Carl Anderson: “Pure Quality”

The Wild Reed’s celebration of singer and actor Carl Anderson continues!

It’s actually a month-long celebration, as February is the month of both Carl’s birth (in 1945) and death (in 2004, at age 58).

In this second installment of The Wild Reed’s celebration of Carl, I share “Fooled Myself Again,” a track from Carl’s debut solo album, 1982’s Absence With Out Love.

Written by Eric Kaz and Tom Snow, “Fooled Myself Again” was a single release from Absence With Out Love, with its b-side being “Lose That Girl,” another album track. As far as I know, “Fooled Myself Again” did not chart. Still, it’s a great track, and I have to admit that Carl's heartfelt delivery of the song’s lyrics about unrequited love very much resonates with me.

In 2009, both Absence With Out Love and Carl’s second album, On and On (1984), were released on a single CD. Currently, only used copies of this 2-album CD are available online, priced at over $100. (I feel fortunate in that I’m pretty sure I purchased the last reasonably priced copy – at $40 – last June!).

Following is how ExpansionRecords.com reviewed the disc upon its release.

Two iconic ’80s soul albums from the late, great Carl Anderson finally debut on CD. Both albums represent pure quality from the era with Absence With Out Love featuring one of soul music’s signature tracks from the era, “Buttercup,” written by Stevie Wonder. The title track also features a rare cameo appearance by another soul superstar, Teena Marie [on “A.W.O.L”]. Musicians on both these albums are a “who’s who” from the period’s top players including Freddy Washington on bass, Paul Jackson on guitar, the Seawind horns, Sonny Burke on keys and synthes, and John Barnes among the providers of lavish strings. The songwriting is exceptional and these two albums feature much of Carl’s best work, including his duet with Vaneese Thomas (“It's the Love”), and the ’80s boogie dance classic “Don’t Make Me Wait.”

Here I am, again
Wishing that it didn’t have to end
Seems to me I’ve felt this way before
What’s the use, why pretend?
To you I'm just another friend
And all the time I thought that I was more

Looking back, I can see
How I let my heart fool me
I guess I never meant that much to you
Here I am, here I stand
You see me with my heart in hand
Knowing that there's nothing I can do

It looks like I fooled myself again
But you know I’m a fool for you
It looks like I fooled myself again
I only wish I’d fooled you too

Seems to me, seems so clear
I’m just hearing what I want to hear
And the only words I hear are from my heart
I couldn’t change and if I could
I guess you know I never would
Cause I’ve felt the way I'm feeling from the start

It looks like I fooled myself again
But you know I'm a fool for you
It looks like I fooled myself again
I only wish that I’d fooled you too

NEXT: Carl Anderson's Judas in
Jesus Christ Superstar: “The Gold Standard”


For more of Carl Anderson at The Wild Reed, see:
• Remembering and Celebrating Carl Anderson
• Carl Anderson: "One of the Most Enjoyable Male Vocalists of His Era"
• With Love Inside
• Carl Anderson
• Acts of Love . . . Carl's and Mine
• Introducing . . . the Carl Anderson Appreciation Group
• Forbidden Lover
• Revisiting a Groovy Jesus (and a Dysfunctional Theology)