It Ain't Easy - Essential Recordings

Wilson Pickett will always be remembered for his mid-'60s stay at Atlantic Records, where, working with the Stax producers and musicians, he issued such deep soul classics as "In the Midnight Hour," "Mustang Sally," "Funky Broadway," and "Land of 1000 Dances." Although he remained an exciting singer and was always a powerful stage presence, he never quite equaled that '60s Stax-fed output again, although he came close in 1999 with his final studio album, It's Harder Now, which was produced by Jon Tiven. Gritty and hard-driving, It's Harder Now was both Pickett's comeback album and his swan song. This set, entitled It Ain't Easy, is essentially that final album resequenced and minus one track, the mildly risqué "What's Under That Dress?" Cuts like "Outskirts of Town," "Taxi Love." and "Soul Survivor" have a wonderful, joyous, and gritty feel, and it's comforting that Pickett was as vital at the end as he was earlier in his career.