Sunday Soul - the Great American Soulbook

You're probably familiar with the term the Great American Songbook, the body of songs, primarily written between the 20's and 60's, that form the cannon of standards that singers of that period heavily drew upon. It's composed of songs written by such songwriters as Irving Berlin, George and Ira Gershwin, Cole Porter, Rodgers and Hart, Rodgers and Hammerstein, and others, and if you look at any albums from the big acts of the day, you'll find all sorts of credits to them. Ella Fitzgerald even recorded a series of eight albums in the 50's and 60's titled The Complete Ella Fitzgerald Song Books.

Today's post is about none of those artists, writers, or songs. Instead, it's about the Great American Soulbook. Haven't heard of it? Well Tower of Power wants to change that with the release of their album of the same name. While talking about their live album The East Bay Archives Last December (back here), I had hinted that they were coming out with an album of soul covers, and now it's here, twelve prime cuts of soul goodness. Here's the line-up:

1. You Met Your Match (Stevie Wonder cover)
2. I Thank You (feat. Tom Jones) (Sam & Dave cover)
3. Loveland (Watts 103rd St. Rhythm Band cover)
4. It Takes Two (feat. Joss Stone) (Marvin Gaye & Kim Weston cover)
5. Me & Mrs. Jones (Billy Paul cover)
6. Star Time ( Tribute To James Brown ) - "It's New Day""Mother Popcorn,""There It Is"&"I Got The Feelin"
7. Mr.Pitiful (feat. Sam Moore) (Otis Redding cover)
8. Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel (Tavares cover)
9. Since You've Been Gone (Baby, Baby, Sweet Baby) (Aretha Franklin cover)
10. (Heaven Must Have Sent) Your Precious Love (feat. Joss Stone) (Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell cover)
11. 643-5789 (feat. Huey Lewis) (Wilson Pickett cover)
12. Who Is He (And What Is He To You)? (Bill Withers cover)

While admittedly all of these cuts aren't necessarily the definitive soul songs of all time, they're still pretty darn good. On top of that, you might have noticed some guest vocalists adding their star power to the project, including Tom Jones, Joss Stone, Sam Moore (a genuine soul star of Sam & Dave fame), and Huey Lewis (maybe not the first, or 300th, name that comes to mind when talking about soul music, but he does an admirable job covering Wilson Pickett).

You can tell that the group is having a good time while performing these tracks, the first time really that TOP has devoted to covers. Overall, the songs are presented in a jazzed up, polished manner that are reminiscent of what was done with the Commitments soundtrack - a an updated, modern shine that simultaneously pays homage while bringing a new feel to the table. Below are a couple of tracks in which you can see what I mean. The first features Tom Jones singing a Stax track, I Thank You. The second is a medley of James Brown songs deftly woven together into an original arrangement, Star Time.

Tower of Power - I Thank You (feat. Tom Jones) (Sam & Dave cover) : Great American Soulbook

Tower of Power - Star Time (Tribute To James Brown) - "It's New Day""Mother Popcorn,""There It Is"&"I Got The Feelin" : Great American Soulbook

Visit their website.

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the originals

Sam & Dave - I Thank You : I Thank You

James Brown - Mother Popcorn : 20 All Time Greatest Hits!

Telling It Like It Is

I know this album isn't new, and I've been sitting on it for a while now, but I still felt the need to post on it 'cause it's just that damn good. I've honestly been spinning it for months now, but for whatever reason (I can come up with a whole list of excuses if you want them), it's taken this long for me to share it with you all. It's the second album from Bronx born Stephanie McKay, but her first album to be released state-side. Originally, Tell It Like It Is was released a few years ago overseas, but it wasn't until March of this year that it was available to us here in the States.

What makes that fact especially hard to believe is that McKay has been slaving away behind the microphone for other groups since the early 90's. Over that period of time, she's worked with artists such as the Brooklyn Funk Essentials, Kelis, Talib Kweli, Mos Def, Roy Hargrove’s RH Factor, Amp Fiddler, and many others. Finally, in the last few years, she's been able to strike out on her own and record an album with her front and center, instead of as a secondary contributor. I'll be honest with you, her name didn't stand out in my mind before listening to this album, but since I have, I've tracked down her work with many of the musicians listed above.

