1969
THE GHETTO * DONNY HATHAWAY * ATCO 226010 * UK
This record was one of those tracks that every so often appear on the scene and seem to announce a shift in the sound and style of a particular musical genre. They don't necessarily have to be the first just the one that hits the moment right; maybe it's that the previous sound has become a little dated and folk are ready for a change or it might be that the lyrics contain some words or ideas that belong to the moment, or whatever. The Ghetto was written by Donny Hathaway and Leroy Hutson - whom he had previously worked with while working as a producer and arranger at Curtis Mayfield's Curtom label- and though it has some vocals I always think of it as an instrumental. Donny Hathaway died tragically young aged only thirty four in 1979 after falling from a hotel window.