Bobby Womack: So Many Rivers (MCA)
Brian Case, Melody Maker, 14 September 1985
IS BOBBY Womack, in the words of his song, the only survivor left standing here? Soul has suffered a death rate comparable with early bebop, and he lists his late friends at the start of 'Only Survivor' to the melancholy accompaniment of trap-set taps — Marvin Gaye, Sam Cooke, Otis Redding and more. The easy answer is no, not while Bobby Bland, Lionel Richie and re-converts like Al Green and Aretha are still capable of playing hookey, but the real question is what happened to soul?
Total word count of piece: 620