Mighty Sam McClain

Mighty Sam McClain:
Sweet Dreams (Telarc) CD83528

Some people are here on this earth for a special purpose that transcends all of their personal wants, needs and goals. Many fight it or just don't understand it but God being eternally patient waits until we come to realize that we are here for a much greater good than any of us could've imagined. We get lost and distracted with various vices and creature comforts but they are nothing more than temporary distractions and avoidances of the inevitable service we must perform. Sam McClain has a peace of mind now because he has come to accept God's role for him and when one surrenders their will, there comes a sense of contentment and understanding that allows us to see life with a brand new set of eyes. I'm sure Sam McClain will be the first to admit to being a stubborn 'nut-to-crack' and sometimes he was reluctant to give up old ways of thinking and doing, but if you've followed his career closely you can see it parallels his own relationship development with God. While Sam may be classified as a modern soul/R&B singer, I think it would be more accurate to call him a New-Age gospel/soul man. He never strays too far from material with a spiritual message and he knows that he should use his own trials and tirbulations as a means to reach others who are lost and needing God's help. Sam has a God-given talent that is quite exceptional and coming to terms with why one has been given such a unique voice is a necessary step in understanding the meaning of life and love. Mr. McClain sings of love because he now knows that is his purpose in life; he's here to convey His message of love in a time of turmoil and hopelessness. That is common thread in each of Sam MCClain's albums; they are all inpsirational and spiritual. Because he sings with so much conviction and joy in his heart, God gives him a voice that is a mighty voice. You cannot listen to a Mighty Sam McClain CD and not be moved and touched by God. Maybe it's just a seed this time but it will grow given time, for we all have God within us.
"Sweet Dreams" is the title of this CD and it is also the title of Sam's very first career hit, an R&B cover of the monster hit for Patsy Cline, release on the AMY label in 1966. It was Sam's very first experience with fame and fortune and as a 22-year-old novice, he found himself propelled into the spotlight and stardom, a position he was not ready for but life's like that. He sipped the heady wine of stardom and as the saying goes "he had it all". God's first major lesson in life for Sam McClain was fast approaching. Two extremes; succes and failure, sides of the same coin. We don't have time or space to talk about what happened between 1968 and 1990 but let us just say that God has an attentive audience when one learns how to be humble and surrender. Sam McClain is called Mighty Sam for two reasons; yes, he has a lion's roar of a voice but he is delivering a mighty message through his songs. REAL BLUES carried a cover story on Sam in issue #5 and we have another feature slated for #26. This writer has also had the privilege of writing liner notes for one of Sam's CDs so forgive me if I spend some extra time and space extolling the virtues and talents of a man I feel close to and have much respect for. Sam McClain has won numerous awards from REAL BLUES over the years and again in 2000 for Soul/R&B Artist of the Year. While there are many artists to choose from in this category, there is never a problem in deciding for Sam McClain as a winner. Virtually every year for the last 10, Sam has delivered a masterpiece recording and "Sweet Dreams" follows in that tradition. One thing you will notice about the songs on "Sweet Dreams" is that they're all songs about contentment. Now that he is free from doubt and his belief in God has become rock solid, Sam McClain offers the listener the same treasures of salvation. It wouldn't make sense for Sam to be singing in the churches on the gospel circuit for he'd be talking to the already converted. The blues clubs and festivals are the places where Sam is needed the most and where he can reach those in need of God's love. "Living In My Dreams" is a song that now describes Sam's life to a tee and "Where Would I Be?" talks of his personal journey. Why do I love blues soul and gospel? Because of the honesty of feelings in a world of dishonesty and Sam McClain is as honest as one can get. "Learn How To Love Again" is all about learning about true love free from ego and self centerdness. I think that women all hope for a partner who knows how to truly love and it's sad that many will wait forever. Sam McClain's partner obviously has found a man who has learned the meaning of real, true love. "I Love Hard" and "This One Is For My Baby" address the topic of applying love to one's life and rewards are immediate. So, once again we have a 6-bottle disc from the man they call Mighty Sam McClain and I must acknowledge the efforts of producer Joe Harley, a man who has come into Sam's life at just the right time proving that God does work in mysterious ways. Let this CD inspire you. Sam McClain CDs are much, much more than just great music. And once again we also have the superlative sounds of an ensemble of all-star backup crew led by the great Bruce Katz. Sam McClain's profile is growing each and every year and so is his audience. Hallelujah for that fact. Telarch has a Grammy/W.C. Hardy winner in "Sweet Dreams". - Andy Grigg

Most musicians pursue labels like the rooster does the hen. They tour and record relentlessly, and fax their private sales numbers to blase industry wonks who are too busy with their marquis acts to even deal with their signed artist roster, let alone somebody new.

Mighty Sam McClain has had the opposite problem for the last several years, and as he approaches his 60th birthday, he has finally fulfilled a dream he has had throughout his professional career: artistic and business independence.

By design he is under no management, no label, no producer, and he has never been in better musical and spirtual health. He is at the peak of his vocal and compositional abilities, he is more popular than he has ever been, and he knows enough about the industry that from booking to recording and producing, he and his wife, Sandra, can handle everything.

"When I finally got that letter in the mail that said I was released from my obligations with Telarc Records, it was like a giant weight off my shoulders," McClain said during a recent conversation at his home in Epping.

Mighty Sam MCClain has been almost continually under one record contract or another since 1968. McClain had hits in the late '60s and early '70s on Amy, Malaco, and Atlantic Records, notably "Fannie May," "Sweet Dreams," and "In the Same Old Way." Career peaks and valleys followed, but his popularity and recognition exploded in the early 90s and continues its meteoric rise.

