Etta James in 2004. |
||
| Releases | ||
|---|---|---|
| ↙Studio albums | 28 | |
| ↙Live albums | 3 | |
| ↙Compilation albums | 6 | |
| ↙Singles | 58 | |
| ↙Tribute and cover albums | 1 | |
| ↙No. 1 Singles (Overall) | 1 | |
| ↙Other appearances | 28 | |
The discography for American Blues artist Etta James consists of 28 studio albums, 3 live albums, and 6 compilations. She has also issued a total of 58 singles, one of which titled, "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)," reached #1 on the Rhythm and Blues Records chart in 1955.
After moving to San Francisco, California in the early 1950s, James formed a singing trio, which attracted the attention of Johnny Otis, who helped her sign a recording contract with Modern Records in 1954. She recorded an answer song to Hank Ballard's "Work with Me, Annie," called "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)" (with her vocal group "The Peaches" singing background vocals), which topped the R&B charts for four weeks in 1955. The Peaches eventually left the label and James recorded as a solo act, having a second Top 10 hit in 1955 with "Good Rockin' Daddy." She continually recorded for the label until the end of the decade, but without much success.[1]
After beginning to date The Moonglows vocalist, Harvey Fuqua, James signed with Chess Records' subsidiary, Argo.[2] Producer, Leonard Chess believed James had crossover Pop potential, and backed her material with orchestral arrangements. With this new style, many of James's songs became hits on both the R&B and Pop charts, such as "All I Could Do Was Cry, "At Last," and "Trust in Me."[1] She released her debut album, At Last! in 1960, followed by The Second Time Around in 1961. In 1967, James changed to her music into more Soul-inspired material, and had her first Top 10 hit in three years with 1968's "Tell Mama," which was followed by an album of the same name.[1][2] In the 1970s, her popularity declined on radio, but remained under Chess records, recording six albums for the label, departing from them with 1978's Deep in the Night.
After battling drug and alcohol addictions, James returned with her first studio album in nine years in 1989 titled, Seven Year Itch on Island Records. Her further two albums in the early 90s for Island and later, Elektra varied in style from contemporary to Soul, but James eventually settled in on the Private Music label.[1] Recording a total of ten albums for the label between 1997 and 2002, her albums included variations of contemporary blues to traditional Jazz, such as her 1997 tribute album to Billie Holiday titled, Mystery Lady: Songs of Billie Holiday.[2] In 2004, she signed with RCA Victor and released Blues to the Bone that same year, followed by a Pop standards release, All the Way, in 2006.[1]
Contents |
| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions[3] | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US R&B | US Blues | US Jazz | ||
| 1961 | At Last!
|
68 | — | — | — |
The Second Time Around
|
— | — | — | — | |
| 1962 | Etta James Sings for Lovers
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1963 | Etta James Top Ten
|
117 | — | — | — |
| 1965 | The Queen of Soul
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1966 | Call My Name
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1968 | Tell Mama
|
82 | 21 | — | — |
| 1970 | Etta James Sings Funk
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1971 | Losers Weepers
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1973 | Only a Fool
|
154 | 41 | — | — |
| 1974 | Come a Little Closer
|
— | 47 | — | — |
| 1976 | Etta Is Betta Than Evvah!
