Page "Solomon Burke" Paragraph 35

In his eight years with Atlantic Records from 1960, Burke released 32 memorable singles.

These included six Top Ten R & B hits, four of which crossed over to the pop Top Forty: " Cry to Me " (# 5 R & B ), " Just Out of Reach ( Of My Two Open Arms )" (# 7 R & B, # 24 pop ), " Got to Get You Off of My Mind " (# 1 R & B, # 22 pop ), " You ’ re Good for Me " (# 8 R & B ), " Tonight ’ s the Night " (# 2 R & B, # 28 pop ) and " If You Need Me " (# 2 R & B, # 37 pop ).

On his singles for Atlantic, Burke " brought a country influence into R & B, with emotional phrasing and intricately constructed, melodic ballads and midtempo songs ....

While Burke wasn't the only one pursuing this path, not many others did so as successfully.

" Though well-received by both peers and critics, and attaining a few moderate pop and several major R & B hits while at Atlantic, Burke never broke through into the mainstream as did Sam Cooke or Otis Redding, who covered Burke's " Down in the Valley " for 1965's Otis Blue.

However, unlike Aretha Franklin or Wilson Pickett, Burke was unable to expand his R & B base into a huge pop following as well, never having a top 20 pop hit in his career.