Soul singer Benny Latimore’s “Ladies Choice” released in 2011.If you go
– What: Latimore
– When: 9 p.m. tonight
– Where: Bessie Smith Hall Stage
With a couple of exceptions, “sultry” is not an adjective I normally use to describe the vocals of a male performer, but there’s just no other word that befits the deep, soulful pipes of Benny Latimore.
Tonight’s Bessie Smith Strut headliner, Latimore was born just north of Chattanooga in Charleston, Tenn., but he has been associated with Miami and that city’s TK Records label since moving there in the early ’60s.
Throughout a career fast approaching its seventh decade, Latimore has recorded about two dozen albums and charted 13 singles of R&B, blues and soul music, including two singles from 1974, the No. 1 R&B hit “Let’s Straighten It Out” and “If You Were My Woman,” a gender-twisted take on Gladys Knight & The Pips’ “If I Were Your Woman.”
But man alive, that voice. It’s just passionate and soulful and sultry. If you’re tired of date nights conducted to a three-note soundtrack of Marvin Gaye, Al Green and Barry White, Latimore could be a fine addition to your romantic playlist.
Contact Casey Phillips at cphillips@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6205. Follow him on Twitter at @Phillips CTFP.