"There's a New Man In Town" from the Soul Survivor album was picked up by David E. Kelley and featured in a number of episodes of "Ally McBeal," as an anthem to serve as the soundtrack for one character's personal reinvention. As he emerges from his $50 haircut, or his $1,000 tailoring spree and walks the city streets, "There's a new man in town, and he's not foolin' around." After 30 years of making music, millions of people were finally asking about "that great song on Ally McBeal," and McClain found a huge new audience.

Sam just returned from a summer coast-to-coast tour that included many major blues festivals, including the Mississippi Valley Blues Festival, and several dates in some of the country's best-known nightclubs, including Buddy Guy's in Chicago. All of this is just in time for the release of his first independently produced recording, "One More Bridge To Cross."

I was flattered to have been led to view the temple jewels in hearing some of the rough mixes from the upcoming album, and it is some of his most powerful and compelling work to date.

"When you're with a record company, you have to ask 'Is it all right if I do this? Is it all right if I do that?' It gets to where you have to ask if you can got to the bathroom. I know how I like my music to sound," he said.

The new recording features many different feels and tempos, but it holds together as a single entity by virtue of McClain's spirtual message, and his seemingly constant access to soulful, evocative ways of shaping and applying pitch to the words conveying his powerful ideas.

Mighty Sam McClain came across his blues the hard way. Born one of 13 children to a sharecropping family in Monroe, LA, he was raised by an abusive stepfather.

"I ran away from home when I ws 13 because I could feel myself turning into a man," McClain said. "I knew that if I got much stronger, I might kill my stepfather."

His path included eating out of garbage cans, sleeping outside, being awakened by a white farmer's kicks and curses as he tried to take a night's sleep in a barn on a cold night. He has made his peace with his stepfather and his God since, and is once again the hourse-with-blinders-on that defines him at his best.

"I am proof that Jesus exists. A little black boy from Monroe, LA, is not supposed to have all of this. A beautiful wife, this music, this house. I sang with Bobby Blue Bland. Sam McClain. How else could that happen without Jesus?"

After four hours of hanging out with Mighty Sam, taking the tour through the rehearsal studio, and all over the rest of his and Sandra's lovely Epping property, and at every turn having him smile and say how thankful he is to God for every large and small blessing in his life, it becomes clear that he is not casual about anything.

His commitment to God, his music, and his wife are each absolute. A constant stream of hard work, joy, and thankfulness pour through his being like water through a fountainhead. I grew to refer to it as his "direct feed," and in a conversation with Pat Herlehy, Exter-based saxophonist and co-producer of "One More Bridge To Cross," Pat understood what I was talking about right away.

"It's what everybody who knows him says about him," Herlehy said over coffee in downtown Portsmouth last week. "He is faith-driven, and he proves it every day. Sam moves in very straight lines, and he gets there fast. It blows us all away."

Herlehy counts McClain as one of his greatest life's teachers, and is thankful to have had this steady exposure to someone as wise and experienced as Mighty Sam.

"He teaches me things about the business, about stage presence, but mostly about spirtuality. He's a great musician, and a great man."

"One More Bridge To Cross" has been mixed and mastered and is scheduled for duplication and distribution early in the new year. It features the very hot core band that did the United States tour this summer, along with Boston trumpeter Trent Austin, and metro area vocal phenom, Concetta. The band will tour Europe in support of the release, and another United States tour is likely for the summer. David E. Kelley has also requested an advance copy of the new compact disc.

"I am thankful to God for everything that he has given me, and I plan to continue to make music until He decides to stop me."

Mighty Sam mcClain calls Jesus Christ "The other man in the band," and that's some pretty reliable support either on stage or in the studio. - Chris Elliott

Soul-Patrol
Bob Davis
Sept. 7, 2002

I know that there are some of you out there who tire of Soul-Patrol, because you don’t really feel that we are having a discussion here about “real soul music”.

You may feel that the only “real soul music” is what media entities have brainwashed us into calling “southern soul”.

You might feel that the only “real soul music” is performed by (mostly) men from the south who have a gravely voice that is sometimes referred to as “down home”.

You might feel that “soul music” that comes from California, NYC, Detroit, Philly, etc. is “watered down” and somehow isn’t as “authentic” as you would like.

Well here is a quote from one of the “soul music experts” that work at Rolling Stone magazine….

“Al Green is the LAST of the great authentic soul singers, descended from a line that starts with Sam Cooke…”
(What they don’t tell you is that Al Green is from MICHIGAN)

I’ll let the “soul music experts” at Rolling Stone make the decision for the rest of us “peons” just who the “authentic soul singers” are.

In the meantime, I would like very much for you to give the music of MIGHTY SAM MCCLAIN a listen. In my opinion he is the BEST “soul singer” alive on this planet in 2002.

Mighty Sam McClain in some ways would fit the “stereotype” that the “soul music experts” at Rolling Stone Magazine would have us believe. He is a native of Louisiana and originally started his recording career with Malaco records back when Malaco first started, back in the mid to late 1960’s. He was homeless for a period of time during the 1970’s, when his recording career stalled. By the late 1980’s he made it back and has since become a top performer on both the American and European “blues circuit”.

When you listen to his voice it does indeed sound like a cross between Sam Cooke, Otis Reading and Al Green! He is an amazingly powerful singer. His voice will touch your heart; no matter how hard your heart might just happen to be. Mighty Sam’s got a message in his music.
Take a listen to it, and you may just find that you might learn a thing or two about your own inner self. That knowledge might just be able to help you in your own personal path towards finding the “right way”.
- Bob Davis