''Drive'' is the fourteenth and final solo album by British musician Robert Palmer released in 2003. Critics hailed it as the grittiest and most heartfelt album of Palmer's career.

Background

Initially approached by guitarist

Carl Carlton Carl Carlton (born May 21, 1953) is an American R&B, soul, and funk singer-songwriter, best known for his hits "Everlasting Love" and " She's a Bad Mama Jama (She's Built, She's Stacked)". Career Carlton was born in Detroit, Michigan, and beg ...

to contribute to the 2001

Robert Johnson Robert Leroy Johnson (May 8, 1911August 16, 1938) was an American blues musician and songwriter. His landmark recordings in 1936 and 1937 display a combination of singing, guitar skills, and songwriting talent that has influenced later generati ...

tribute album ''Hellhound on My Trail'', for which Palmer recorded " Milk Cow's Calf Blues" with Carlton on guitars, Palmer was then invited by

Faye Dunaway Dorothy Faye Dunaway (born January 14, 1941) is an American actress. She is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Faye Dunaway, many accolades, including an Academy Awards, Academy Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, three Golden ...

to provide the soundtrack to her 2001 directorial debut '' The Yellow Bird'', set in

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

and

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

during the 1940s and 1950s. Palmer took both signs as a good omen, and the impetus for ''Drive'' was born. Palmer died four months after the album's release from a heart attack on September 26, 2003. After more thoroughly researching this particular genre of music, Palmer assembled a list of fifty possible tracks, and then began the arduous task of whittling that list down to a manageable set of twelve. The selections from ''Drive'' can best be described as a loose collection of both standard and contemporary blues compositions (Robert Johnson,

Little Willie John William Edward "Little Willie" John (November 15, 1937 – May 26, 1968) was an American R&B singer who performed in the 1950s and early 1960s. He is best known for his successes on the record charts, with songs such as " All Around the World" (1 ...

Keb' Mo' Kevin Roosevelt Moore (born October 3, 1951), known as Keb' Mo', is an American blues musician and five-time Grammy Award winner. He is a singer, guitarist, and songwriter, living in Nashville, Tennessee. He has been described as "a living link ...

), with a smattering of other genres, including folk (Nicolai Dunger) and calypso (Mighty Sparrow), prompting Palmer to call the result "a gut-buckety swamp thing."

Recording and charts

The recording and mixing of ''Drive'' took place in both Logic Studios (

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

, Italy) and Palmer's home studio (

Lugano Lugano (, , ; lmo, label=Ticinese dialect, Ticinese, Lugan ) is a city and municipality in Switzerland, part of the Lugano District in the canton of Ticino. It is the largest city of both Ticino and the Italian-speaking southern Switzerland. Luga ...

, Switzerland). Because of the satisfaction and enthusiasm having recorded the initial twelve songs, Palmer decided to cut three more tracks ("29 Ways o My Baby's Door" "It Hurts Me Too," "Stupid Cupid"), this time at the Sphere in London. The album peaked at No. 10 on the US Blues albums chart.

Track listing

#"Mama Talk To Your Daughter" (

J. B. Lenoir J. B. Lenoir ( '; March 5, 1929 – April 29, 1967) was an American blues guitarist and singer-songwriter, active in the Chicago blues scene in the 1950s and 1960s. Life and career Lenoir was born in Monticello, Mississippi. His full given n ...

, Alex Atkins) (2:27) #"Why Get Up?" (Bill Carter, Ruth Ellsworth) (3:01) #"Who's Fooling Who?" (

Steve Barri Steve Barri (born Steven Barry Lipkin in Brooklyn, New York on February 23, 1942) is an American songwriter and record producer. Career Early in his career, Barri was a staff writer with Dunhill Records. He produced such huge hits as " Dizzy" ...

Michael Omartian Michael Omartian (born November 26, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, keyboardist, and music producer. He produced number-one records in three consecutive decades. He has earned 11 Grammy Awards nominations and won three. He sp ...

, Harvey Price, Daniel Walsh) (2:49) #"Am I Wrong?" (Kevin R. Moore,

) (2:04) #" TV Dinners" ( Frank Beard,

Billy Gibbons William Frederick Gibbons (born December 16, 1949) is an American musician who is the guitarist and lead singer of the rock band ZZ Top. He began his career in the band the Moving Sidewalks, which recorded a full-length album entitled, ''Flas ...

Dusty Hill Joe Michael "Dusty" Hill (May 19, 1949 – July 28, 2021) was an American musician who was the bassist of the rock band ZZ Top for more than 50 years. He also sang lead and backing vocals and played keyboards. Hill was born in Dallas, Texas, an ...

) (3:24) #"Lucky" (

, Robert Palmer) (2:22) #"Stella" (Slinger Francisco) (3:59) #"Dr Zhivago's Train" (

Nicolai Dunger Nicolai Dunger (born 4 February 1968) is a Swedish singer and acoustic songwriter from Piteå in Sweden. He has released twelve EPs and albums, singing primarily in English, and collaborated notably with Will Oldham, the Esbjörn Svensson jazz ...

) (3:58) #"Ain't That Just Like A Woman" (

Claude Demetrius Claude Demetrius (August 3, 1916 – May 1, 1988) was an American songwriter. He was known for his rockabilly songs, some of which were made famous by singers such as Elvis Presley. Biography Demetrius was born in Bath, Maine, United States. By ...

, Fleecy Moore) (1:59) #" Hound Dog" (

Jerry Leiber Lyricist Jerome Leiber (April 25, 1933 – August 22, 2011) and composer Michael Stoller (born March 13, 1933) were American songwriting and record producing partners. They found success as the writers of such Crossover music, crossover hit songs ...

Mike Stoller Lyricist Jerome Leiber (April 25, 1933 – August 22, 2011) and composer Michael Stoller (born March 13, 1933) were American songwriting and record producing partners. They found success as the writers of such crossover hit songs as " Hound Dog" ( ...

) (2:03) #"Crazy Cajun Cake Walk Band" (Jim Ford, Lolly Vegas, Pat Vegas) (3:08) #"

Need Your Love So Bad "Need Your Love So Bad", sometimes known as "I Need Your Love So Bad", is a song first recorded by Little Willie John in 1955. Called a "unique amalgam of gospel, blues and rhythm & blues", it was John's second single as well as his second reco ...

" (

, Mertis John Jr.) (2:14)

Personnel

* Robert Palmer – lead and backing vocals, bass (1-6, 8–12) * Dr. Gabs – pianos,

Hammond organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert and first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, Hammond organs generated s ...

, synthesizers, bass (7) *

– guitars * Mauro Spina – drums (1-7, 9–12), percussion (1-7, 9–12) * James Palmer – drums (8), percussion (8) * Franco Limido – harmonica * Mary Ambrose – backing vocals

Production

* Robert Palmer – producer * Pino Pischetola – recording, mixing * Michael Frank – photography

References

{{Authority control 2003 albums Robert Palmer (singer) albums Blues albums by English artists Albums produced by Robert Palmer (singer)