''Cold Fact'' is the debut
album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
from American singer-songwriter
Rodriguez. It was released in the United States on the Sussex label in March 1970. The album sold poorly in the United States, but performed better in
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
and
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
,
with Rodriguez touring Australia in 1979.
In 1971 the album was released in South Africa by A&M Records. In 1976, several thousand copies of ''Cold Fact'' were found in a New York warehouse and sold out in Australia in a few weeks. It went to No. 23 on the Australian album charts in 1978, staying on the charts for fifty-five weeks. In 1998 ''Cold Fact'' was awarded a platinum disc in South Africa, and was five-times platinum in Australia. Rodriguez has since toured South Africa and Australia with much success, but remained relatively unknown in his native country of the US.
This began to change after the reissues of his albums in the US by
Light in the Attic Records
Light in the Attic Records is an independent record label that was established in 2002 in Seattle, Washington by Matt Sullivan. The label is known for its roster of reissue projects and for its distribution catalog. Light in the Attic has re-rel ...
in 2008 and 2009, and even further in 2012 with the
Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
winning
documentary film
A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...
''
Searching for Sugar Man
''Searching for Sugar Man'' is a 2012 documentary film about a South African cultural phenomenon, written and directed by Malik Bendjelloul, which details the efforts in the late 1990s of two Cape Town fans, Stephen "Sugar" Segerman and Craig B ...
'', which soon led to appearances on major American television shows like ''
60 Minutes
''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who chose to set it apart from other news programs by using a unique styl ...
'' and ''
The Late Show with David Letterman
The ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the The Late Show (franchise), ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by ...
''.
''Cold Fact'' has sold 201,000 since
Nielsen SoundScan
Luminate (formerly Nielsen SoundScan, Nielsen Music Products, and MRC Data) is a provider of music sales data. Established by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett in 1991, data is collected weekly and made available every Sunday (for albums sales) and eve ...
started tracking in 1991, 173,000 of those after the film opened, 98,000 in the wake of the Oscar win. ''
Coming from Reality
''Coming from Reality'' is the second and most recent studio album from American singer and songwriter Rodriguez, originally released by Sussex Records in 1971. It was later released in South Africa in 1976 with the alternate title ''After the F ...
'' has moved 105,000 albums, 99,000 since the movie hit, 60,000 post-Academy Awards. And the soundtrack album (which was picked up by Sony’s Legacy catalog division) boasts 152,000 in sales.
Track listing
All songs written by Sixto Rodriguez, except (5, 10) by Gary Harvey, Mike Theodore and Dennis Coffey.
Personnel
There were no musicians credited on the original album sleeve, but Rodriguez and Mike Theodore have filled in the gaps:
* Rodriguez – vocals, acoustic guitar
*
Dennis Coffey
Dennis James Coffey (born November 11, 1940) is an American guitarist. He was a studio musician for many soul and R&B recordings, and is well known for his 1971 Top 10 hit single " Scorpio".
Biography
Coffey learned to play guitar at the ...
– electric guitar, bass
* Mike Theodore – keyboards, brass and string arrangements
* Andrew Smith – drums
* Bob Pangborn – percussion
*
Bob Babbitt
__NOTOC__
Robert Andrew Kreinar (November 26, 1937 – July 16, 2012), known as Bob Babbitt, was a Hungarian-American bassist, most famous for his work as a member of Motown Records' studio band, the Funk Brothers, from 1966 to 1972, as well a ...
– bass
*
Detroit Symphony
The Detroit Symphony Orchestra (DSO) is an American orchestra based in Detroit, Michigan. Its primary performance venue is Orchestra Hall at the Max M. Fisher Music Center in Detroit's Midtown neighborhood. Jader Bignamini is the current music ...
(Leader
Gordon Staples
Gordon Staples was an American violinist and past concertmaster for the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. He was known for his work as a leader and conductor of the string section on recording sessions for Motown Records during their heyday in the 1 ...
) – strings
* Leader Carl Reatz – horns (trombones, baritone sax)
* Friends and family of Joyce Vincent and
Telma Hopkins
Telma Louise Hopkins (born October 28, 1948) is an American actress and singer. Hopkins rose to prominence as a member of the 1970s pop music group Tony Orlando and Dawn, which had several number-one songs. She also performed on the CBS variety ...
– children's choir on "Gommorah"
Technical
* Recorded in Detroit in August and September 1969.
* Arranged and produced by Mike Theodore and Dennis Coffey.
* Engineering by Mike Theodore at Tera-Shirma Studio, Detroit.
* Ray Hall at R.C.A. New York – remix
* Ransier and Anderson – photography
* Nancy Chester (See / Hear! & How!) – cover design
Samples and features
"
Sugar Man
Sabra
Sabreclaw
Sabreclaw is a character in the MC2 universe who first appeared in '' J2'' #8 (May 1999). He is the half-brother of Wild Thing and the son of Wolverine.
The character has claws (similar to Sabretooth), a healing factor, enh ...
" was sampled in "You're Da Man", from the 2001
Nas
Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones.
Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to:
Aviation
* Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea
* National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia
** Nas Air ( ...
album ''
Stillmatic
''Stillmatic'' is the fifth studio album by American rapper Nas, released on December 18, 2001, by Ill Will and Columbia Records. In contrast to his previous work's gangsta rap themes, the album contains socially conscious and philosophical theme ...
''.
In 2014, the French Deep House and Electro music producer
Tristan Casara featured "Hate Street Dialogue" on his album for a new release credited to "The Avener Feat. Rodriguez". The release ''The Wanderings of the Avener'' charted in France.
Compilations
"Sugar Man" was the opening track on David Holmes' 2002 compilation ''Come Get It I Got It''.
Chart performance
Certifications
References
External links
''Cold Fact''
{{Authority control
1970 debut albums
Sixto Rodriguez albums
Sussex Records albums
RCA Records albums
A&M Records albums
Albums produced by Dennis Coffey