So anyway, this album does a fine job of presenting Stephanie front and center with all of her vocalistic intensity. It mixes soul, R&B, and hip-hop in a filling recipe that burns right through from beginning to end without a hiccup. I think one of the things that I like most about it is her confident sass, regardless of the material or the style. You can tell she's a girl who isn't afraid to stand up for herself or her friends, hence the title of the album. She's equally confident celebrating the summer in the hip-hopesque Jackson Avenue, a true throw-back jam that gives a shout out to all that summer's about (and which should appear on any summer mix-tape you plan on assembling), as when things slow down with the soulful Where Did Our Love Go?, which also features Anthony Hamilton providing some backing male counterpoint to her sensualness.

The bottom line is that this album grooves deep, and should be on your list of to buy immediately.

Stephanie McKay - Jackson Avenue : Tell It Like It Is

Stephanie McKay - Where Did Our Love Go? (feat. Anthony Hamilton) : Tell It Like It Is

a collaboration:

Amp Fiddler feat. Stephanie McKay - Heaven : Afro Strut

and one from back in the day:

The Brooklyn Funk Essentials - You Don't Know Nothing (feat. Stephanie McKay) : In The BuzzBag

Visit her website, her label Muthas Of Invention, and become her friend on MySpace.

Cruel World

Cruel

"That's life for you. All the happiness you gather to yourself, it will sweep away like it's nothing. If you ask me I don't think there are any such things as curses. I think there is only life. That's enough."

from The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao,
by Junot Díaz

Solomon Burke - Cruel World : Live At The House Of Blues

Beautiful Melody

Melody (live acoustic) from Kate Earl on Vimeo.

studio version of Melody appears on Introducing Kate Earl.

Visit her website and become her friend on MySpace.

mo' NOMO

For those of you who read my Favorites of 2008 List, you might remember seeing NOMO's album Ghost Rock on the list. Well, less than year after originally posting on it (back here), the band is back with another full length album titled Invisible Cities. It was recorded during the Ghost Rock sessions and tours, but don't let that fool you - by no means are these cast-offs, b-sides, or noodle sessions.

As with their previous release, there are nine tracks here of instrumental goodness, and while it shares some characteristics, it also has some subtle differences. Of course present are some killer horn section work as well as curious sounds created from instruments invented by the band, something they love to do. To my ears, the album sounds a little more intricately textured though, with more subtle layers building upon each other, almost having a orchestral effect at times. There also seems to be less of an electronic feel to it compared to the last album and more of a natural flow very reminiscent of a mix between the tribalness of the Congotronics series and the raw funkiness of Fela Kuti.

The entire album is certainly cohesive, and even coming less than a year after its predecessor claims an identity of its own. Check out the album's opener, the title track, below.

NOMO - Invisible Cities : Invisible Cities

and an older one:

NOMO - Rocket #9 (Sun Ra cover) : Rocket #9 / Nu Tones 12"

Visit their website, their label Ubiquity Records, and become their friend on MySpace.

Sunday Soul - Potato Hole

It's hard to believe that I started my Sunday Soul feature over a year and a half ago in December of '07. It really doesn't feel like it's been that long. And while not officially titled as such, or even posted on a Sunday, I'd have to say that this post was probably the date of its conception. It seems fitting that it was on Booker T. & The MG's, as I can think of few other groups of musicians so critical to the development of soul music (perhaps Motown's Funk Brothers need to be mentioned here, too, although that was such a shifting group of musicians, it's hard to pin down their heart).

Instead of reinventing the wheel, here's what I said about the MG's back then:

Bring up the name Booker T. & The MG's, and the majority of people will connect it with the instrumental Green Onions (only the second track the members recorded - and actually first intended as the B-side!). What most people don't realize is that the group was the house band for legendary Southern soul label Stax Records. What that means is that if you listen to almost any track recorded by the label in the 60's, whether it's Sam & Dave, Wilson Picket, The Staple Singers, or countless other Stax artists, you're also listening to Booker T. & The MG's.

