TITLE: THE ESSENTIAL TEDDY PENDERGRASS (LEGACY)

ARTIST: TEDDY PENDERGRASS

STARS: 5 OUT OF 5 STARS

SOUNDS LIKE: The macho lover man growls through a stellar collection of his most definitive hits.

Teddy Pendergrass is a man's soul singer in the same vein as the late Otis Redding. No lilting falsetto or sugary pleadings here. Teddy just grabs a song and takes control.

There's no innuendo or sly suggestions either. There's no doubt in his lady's mind what Teddy wants when he growls "Close the Door" or "Turn off the Lights!"

Teddy always goes for the "Love TKO."

His raw earthy type of soul crooning sound actually sounds foreign on today's overproduced rap balladering landscape. In other words this is old school, grown folks style R & B.

This two disc set celebrates Teddy's vocal machismo through 28 of his signature tunes. Not only is there stuff here from his 14 solo albums spanning the years from 1977 to 2002, but a few sizzling jams from his stint with Harold Melvin and The Blue Notes.

Teddy performed on stage in sweaty, bare-chested bravado until a 1982 car accident left him paralyzed from the waist down and in a wheelchair. After a year of extensive therapy he came back with "Love Language" which went gold in 1984. But by this time his sound had taken on a more reflective and spiritual quality.

The Essential Teddy Pendergrass simply captures the essence of an exceptional soul singer. This is music for the bedroom not the club.