
US R&B [2] | ||||
| 1961 | "Dream" | 55 | — | "The Second Time Around" | |
| "A Sunday Kind of Love" | — | — | "Don't Cry Baby" | ||
| "It's Too Soon to Know" | 54 | — | "Seven Day Fool" | ||
| 1962 | "Next Door to the Blues" | 71 | 13 | "Fools Rush In" | |
| 1963 | "How Do You Speak to an Angel" | 109 | — | "Would It Make Any Difference to You" | |
| "I Worry 'Bout You" | 118 | — | "Two Sides (To Every Story)" | ||
| 1967 | "I'd Rather Go Blind" | — | — |
|
"Tell Mama" |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||||
- A^ Also peaked at No. 16 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart.
- B^ Released outside of the United States.
Other appearances
[edit]| Year | Song | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 1962 | "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)" | Alan Freed's Top 15[11] |
| 1985 | "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)" | Back to the Future (soundtrack)[12] |
| 1989 | "At Last" | Rain Man (soundtrack)[13] |
| 1992 | "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)" | Sister Act (soundtrack)[14] |
| 1993 | "There's Something on Your Mind" (with B.B. King) | Blues Summit[15] |
| "Mockingbird" (with Taj Mahal) | Dancing the Blues[16] | |
| 1995 | "At Last" | Father of the Bride Part II (soundtrack)[17] |
| How to Make an American Quilt (soundtrack)[18] | ||
| "Take Me to the River" (with Wayne Jackson and Andrew Love) | The Memphis Horns with Special Guests[19] | |
| 1996 | "It's a Small World"/"When You Wish Upon a Star Medley" | Disney's Music from the Park[20] |
| 1997 | "At Last" | Mad About You (soundtrack)[21] |
| 1998 | "At Last" | Kissing a Fool (soundtrack)[22] |
| Living Out Loud (soundtrack)[23] | ||
| "The Man I Love" | Melrose Place Jazz: Upstairs at MP[24] | |
| "At Last" | Pleasantville (soundtrack)[25] | |
| "Next Door to the Blues" | Space Bunnies Must Die! (soundtrack)[26] | |
| 1999 | "Etta's Blues" (with Etta Jones) | Ain't She Sweet: Save Your Love for Me + I'll Be Seeing You[27] |
| 2000 | "In the Basement (Part 1)" | The Hurricane (soundtrack)[28] |
| "The Nearness of You" | Music from the TV Series Frasier[29] | |
| 2001 | "I Just Wanna Make Love to You" (with Jimmy Smith) | Dot Com Blues[30] |
| "Only Time Will Tell" | Angel Eyes (soundtrack)[31] | |
| "Gotta Serve Somebody" | The Songs of Bob Dylan, Vol. 2: May Your Song Always Be Sung[32] | |
| 2002 | "Ball 'n' Chain" | Janis Joplin: This Ain't No Tribute Series—All Blues'd Up![33] |
| "Miss You" (Illicit Remix Edit) | Queer as Folk: The Second Season (soundtrack)[34] | |
| 2005 | "I'd Rather Go Blind" (with Dr. John) | A Night of Blistering Blues[35] |
| "Something's Got a Hold on Me" (with B.B. King) | ||
| "In the Midnight Hour" (with Paul Butterfield, B.B. King, Chaka Khan, Gladys Knight, Billy Ocean, and Stevie Ray Vaughan) | ||
| "Ain't Nobody's Business" (with Chaka Khan and Gladys Knight) | ||
| "Take My Hand, Precious Lord" (with Chaka Khan and Gladys Knight) | ||
| 2007 | "Do Nothin' Till You Hear from Me" | We All Love Ella: Celebrating the First Lady of Song |
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e Dahl, Bill. "Etta James – Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved July 23, 2009.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Billboard Chart Positions". AllMusic. Archived from the original on May 8, 2013. Retrieved July 23, 2009.
- ^ a b "ETTA JAMES - full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
- ^ "RIAA Gold & Platinum - Etta James albums". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 2, 2008.
- ^ "Etta James - The Best Of". bpi.co.uk. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
- ^ "Etta James: At Last - The Best". bpi.co.uk. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
- ^ "Search results for "Etta James"". RPM. Retrieved July 23, 2009.
- ^ "Etta James - At Last". bpi.co.uk. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
- ^ "Etta James - I Just Want to Make Love to You". bpi.co.uk. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
- ^ "Etta James - I'd Rather Go Blind". bpi.co.uk. Retrieved November 29, 2024.
- ^ "Aln Freed's Top 15 > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Back to the Future > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Rain Man > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Sister Act > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "B.B. King - Blues Summit CD". cd Universe. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Dancing the Blues > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Father of the Bride, Part II > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "How to Make an American Quilt > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "The Memphis Horns". Chapters.indigo.ca. Retrieved July 24, 2009.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Music from the Park > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Mad About You > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Kissing a Fool > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Living Out Loud > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Melrose Place Jazz: Upstairs at MP > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Pleasantville> Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Space Bunnies Must Die! > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Ain't She Sweet... > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "The Hurricane > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Music from the TV Series Frasier > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Dot Com Blues". Allmusic. Retrieved March 23, 2015.
- ^ "Angel Eyes > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "The Songs of Bob Dylan > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Janis Joplin: This Ain't No Tribute Series... > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Queer as Folk: The Second Season > Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
- ^ "Night of Blistering Blues: B.B. King & Friends". amazon.com. Retrieved July 24, 2009.
External links
[edit]- Etta James discography at Discogs