Notable members of the band included Isaac Hayes (of Theme From Shaft fame - who sometimes played keyboard), Donald "Duck" Dunn, and Steve Cropper (who both can be seen in the 1980 classic The Blues Brothers as members of "The Band"). And while their names have settled into relative obscurity, their influence on Rock & Roll was monumental. Besides being the session musicians that helped their label-mates sound so good, their style of playing (The MG's stood for Memphis Group, and their Memphis sound was what helped defined Southern soul music) was appreciated by many, including The Beatles (John Lennon was a huge Stax fan).

Since writing that, the group was rightfully inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame last November, and in April, after nearly two decades, Booker T. Jones released a new solo album, Potato Hole. Backing him up on the album, in place of the MG's, are the Drive-By Truckers AND Neil Young. Yeah, you read that right, Neil Young.

As can be expected, it's an album of instrumentals, 10 of them to be exact. And in typical Booker T. fashion, they're a mix of originals and covers, including Tom Wait's Get Behind The Mule, a Drive-By Truckers song Space City, and most interestingly, Outkast's Hey Ya. What is not typical here is the focus of the instrumentation. While Jones' signature Hammond B-3 organ is present, in many of these songs it's backgrounded behind the guitar work of Young and the Truckers. It's definitely got more of a rock feel to it, albeit with some funkiness mixed in.

And while you're listening, check out the latest issue of Wax Poetics to read a stellar interview with Jones in which I learned a heck of a lot that I hadn't known about him. Things like the first instrument he played was a ukulele, that Bill Dogget's Honky Tonk was his inspiration and without it there'd probably not have been Green Onions, and that he produced Bill Withers debut album Just As I Am.

Booker T. Jones - Warped Sister : Potato Hole

and some juicy oldies:

Booker T. & The MG's - Tic-Tac-Toe : Soul Dressing

Booker T. & The MG's - Green Onions (live) : The Stax / Volt Revue: Live In London, Vol. 1

Booker T. & The MG's - Eleanor Rigby (Beatles cover) : Soul Limbo

Booker T. & The MG's - Harlem Shuffle : Soul Men

Visit Jones' website, his label Anti- Records, and become his friend on MySpace.

Lovers Or Something Like It

...and there's no defeat
like a kiss from an ex-lover's lips
the room fell deadly quiet
like a hoarse little call

my god she is beautiful...


and it hits me like a ton of bricks

The Rosie Taylor Project - Lovers Or Something Like It : Lovers Or Something Like It single

Visit their website, their label Bad Sneakers Records, and become their friend on MySpace.

Jenny Gillespie' new year

I'm not quite sure where to start in talking about Jenny Gillespie and her debut full length album Light Year. Part of me wants to share all of the other great female singer/songwriters that she reminds me of. But in doing so, I wouldn't want to give the impression that she isn't a woman of her own, an artist with something to express of her own creation. So instead, I'll start with her.

Jenny started making music of her own at thirteen. Her influences were some of the great female musicians like Nanci Griffith and Joni Mitchell, but also men like Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen. What all of these artists have in common, and which Jenny shares, is the ability to make something profoundly powerful, yet at times deceptively simple or delicate.

Since then, she's worked at her art, releasing an EP while in college in Austin, TX. Soon after, she moved to Chicago, where Light Year started to take substance. While only containing eight tracks, they are all well developed compositions, most close to five minutes long or longer, with none that feel like they were included just to inflate the album into something larger than it needed to be. There's nothing gimmicky or flashy here, just tightly woven songs.

Probably the closest comparison I can make to Jenny would be early Sarah McLachlan, Solace era stuff. Listen to the album's opening track, Vanishing Point, below and you'll see what I mean

Jenny Gillespie - Vanishing Point : Light Year

Visit her website and become her friend on MySpace.