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1978 | Deep in the Night
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1980 | Changes
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1989 | Seven Year Itch
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1990 | Stickin' to My Guns
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1992 | The Right Time
|
— | — | — | — |
| 1994 | Mystery Lady: Songs of Billie Holiday
|
— | — | — | 2 |
| 1995 | Time After Time
|
— | — | — | 5 |
| 1997 | Love's Been Rough on Me
|
— | — | 6 | — |
| 1998 | Life, Love & the Blues
|
— | — | 3 | — |
| 1998 | 12 Songs of Christmas
|
— | — | 5 | — |
| 1999 | Heart of a Woman
|
— | — | 4 | — |
| 2000 | Matriarch of the Blues
|
— | — | 2 | — |
| 2001 | Blue Gardenia
|
— | — | — | 1 |
| 2003 | Let's Roll
|
— | — | 1 | — |
| 2004 | Blues to the Bone
|
— | — | 4 | — |
| 2006 | All the Way
|
— | — | — | — |
| 2011 | The Dreamer
|
— | 56 | 4 | — |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||||
| Year | Album details | Chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US [3] |
US Blues [3] |
||
| 1964 | Etta James Rocks the House
|
96 | — |
| 1982 | Etta, Red-Hot & Live
|
— | — |
| 1986 | Jazzvisions: Jump The Blues Away
|
— | — |
| 2002 | Burnin' Down the House: Live at the House of Blues
|
— | 1 |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||
| Year | Album details | Chart positions | Certifications (sales threshold) |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Blues [3] |
US Jazz [3] |
|||
| 1987 | Early Show, Vol. 1: Blues in the Night
|
— | 10 | |
| 1992 | My Greatest Songs
|
— | — | |
| 1997 | Her Best
|
13 | — | |
| 1999 | 20th Century Masters: The Millenium Collection
|
3 | — | |
| 2001 | Love Songs
|
2 | — | |
| 2006 | The Definitive Collection
|
1 | — | |
| 2007 | Gold
|
|||
| 2011 | Who's Blue?: Rare Chess Recordings of the 60s and 70s
|
— | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | ||||
| Year | Song | Chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [5] |
US R&B [5] |
CAN [6] |
|||
| 1955 | "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)" | — | 1 | — | Etta James |
| "Hey Henry" | — | — | — | ||
| "Good Rockin' Daddy" | — | 6 | — | ||
| "W-O-M-A-N" | — | — | — | ||
| 1956 | "Number One" | — | — | — | Etta James Sings |
| "Shortin' Bread Rock" | — | — | — | ||
| "Tough Lover" | — | — | — | ||
| "Good Lookin'" | — | — | — | ||
| 1957 | "The Pick-Up" | — | — | — | |
| "Come What May" | — | — | — | ||
| 1958 | "Sunshine of Love" | — | — | — | |
| 1959 | "I Hope You're Satisfied" (with Harvey Fuqua) | — | — | — | |
| 1960 | "If I Can't Have You" (with Harvey Fuqua) | 52 | 6 | — | At Last! |
| "Spoonful" (with Harvey Fuqua) | 78 | 12 | — | ||
| "All I Could Do Was Cry" | 33 | 2 | — | ||
| "My Dearest Darling" | 34 | 5 | — | ||
| 1961 | "At Last" | 47 | 2 | — | |
| "Trust in Me" | 30 | 4 | — | ||
| "Fool That I Am" | 50 | 14 | — | The Second Time Around | |
| "Don't Cry Baby" | 39 | 6 | — | ||
| "Seven Day Fool" | 95 | — | — | ||
| 1962 | "Something's Got a Hold on Me" | 37 | 4 | — | Etta James Top Ten |
| "Stop the Wedding" | 34 | 6 | — | ||
| "Fools Rush In" | 87 | — | — | Etta James Sings for Lovers | |
| "Would It Make Any Difference to You" | 64 | — | — | Etta James Top Ten | |
| 1963 | "Pushover" | 25 | 7 | — | |
| "Pay Back" | 78 | — | — | non-album singles | |
| "Two Sides (To Every Story)"[A] | 63 | — | — | ||
| 1964 | "Baby What You Want Me to Do" | 82 | 35 | — | The Queen of Soul |
| "Loving You More Every Day" | 65 | 7 | — | ||
| "Breaking Point" | — | — | — | ||
| "Bobby Is His Name" | — | — | — | ||
| 1966 | "Only Time Will Tell" | — | — | — | non-album single |
| 1967 | "I Prefer You" | — | 42 | — | Call My Name |
| "Don't Pick Me for Your Fool" | — | — | — | ||
| "Call My Name" | — | — | — | ||
| "Tell Mama" | 23 | 10 | — | Tell Mama | |
| 1968 | "Security" | 35 | 11 | — | |
| "I Got You Babe" | 69 | 32 | 46 | non-album singles | |
| "You Got It" | 113 | — | — | ||
| 1969 | "Almost Persuaded" | 79 | 32 | 71 | |
| "Miss Pitiful" | — | — | — | ||
