Gloria Johnson
These Arms Of Mine was one of Otis Redding’s best numbers – an evocative seductive deep soul tune full of TLC – and taking the Big O on is usually a ticket to a failure. But in producer Dave Crawford’s hands the song becomes a haunting blues ballad within which Gloria’s frustrated passion is only too tangible. The little rap at the start sets the scene beautifully and the well arranged horns emphasise the thrilling way she puts the lyric over. And the fact that the song can be changed round so intelligently and successfully as this only serves to show just what exceptionally strong material it was to start with.