Catching Up with the Beat Shack

So Dirty's Mobile Beat Shack isn't anything new. In fact, it's years old - but it just saw a digital re-release from Ropeadope Digital last month, which helped me discover it and its creator, Dirty Drummer, when I saw an ad in the latest issue of Wax Poetics. Since then, it's been a go-to album for me - an easy choice when I'm trying to figure out what to spin and don't have a lot of brain power to devote to the question. Which isn't to say that's a disposable album that makes nice background noise - it's good, damn good.

It's hard to classify this album neatly. It's got a couple of hip hop tracks that open and close it with some guest MCs, but it's not a straight up rap album. It's got some cuts that are beat features along the lines of Jay Dilla, but it's not a break album. In it's flow it's more of a mix tape thing, except it features fifteen tracks all created by Dirty Drummer. It's got a Dilla meets Dimitri From Paris feel to it in its wide range of influences and flavors. You'll find some retro 50'sish samples, dialogue from a movie (Pootie Tang), the before-mentioned rhymes laid down by J.Scienide, Supastition, and Der Thinc, a fictional, comic interview with Dirty Drummer, all mixed in doses that keep things moving without hitting up the same gimmick too many times.

Going back to the Wax Poetics link, they're offering a free download of a new mix of songs by DD called Dirty's Mobile Dub Sack. As you might guess from the title, it's got more of a dub / reggae feel to it versus the hip hop / funk feel of the Beat Shack. It's absolutely free though, so definitely head over that way to download a copy for yourself. Don't stop there though, the Beat Shack is certainly worth the coin, and here are two of its tracks to help convince you.

Dirty Drummer - Sadie & Lucy : Dirty's Mobile Beat Shack

Dirty Drummer - What does it mean? : Dirty's Mobile Beat Shack

Visit his website, his label Ropeadope, and become his friend on MySpace.

Headless Heroes

For those of you who are familiar with Alela Diane, The Silence of Love will feel both warmly comfortable and a few short steps from what you might expect. While earlier this year she released her latest solo effort, To Be Still, just last week, this album hit shelves, with Alela assuming vocal duties for a group named Headless Heroes. For it, she was recruited to add her voice to an interesting mix of covers.

I say interesting because while some are relatively contemporary (The Jesus & Mary Chain's Just Like Honey and Nick Cave's Nobody's Baby Now) and some are cozily familiar (Jackson C. Frank's Blues Run The Game - best known for the Simon & Garfunkel version), the majority of tracks here are virtual unknowns (any of you familiar with Juicy Lucy or I Am Kloot?). Here's the complete track listing:

1. True Love Will Find You In The End (Daniel Johnston cover)
2. Just One Time (Juicy Lucy cover)
3. Here Before (Vashti Bunyan cover)
4. Just Like Honey (The Jesus & Mary Chain cover)
5. To You (I Am Kloot cover)
6. Blues Run The Game (Simon & Garfunkel cover)
7. Hey, Who Really Cares? (Linda Perhacs cover)
8. Nobody's Baby Now (Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds cover)
9. The North Wind Blew South (Philamore Lincoln cover)
10. See My Love (The Gentle Soul cover)

Like I said, a lot of obscure work here that Eddie Bezalel and Hugo Nicolson, the two brains behind the album, probably dug up from their mom's record collection.

While Alele's voice is surely hers here, the instruments behind her are a little different from her solo work. Instead of focusing primarily on acoustic guitar lines, this album mixes things up a bit, varying from her typical folk stylings into more psychedelic and occasionally orchestral veins.

If you're interested in picking up the album, head over to Amie Street, where not only will you get a great price on it ($7 for a digital copy), but also 25% of all sales will benefit Housing Works a New York City community-based not-for-profit organization committed to ending the twin crises of AIDS and homelessness.

Headless Heroes - True Love Will Find You In The End (Daniel Johnston cover) : The Silence of Love

the original:

Daniel Johnston - True Love Will Find You In The End : Welcome to My World

one from her latest solo release:

Alela Diane - Age Old Blue : To Be Still

Visit their website and become their friend on MySpace.

