The Essentials

Curtis Mayfield

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The Essentials Review

by Greg Prato

It's hard to make heads or tails of all the Curtis Mayfield collections that have surfaced over the years, and 2002 saw the release of yet another set, The Essentials. But unlike most other "Essential" collections (Rhino Records' ongoing budget-priced series that focuses on a wide variety of classic artists), the track listing of the Curtis Mayfield edition leaves out far too many classics; gems like "Pusherman," "Move On Up," and "We the People Who Are Darker Than Blue" are all suspiciously absent. Granted, quite a few Mayfield classics are present, such as "(Don't Worry) If There's a Hell Below We're All Going to Go," "Freddie's Dead (Theme from "Superfly")," and "Superfly," but the aforementioned missing tracks prevent the collection from being definitive. You'd be better off spending the extra few bucks on 1996's more extensive The Very Best of Curtis Mayfield [Rhino], in order to get the handful of hits missing from The Essentials.

Track Listing

	Title/Composer	Performer	Time	Stream
1	(Don't Worry) If There's a Hell Below, We're All Going to Go Curtis Mayfield	Curtis Mayfield	07:51	Amazon
2	Get Down Curtis Mayfield	Curtis Mayfield	05:48	Amazon
3	Freddie's Dead Curtis Mayfield	Curtis Mayfield	05:28	Amazon
4	Superfly Curtis Mayfield	Curtis Mayfield	03:54	Amazon
5	Future Shock Curtis Mayfield	Curtis Mayfield	05:19	Amazon
6	If I Were Only a Child Again Curtis Mayfield	Curtis Mayfield	02:54	Amazon
7	Can't Say Nothin' Curtis Mayfield	Curtis Mayfield	05:17	Amazon
8	Kung Fu Curtis Mayfield	Curtis Mayfield	03:50	Amazon
9	So in Love Curtis Mayfield	Curtis Mayfield	05:13	Amazon
10	Only You Babe Curtis Mayfield	Curtis Mayfield	04:21	Amazon
11	Between You Baby and Me Curtis Mayfield	Curtis Mayfield feat: Linda Clifford	04:43	Amazon
12	Do Do Wap Is Strong in Here Curtis Mayfield	Curtis Mayfield feat: Linda Clifford	05:29	Amazon