Latimore

Latimore, recognized for his deep voice, fused soul with blues in a sultry manner across his mid-1970s releases on Miami’s Glades label. The Tennessean first appeared as Benny Latimore when he began cutting tracks for local figure Henry Stone in 1965, and the Dade singles he issued later that decade rank as prime examples of deep soul. After shortening his professional name upon joining Glades, he reached national attention in 1973 via a jazzy interpretation of T-Bone Walker’s “Stormy Monday.” In 1974 he claimed the top spot on the soul charts with the anguished “Let’s Straighten It Out,” a simmering soul/blues hybrid, then followed it the next year with the fiery “Keep the Home Fires Burnin’.” Steve “Every Day I Have to Cry” Alaimo handled production duties in Miami on most of Latimore’s Glades recordings; outside his own sessions, the pianist also served as house keyboardist for TK Records, Glades’ parent company. During the 1980s he shifted his base to Malaco without any loss of popularity. That association lasted until 2000, when You’re Welcome to Ride became his final album for the label. Latimore launched his own Latstone imprint in 2007 and issued the Back ’Atcha album the same year. He kept recording for the imprint and maintained a steady schedule of live performances through the late 2010s.