Nothing Takes the Place of You (The Ronn Recordings)

Best know for his slow-burning vocal on the 1967 soul ballad "Nothing Takes the Place of You," Toussaint McCall is also a fine organist, and his keyboard swells and fills on these tracks gives them a special depth. One wishes there were more organ, actually, since two of the most delightful cuts on this collection of singles from the Ronn Record label are organ-led instrumentals, "Shimmy" and "The Toussaint Shuffle." A fine singer with a gospel feel, McCall had a penchant for slow ballads, and heard one after another, that tends to slow things down here. When a mid-tempo song comes up in the sequence, as with "I'm Decided," it sticks out and shines. McCall's slow and funky take on the Gershwin standard "Summertime" sounds just right, however, lazy organ and all.