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Liner Note Author: Clive Richardson . Willie Hutch is probably best known for crafting the soundtracks to such 1970s Blaxploitation classics as FOXY BROWN and THE MACK, and producing Smokey Robinson and other Motown artists, but 1969's SOUL PORTRAIT marked Hutch's debut as a solo artist. He had recently come off of a successful period producing and writing for the Fifth Dimension when he made SOUL PORTRAIT, but the album showcases his abilities not only as a songwriter, but as a singer. And while he didn't achieve any real chart success until THE MACK's "Brother Gonna Work it Out" became a hit in '73, the combination of punchy, groove-based tunes and emotive ballads on SOUL PORTRAIT present an artist already fully formed, with a rich, resonant gift.
