#275 Curtis Mayfield, 'Curtis' (1970)

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On his debut album, Curtis Mayfield took a sidestep from the sound of The Impressions, the group which he had been a part of since he was 15 years old. Now 28 years old, he upped the tempo on a progressive album inspired by psychedelia and Blaxploitation.

A pioneer in socially conscious music, the album opens with the lyrics "Sisters! Niggers! Whities! Jews! Crackers! Don't worry, If there's a Hell below, we're all gonna go!" Quite a statement to start a record with, especially in 1970. You’d be hardpressed to get away with that in 2021 even. ‘(Don’t Worry) If There’s A Hell Below, We’re All Going To Go’ is a trippy song laden with fuzz bass, wah wah guitar and a statement. The album shifts down a gear for the next few tracks before completely smashing us over the head with the sublime eight minute and fifty five second song, ‘Move On Up.’ The song became a soul standard covered and sampled multiple times, most famously in Kanye West’s song ‘Touch The Sky.’ It’s also been used by President Joe Biden and Arsenal. His voice was angelic and legacy profound. He would go on to influence artists like Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley, Tracy Chapman, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder and Sinead O’Connor amongst many others with his socially aware lyrics set to hyper funky melodies.

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