Personnel includes: Curtis Mayfield (vocals, guitar, keyboards, drum programming); Phil Upchurch, Patrick Ferreri, Norman Harris, Tom Ferrone, Michael Sembello, Tony Brown (guitar); Nella Rigell-Colson (harp); Jay Norem (harmonica); Lenard Druss, Dale Clevenger, Charles "Skip" Lane, Curtis Mayfield III, Hank Ford (horns); John Ross, Sonny Burke, Eugene Curry, Chester Thompson, William Green, Michael Brown (keyboards); Joseph "Lucky" Scott, James Walker, Lebron Scott (bass); Donald Simmons, Robert Sims, Tyrone McCullen (drums); Tony Carpenter, Paulinho Da Costa, Efrain Toro (percussion); Carlos Glover (drum programming); Leroy Hutson, Janis Hutson, Mr. & Mrs. Michael Hawkins, Oren Waters, Maxine Waters Willard, Alice King (background vocals); "Instant Funk" Rhythm Section,

The Impressions: Curtis Mayfield (vocals, guitar); Fred Cash, Samuel Gooden (vocals).

Kitty Haywood & The Haywood Singers: Kitty Haywood, Vivian, Cynthia, Ann (background vocals).

Producers: Johnny Pate, Curtis Mayfield, Gil Askey, Dino Fekaris.

Compilation producers: David McLees, David Nathan, Bill Inglot.

Includes liner notes by Wayne Edwards, David Nathan, Gary Peterson, Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight, Don Cornelius, Chuck D., Tevin Campbell, George Clinton and Ronald Isley, and an interview with Curtis Mayfield by Alan Warner.

Digitally remastered by Bill Inglot and Fred Hersch (Digiprep).

The history of soul music has never been short on heroes. Sam Cooke, Otis Redding, Ray Charles and Aretha Franklin all rightly stand tall in a sea of giants. On the edge of the Midwest, Chicago in particular, one Curtis Mayfield stands abreast the architects of '60s soul. Like his peers, Mayfield's background was in gospel. Although he did technically go on to stardom with secular music, he never abandoned the humanistic warmth of the church hymns that formed him.

It is that same humanistic warmth that sweeps across the 3 discs of PEOPLE GET R