Out of the blue

" ... the production here is resolutely old school - rich horn blends, propulsive but unforced rhythms, deeply textured melody lines and arrangements - and out in front, the septuagenarian Hightower's voice sounds almost impossibly youthful ... The songs (...) are uniformly excellent, if also couched in sentiments usually associated with various long-gone "golden ages" of pop and soul music ... there's enough hard-earned glory on display here to put this release at nearly the same level as the classic sides by James Carr and others that [producer Quinton Claunch] masterminded at Goldwax so many years ago. With this disc, both Claunch and Hightower himself are prime contenders for "Comeback of the Year" honors in 2018".