'Live At The Apollo'

Behind the ridiculous hair and the flashy outfits. Forget all of the children. Nevermind the showmanship.

James Brown was a fantastic singer, beautiful bandleader and keeper of the soul.

In more than 50 years, he went from being a kid with no home staying in his aunt's whorehouse and spending time in prison for armed robbery to being the foremost soul singer to being a joke, a punchline.

He was an eccentric man with the without-a-doubt ability to absolutely turn any song into a gut-wrenching, hip-swiveling sex groove, and that will be forgotten because the guy was a bit kooky and loved getting women pregnant. Kind of tragic.

Brown was also a man of certain civil values. His role in the civil rights movement and black pride is astounding. He seemed extremely grounded for a man with a trillion illegitimate children. He addressed issues like dropping out and if his messages were any indication, he was quite the patriot as a proud American who realized without his birthright in the United States, he wouldn't have the opportunities given to him.

Live at the Apollo is Brown's only album on the 1,001 list. It contains no viable hits and only one marginal one ("Please, Please, Please"). If you're looking for radio fodder, get his greatest hits. If you want a peak into the sweat-drenched pleading and soul, get this album.