(June 21, 2023) Dang! I love it when a record grabs you from the start and immediately takes you for a ride (so to speak)! That’s what this single from composer/multi-instrumentalist Herb Partlow does. A nice and nasty (or NASH-TAY!) funk jam with X-Factor/American Idol veteran Tora Woloshin – “Ride Or Die”.
Partlow wears many hats – radio personality, producer, artist, manager, publicist, audio recording and mastering engineer. He’s made his bones in the smooth jazz world for the past ten years but with “Ride Or Die,” Partlow makes a return to his R&B/funk roots.
Let’s get right to the track: Tora is right there from the beginning, smooth vocals declaring what she requires from her man and what he’ll get in return. At the same time, if he ain’t gonna stay, she WILL make other plans. So it’s indeed “ride or die” time.
Now let’s talk about Mr. Partlow here. He’s playing ALL the instruments here – guitar, keyboards, drum programming and that funky bass plucking. Partlow creates a solid groove here that would even make for a fine instrumental as well. The searing guitar solo is courtesy of Ricardo Love, harkening back to the era when many R&B jams had that rock guitar solo to make the music stand out.
In closing, this reviewer says “kudos” to Herb, Tora and Ricardo for a solid effort here. Looking forward to more in the near future.
By Kevin Goins
Herb Partlow feat. Tora Woloshin
“Ride Or Die”