Deradoorian's Mind

For being a first release, Angel Deradoorian's Mind Raft EP is a strikingly crafted piece of musical craftsmanship. Angel, who also serves time with the Dirty Projectors, has created five atmospheric tracks that feel a lot larger than the EP's 22 minutes would suggest at first glance.

It opens with Weed Jam, in which the only lyrics, if you could call them that, are her soaring and swooping ahhhhh's, ooooh's, and ehhhhhh's. Think Moby mixing it up with a church chorus. It's beautiful, it's angelic, and it's surprisingly captivating for a lack of sing-along-ability. From there the EP moves in High Road, a slowly plodding track that features strings stabbing in over an electronic beat and Angel's voice moving into a carefully controlled cadence of lyrics (listen to it below). At this point, it begins to feel like This Mortal Coil. The strings turn a little softer, and more central, on You Carry The Deed, as does Angel's voice. Holding Pattern sees a return to a little more insistent, unnatural, and harder beat, with Angel's voice reflecting such. The EP winds up with Moon, a return to the mystical, angelic tones of the opener, with a tinge of psychedelia thrown in to keep you off balance for the finale.

Deradoorian - High Road : Mind Raft EP

Visit her label Lovepump United and become her friend on MySpace.

Ben Lee, Live again

Monday night I was fortunate enough to see one of my favorite artists, Ben Lee, play live at the Paradise in Boston. I’ve seen him a bunch of times before (probably more times than I’ve seen any artist), and knew that as much as I like his albums, he’s always an even more enjoyable entertainer in person, and he didn’t disappoint with this performance.

Backing him up for most of the evening were members of the opening act, Low Vs. Diamond. I have to say that I was impressed with the fact that they did such a good job learning Ben’s songs, songs that were taken from throughout his deep catalog. He of course performed some songs from the new album (What's So Bad (About Feeling Good), I Love Pop Music, Yoko Ono, Boy With A Barbie) which, while not my favorite of his, is slowly growing on me, but also pulled tracks up from many older albums, including Ripe (Is This How Love's Supposed To Feel?, Numb), Awake Is the New Sleep (Catch My Disease, Debt Collectors), Breathing Tornados (Cigarettes Will Kill You, Ship My Body Home – which he closed the show with a ROCKING version of), and even his Away With the Pixies EP from 1995 (Shirtless - more on this later). In addition to his solo material, Ben played a few Noise Addict songs (the band he was in before going solo), including a few old ones as well as from an upcoming album that they’ll be releasing, as well as some new non-album songs that I hadn’t heard before. If you’ve heard the latest album, the second song, Surrender, is a song that he’s been playing for a while in his live shows (although he didn't play it this time), perhaps some of these new songs are similar and will appear sometime in the future.

There were a few highlights over the course of the evening. The first was a hilarious, improvisational number titled Daisy of Love (not at all connected to his song Daisy from Something To Remember Me By), an ode to the VH1 show of the same name as well as its red headed cousin, Rock Of Love. Ben introduced the song by announcing he had just seen his first full episode of the show and was touched by Daisy’s apparent vulnerability. Over the course of the song, which was emotionally powerful in all its highs and lows, the focus shifted to Brett Michaels and his Achilles Heal, diabetes, deftly revealed in the episode where he was riding in a dune buggy.

The other highlight occurred when, while performing sans band, Ben asked for requests from the audience, and a woman suggested Shirtless, from one of his first solo efforts, the Away With the Pixies EP. He admitted to forgetting the lyrics and had an audience member find them on their iPhone so he could sing along while playing his guitar.

Unfortunately, I don't have a recording of the show, but I can share a song (the one he opened with the night I saw him, a new one that I'm guessing the name of) or two (an Ataris cover that's quite amusing) and a link to a complete recording of a show from just last week with an almost identical set list. And if you haven't picked up the new record yet, shame on you! Ben needs your money - he just announced a few weeks ago that's he's going to be a dad!

Ben Lee - That's How It Goes : Live in Columbus, OH 5-15-09

Ben Lee - Ben Lee (Ataris cover) : : Live in Columbus, OH 5-15-09

Visit his website, his label New West Records, and become his friend on MySpace.