Reviewed by Tony Cummings

Music journo Davin Seay has done a pretty good job in turning R&B star-turned-minister Al Green's reminiscences into a coherent narrative, with one major flaw - the story here more or less stops in the '80s! So anyone looking for the inside story of the Rev Al Green pasturing his Memphis flock will have to wait for another volume. So too will those looking for groupies-and-all revelations of the years when those classic hits with Hi made Al the biggest name in R&B. But there's still much here which will shock those unused to the twisted tracks of spiritual schizophrenia. Those early years with Al shacking up with hooker Juanita, quoting the New Testament and hanging in dark alleys while she turned tricks to pay the rent; and later, that notorious incident in his Memphis home when a spurned lover poured boiling grits over the singer's back before killing herself. It was this tragedy which was, of course, to be Al's spiritual wake up call. Though one occasionally feels uncomfortable as the star-turned-preacher sounds off about this or that while still allowing glimpses of a pretty hefty ego to peep through, this is still a fascinating glimpse of a complex man and a huge musical talent.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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