10
And Then
, dented the R&B hit
parade. The trio switched into
high gear with their first hit of
1971.
Do Me Right
, another
collaboration between Abrim and
James (they’d intended to give
it to James Brown, but ended up
wisely hanging onto their
creation), sported a Latin tinge.
Mitchell’s house band had been
cutting tracks all day for Al
Green when The Detroit
Emeralds sauntered through
the studio door.
“We were tired, and Willie said,
‘Well, they’ve been here since 11
o’clock this morning,’”
says drummer Howard Grimes.
“I never will forget,
the record we cut was ‘Do Me Right.’”
Tilmon taught Mitchell a thing or
two.
“We said, ‘Yeah, we’ll cut it,’”
says Grimes.
“Abe sat down, that’s
when we found out how bad Abe was on guitar. Abe sat down, man, and
he played the line on that one time. He gave Leroy (Hodges) the bass
line, and he doubled the line with Leroy’s bass line, and he doubled
another line with (guitarist) Teenie (Hodges). So he had that line three
ways. And Willie told him, ‘I don’t use but one guitar on a track.’ Abe said,
‘You can use two!’” (Willie) said, ‘No, two guitars, one’ll bleed.’ Abe said,
‘Not the way I’m cutting. I’m gonna show you.’
“And man, look, he did it. And it blew Willie’s mind!”
