Curtis Mayfield Gets A Definitive Biography
Pitchfork offers: ‘One of the most remarkable things about the new, definitive Curtis Mayfield biography, “Traveling Soul,” is that it took this long for someone to write one. In terms of influence and popularity, Mayfield’s stature in the 1960s through early ’70s easily puts him in the same conversation as such R&B icons as Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin, and James Brown. Yet somehow, his life has never been as lavishly chronicled.
Written by Curtis’s son Todd, with help from music writer Travis Atria, “Traveling Soul” provides a long overdue corrective, not only in returning Curtis’s legacy into a proper light but also by offering revealing, intimate evaluation of him as a musical leader, business partner, friend, husband, and father. “Traveling Soul” serves as a vital reintroduction to one of soul music’s most important—yet under-considered—figures.’