| "Tighten Up Your Own Thing" | — | — | — | Etta James Sings Funk | |
| 1970 | "Sound of Love" | — | — | — | |
| "Losers, Weepers (Part 1)" | 94 | 26 | — | Losers, Weepers | |
| "Nothing from Nothing Leaves Nothing" | — | — | — | ||
| 1971 | "Take Out Some Insurance" | — | — | — | |
| 1972 | "I Found a Love" | 108 | 31 | — | non-album single |
| 1973 | "All the Way Down" | 101 | 29 | — | Only a Fool |
| 1974 | "You Can Leave Your Hat On" | — | 76 | — | |
| "Out on the Street, Again" | — | 84 | — | Come a Little Closer | |
| 1976 | "Jump Into Love" | — | 92 | — | Etta Is Betta Than Evah |
| 1978 | "Piece of My Heart" | — | 93 | — | Deep In the Night |
| "Sugar on the Floor" | — | — | — | ||
| 1980 | "Mean Mother" | — | — | — | Changes |
| 1996 | "I Just Want to Make Love to You"[B] | — | — | — | The Genuine Article: The Best of Etta James |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | |||||
| Year | Song | Chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [5] |
US R&B [5] |
|||
| 1965 | "Do I Make Myself Clear" | 96 | — | non-album singles |
| 1966 | "In the Basement (Part 1)" | 97 | 37 | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | ||||
| Year | Song | Chart positions | A-Side Single | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [5] |
US R&B [5] |
|||
| 1961 | "Dream" | 55 | — | "The Second Time Around" |
| "A Sunday Kind of Love" | — | — | "Don't Cry Baby" | |
| "It's Too Soon to Know" | 54 | — | "Seven Day Fool" | |
| 1962 | "Next Door to the Blues" | 71 | 13 | "Fools Rush In" |
| 1963 | "How Do You Speak To An Angel" | 109 | — | "Would It Make Any Difference To You" |
| "I Worry 'Bout You" | 118 | — | "Two Sides (To Every Story)" | |
| 1967 | "I'd Rather Go Blind" | — | — | "Tell Mama" |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart. | ||||
| Year | Song | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 1962 | "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)" | Alan Freed's Top 15[7] |
| 1985 | "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)" | Back to the Future (soundtrack)[8] |
| 1989 | "At Last" | Rain Man (soundtrack)[9] |
| 1992 | "The Wallflower (Dance with Me, Henry)" | Sister Act (soundtrack)[10] |
| 1993 | "There's Something on Your Mind" (with B.B. King) | Blues Summit[11] |
| "Mockingbird" (with Taj Mahal) | Dancing the Blues[12] | |
| 1995 | "At Last" | Father of the Bride Part II (soundtrack)[13] |
| "At Last" | How to Make an American Quilt (soundtrack)[14] | |
| "Take Me to the River" (with Wayne Jackson and Andrew Love) | The Memphis Horns with Special Guests[15] | |
| 1996 | "It's a Small World"/"When You Wish Upon a Star Medley" | Disney's Music from the Park[16] |
| 1997 | "At Last" | Mad About You (soundtrack)[17] |
| 1998 | "At Last" | Kissing a Fool (soundtrack)[18] |
| "At Last" | Living Out Loud (soundtrack)[19] | |
| "The Man I Love" | Melrose Place Jazz: Upstairs at MP[20] | |
| "At Last" | Pleasantville (soundtrack)[21] | |
| "Next Door to the Blues" | Space Bunnies Must Die! (soundtrack)[22] | |
| 1999 | "Etta's Blues" (with Etta Jones) | Ain't She Sweet: Save Your Love for Me/I'll Be Seeing You[23] |
| 2000 | "In the Basement (Part 1)" | The Hurricane (soundtrack)[24] |
| "The Nearness of You" | Music from the TV Series Frasier[25] | |
| 2001 | "Only Time Will Tell" | Angel Eyes (soundtrack)[26] |
| "Gotta Serve Somebody" | The Songs of Bob Dylan, Vol. 2: May Your Song Always Be Sung[27] | |
| 2002 | "Ball 'n' Chain" | Janis Joplin: This Ain't No Tribute Series—All Blues'd Up![28] |
| "Miss You" (Illicit Remix Edit) | Queer as Folk: The Second Season (soundtrack)[29] | |
| 2005 | "I'd Rather Go Blind" (with Dr. John) | Night of Blistering Blues[30] |
| "Something's Got a Hold on Me" (with B.B. King) | ||
| "In the Midnight Hour" (with Paul Butterfield, B.B. King, Chaka Khan, Gladys Knight, Billy Ocean, and Stevie Ray Vaughan) |
||
| "Ain't Nobody's Business" (with Chaka Khan and Gladys Knight) | ||
| "Take My Hand, Precious Lord" (with Chaka Khan and Gladys Knight) |
|
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