Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud (album)
| Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | March 1969 | |||
| Recorded | August 17, 1967 – October 18, 1968[1][2][3][4] | |||
| Studio |
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| Genre | Funk | |||
| Length | 36:54 | |||
| Label | King 1047 | |||
| Producer | James Brown | |||
| James Brown chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [5] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [6] |
Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud is the 23rd studio album by American musician James Brown. The album was released in March 1969, by King Records.[5][7]
Chart performance
The album debuted on Billboard magazine's Top LP's chart in the issue dated April 12, 1969, peaking at No. 53 during a twenty-two week run on the chart.[8]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud" | James Brown, Alfred Ellis | 4:48 |
| 2. | "I Guess I'll Have to Cry, Cry, Cry" | James Brown | 3:36 |
| 3. | "Goodbye My Love, Pts. 1 & 2" | James Brown | 5:34 |
| 4. | "Shades of Brown" | Bud Hobgood | 2:48 |
| 5. | "Licking Stick, Pt. 1" | James Brown | 2:55 |
| 6. | "I Love You" | James Brown, Clyde Stubblefield, Alfonzo Kellum | 3:36 |
| 7. | "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye" | John D. Loudermilk | 3:55 |
| 8. | "Let Them Talk" | Sonny Thompson | 4:04 |
| 9. | "Maybe I'll Understand" | James Brown, Bud Hobgood | 3:20 |
| 10. | "I'll Lose My Mind" | James Brown, Bud Hobgood, Bobby Byrd | 2:47 |
Personnel
The James Brown Orchestra
- Waymon Reed, Richard "Kush" Griffin, Dud Bascomb, Johnny Grimes, Joe Dupars – trumpet
- Fred Wesley, Richard Harris – trombone
- Levi Rasbury – valve trombone
- Pee Wee Ellis – alto saxophone
- Maceo Parker, St. Clair Pinckney – tenor saxophone
- St. Clair Pinckney, Haywood Henry – baritone saxophone
- Pee Wee Ellis – organ
- Ernie Hayes – piano
- Selwart Clarke, Winston Collymore, Charles Libove, Harry Katzman, Sam Ram, Harry Malnikoff, Matt Raimondi, Marion Cuabo, Sid Edwards, Nick Hardone – strings
- Jimmy Nolen, Wallace Richardson, Carl Lynch – guitar
- Al Lucas, Alfonzo Kellum, Bernard Odum or Sweet Charles Sherrell – bass
- Rafael Rivera – timbales
- Julian Cabeza – congas
- Edward Williams – percussion
- Clyde Stubblefield, Bernard Purdie, Jabo Starks – drums
The Dapps ("Shades of Brown", "Then You Can Tell me Goodbye", "Maybe I'll Understand", "I'll Lose My Mind")
- probably Ron Geisman – trumpet
- Les Asch – tenor saxophone
- David Parkinson – baritone saxophone
- Tim Hedding – organ, piano
- “Fat Eddie” Setser, Troy Seals – guitar
- Ken Tibbetts, Tim Drummond – bass
- Beau Dollar – drums
Charts
| Chart (1969) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Top LPs[8] | 53 |
References
- ^ Leeds, Alan (1996). "Liner Notes". Say It Loud I'm Black And I'm Proud.
- ^ Leeds, Alan (October 2007). The Singles, Volume 5: 1967–1969 (published February 29, 2008). pp. 7–13 & 20–22.
- ^ Leeds, Alan (October 2008). The Singles, Volume 6: 1969–1970 (published December 5, 2008). pp. 4 & 19.
- ^ Leeds, Alan; Weinger, Harry (2007). Jazz. p. 6.
- ^ a b James Brown. "Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud - James Brown". AllMusic. Retrieved July 15, 2015.
- ^ Cross, Charles R. (2004). "James Brown". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 109. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
- ^ "iTunes - Music - Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud by James Brown". iTunes. Archived from the original on March 3, 2012. Retrieved July 15, 2015.
- ^ a b Whitburn, Joel (1973). Top LPs, 1955–1972. Record Research. p. 23. Retrieved July 10, 2025.