ALBUM REVIEW: Jamie Lidell - Jim

With hints of Smokey Robinson and other classic soul artists of the '60s and '70s, Jamie Lidell's new album, Jim, transports the listener back to those simpler days while at the same time keeping things fresh.

Those familiar with Lidell's previous solo work and his work with Super Collider may be surprised at how polished and accessible this record is. However, it's clear this is the next step in the evolution Lidell's sound has been undergoing throughout his career. From the sampling and electronic meanderings of 2000's Muddlin Gear to the edgy electronic soul of Multiply, it seems that Lidell has been plotting this course to refined soul music for the 21st Century for last eight or more years. While this album is highlighted by more actual instruments than anything he's released in the past, Jim does use electronic manipulation and the other studio wizardry to enhance the vintage feel of the tracks.

While songs like "Wait for Me," and the album's first single, "Little Bit of Feelgood," are poised to be breakout summertime smashes on the scale of the 2006 Gnarls Barkley megahit "Crazy," a cut like "Figured Me Out" seems to pull from the playbook of Jamiroquai and the smooth, jazzy feel of "Green Light" could land Lidell on tour with Steely Dan.

Overall, a very solid and durable album from the king of the next generation of Blue-Eyed Soul singers, Jim is an album sure to appeal to many walks of life and get all generations out on the floor and dancing.

ALBUM REVIEW: Jason Miles - Soul Summit

New York City Grammy winning jazz musician and producer Jason Miles has orchestrated and produced a recording that has restored my faith in live concert recordings. The subtle off-mic chuckles between songs, the slight missteps, everything that makes live music the ferocious and compelling beast that it is has been captured on this recording. With the production value of a great studio album and just the right amount of audience noise to accentuate the moments when you are jumping off your couch at home, this record brings late 60’s and 70’s soul to life.

The album jumps right into the heat of the battle with Richard Elliot, of Tower of Power fame, taking the reigns on a blazing rendition of Junior Walker’s “Shotgun” that immediately sucks you in and proves from the get go that this band is chock full of some of the most serious and soulful musicians on the scene today. The group, assembled by Miles for one show only at the Berks Jazz Fest in 2007, is comprised of powerhouse vocalists, Susan Tedeschi, Maysa Leak, and Mike Mattison (Derek Trucks Band) saxophonists Karl Denson, Elliot, Dave Mann and Barry Danielian, bassist Bob Babbitt (Marvin Gaye), guitarists Reggie Young (Elvis Presley and Ray Charles) and Sherrod Barnes, and trumpeter Tony Kadlek.

A take on Laura Lee’s “What a Man” follows the up-tempo sax laced opener and Maysa Leak’s soulful rendition pushes the song to the limits of what it was on its original 1969 release. The song features a blistering solo from Karl Denson and goes a long way to show that this album is much more than a trip down a musical memory lane. It is, in Miles trademark style, a reinvention of the classic sounds that defined the Funk, Soul and R&B genres.

As the record moves on Mike Mattison slows the pace and conjures up images of Percy Sledge as he takes over on lead vocals on “It Tears Me Up” before yielding to Mrs. Trucks, (aka Susan Tedeschi) who is out front for one of the flatter songs on the album, a take on Irma Thomas’s “It’s Raining.” However, she redeems herself when she steps up to the Dusty Springfield classic “Son of a Preacherman” and gives it a heartfelt and bluesy treatment that Dusty would have approved of.

The album rounds out in the only way that is truly fitting with a 12 minute tribute to the Godfather of Soul himself, Mr. James Brown. With the three main vocalist trading stanzas on “I Feel Good,” and even Karl Denson slink stepping down from his riser to take the helm on “Sex Machine,” it is clear that this group of musicians had a great time under the direction of the legendary Jason Miles and so will you.

A Clip of The Group Performing "What A Man"

ALBUM REVIEW: Tedd Browne - Musical Portrait of Lake George

In 1968, a young black folksinger named Tedd Browne became a casualty of our nation’s long battle with racism when Richard Robbins, a veteran of the war in Vietnam, shot him dead in a random act of racially motivated violence. Browne was just 39 years old.

Though this tragic event silenced a creative mind and his musical legacy has never received the attention it deserves, one man is trying to change that. More than 30 years since Browne's albums went out of print, Schenectady New York musician, and long time Tedd Browne fan, Mark Mason has decided to make it his project to revive Browne’s work and make it available to a whole new generation.

Mason sought out, and teamed with, Larry DeVivo of Silvertone Mastering to tackle the project beginning with Browne’s Musical Portrait of Lake George. The pair tracked down several copies of the original vinyl release and DeVivo was able to re-master the album from those sources. The resulting CD sounds exceptional and retains the classically warm sound of the vinyl it was originally released on back in 1964.

