(February 14, 2025) For the millions of music fans who view the early 1970s as the Golden Age of Soul Music, discussions move pretty quickly to the lush ballads of The Sound of Philadelphia and the heyday of the legendary act The Stylistics. And a half century later, that iconic group, now down to a trio consisting of co-founders Airrion Love and Herb Murrell and longtime member Jason Sharp, is still going strong.
It has been 15 years since the Stylistics issued their fine album That Same Way, but the group returns on February 21 with an ambitious 21-song disc filled with A-list musicians (including Toto’s Steve Lukather, Ray Parker, Jr., Nigel Olsson, Davey Johnstone, Tower of Power and more) and collaborators. Produced by Tom Cridland, Falling In Love With My Girl is as unlikely as it is exciting for Stylistics fans: a full-length return of a longtime favorite group with strong new material and musicianship.
The first single from the new album is a happily unusual one. R&B and Country music spent decades effectively denying their shared history, but those walls have crashed down in the past few years. And “Yes I Will,” a duet with country legend Shania Twain, is another hammer against that barrier that beautifully blends the two musical styles.
Written by Twain as an affirmation of the power of unconditional love to help overcome hardships, the midtempo “Yes I Will” is backed by Ronnie Wood (Rolling Stones), Bill Champlin (formerly of Chicago), Yacht Rock pioneer Jay Graydon, Gene Simmons (Kiss), Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top) and Tower of Power. And Shania and The Stylistics sound great together.
Check out “Yes I Will” below, and welcome this surprising pairing to SoulTracks.
By Chris Rizik