Browne was largely known as a historical singer songwriter and this album paints a vivid and historically accurate picture of the upstate New York vacation paradise, Lake George. Browne captured the lakes rich history as a pivotal battleground in the French and Indian War and the American Revolution with songs like “Fort William Henry,” “Ethan Allen,” and “Fort Ticonderoga,” while also looking at tourist industry that the lake is known for today with “Lake George Steamboats” and the lighthearted “Holiday,” that closes the album.

Throughout the record, fans of 60’s folk music will catch themselves wondering why Browne never got more attention. His resonate baritone voice carries with it a weight that is both soul stirring and instantly recognizable. The haunting first lines of “The Lumberjack” are reminiscent of Folk and Calypso legend Harry Bellefonte, while on “Father Jogues” Browne tells the story of the discovery of the lake and his voice takes on a transcendently spiritual tone.

Browne’s vocals and guitar are joined on the album by Arlo Guthrie collaborator Tom McGoodwin on banjo and Spike Lee’s father, Bill Lee, on the bass. Together the three men deftly stretch the limits of folk, bluegrass and blues as they share simple story songs that ring with truth that flowed freely from the pen of one of America’s great forgotten folk singers.

Available Here: iTunes for Digital and Here for CD

ALBUM REVIEW: Cas Haley - Cas Haley

The name may ring a bell as Cas Haley was featured on the 2007 installment of the hit NBC series “America’s Got Talent,” but don’t hold that against him. He wound up taking home runner-up honors and if his debut album is any indication, America did a pretty good job of gauging his talent. With a sound that is one part Brett Dennen and two parts Bob Marley, Haley is quickly rising from the ranks of America’s talented to shine as an up and coming reggae star on the U.S. scene.

The album kicks off with a “bonus” acoustic cover of The Police’s “Walking On the Moon” before diving into the more characteristic sound of the album with the Haley original, “Survive.” The track is bouncy and horn driven while lyrically reminding the listener that we haven’t really come that far from our primate roots. It is a strong message that shows that Haley, at 26, is capable of writing about mature concepts and doesn’t rely solely on the old stand-by of passion and lost love for lyrical inspiration.

Though the full band version of “Walking On The Moon,” is the albums first single, radio fans can expect to hear the strains of Haley’s “I Wish That I” saturating the airwaves before the summer is over. With a mellow pace, soothing background vocals and upbeat feel, the song is the perfect compliment to a lazy afternoon in the sun. Throughout the album Haley and his band Woodbelly seem to channel the Reggae masters of the Caribbean as they use well placed horn lines and fine guitar work to accentuate the island beats that these Texas natives have mastered.

While this remarkably consistent album is ripe with other standout tracks such as “Dread Head Dream” and the album closer “All My Life,” Haley’s arrangement of The Commodores “Easy” sounds as fresh as anything that UB40 covered in their heyday. He makes the song his own and it takes on new life in his hands. Be on the lookout for much more from this talented American as he matures as a musician and as an individual.

Grade: B

ALBUM REVIEW: The Decemberists: The Crane Wife

On October 3rd The Decemberists unveiled a masterpiece called The Crane Wife. The album once again features Colin Meloy's elegant wordsmithing as it musically drives home the concept that this band is here for real. The experience begins with a sound Decemberists fans will recognize and slowly builds to a raging 3 song creshendo that is one part Disco/Funk, one part Prog-Rock and one part the gorgeous orchestral Indie Rock that The Decemberists have become known for.

The powerful, nearly epic, songs highlight the fact that Meloy's writing is clearly at the top of it's game. His pen has truly become a brush as he seems to have painted the word pictures that bring this album alive. Images such as "I tasted summer on your peppery skin," and "A gray sky, a bitter sting, a rain cloud, a crane on a wing," are not uncommon in these dark tales that are shrouded in Victorian lace.

Technically speaking the production value on the record is excellent and the songlist was put together flawlessly. The album lifts you up in strong arms and lets you down gently right where it wants you. From the bright and tinny opening notes of "The Crane Wife 3" through the final chorus of "Sons and Daughters" that features the full company singing "Hear all the bombs, they fade away," The Decemberists take you for an emotionally wrenching ride through an imaginary world inhabited by soldiers and sailors, bank robbers and fairy tale butchers. It is not a place for the faint of heart.

I have already read some reviews of this album where die hard fans have expressed their displeasure and their anger that the band has "sold-out." I don't think this could be further from the truth. The majesty and passion that are conveyed in the presentation of this collection of songs simply could not be made by a band attemping to placate a record executive. This is a record that refects the maturity of the band both lyrically and musically. In every generation a few bands get popular simply because they are extremely talented and hitting their creative stride as a unit, and not as individuals. The nature of creativity almost dictates that this can't last and that it must be cherished when it happens. I think The Decemberists are at that pinnacle right now. We would be fools not to stand up and take notice while they are in our midst. This is music that will endure and who knows how long they can keep it up.

GRADE: A