Invitation
When it comes to musical family affairs, Tyrone Lee is more than well acquainted, even if the relationships were not always bound by blood. His connections to three influential families through different avenues have played a major role during his quiet, but respectable career. Performing under Tyrone Henry, the singer contributed backing vocals during the […]
Never My Love: The Anthology (2014)
The first time I heard Donny Hathaway and knew who I was hearing, I was 18 years old. It was 1993, and I was crate digging in an old jazz record store on Chicago’s Gold Coast, one no longer in residence. The song the store played overhead was “For All We Know” and I, transfixed […]
Live at the Hazlett Theater
Margot “Margot B” Bingham is better known for singing the music of W.C. Handy than for singing her own music. That is due to another one of her identities – that of Daughter Maitland. Daughter Maitland is the jazz singer who performs in the nightclub of Chalky White on the HBO series “Boardwalk Empire.” So […]
Black Panties (2014)
We hate to pile on, but pile on we shall. R. Kelly blew it. After getting a quiet reprieve from a number of those who avowed never to listen to another R. Kelly record again and then reneged upon hearing the recent glories that are Write Me Back and Love Letter, Kelly has gone and […]
Cool In My Skin (2014)
When Chris offered Cool In My Skin, Ty Causey’s latest, to me for review, he identified the Fort Wayne native as “the prolific Ty Causey.” That got a chuckle from me, and then I thought about it. Causey has made a lot of music over the last eight or nine years. He’s released seven albums […]
You’re The Reason
Melinda Doolittle’s third place finish in a popular showcase like American Idol might not have guaranteed her success in another era. For instance, it’s hard to imagine how a vocalist with a classic mature soulful sound would not have been able to parlay that into a higher level of commercial success in 1987, when Doolittle […]
Let Love Shine
Lisa Taylor brings a “girl next door” sensibility to her new album Let Love Shine. Now, let us consider that phrase ‘girl next door.’ People hold a certain perception of ladies described as the girl next door. “Nice” would be the prevailing perception. She’s nice looking. She’s nice to everyone on the block. The guys […]
Outside My Window (2013)
Al Castellana has been a towering presence on the Italian soul music scene for over a decade, with his popular debut album, Niente Di Nuovo, and collaborations with some of Italy’s most popular artists, Castellana solidified his reputation with an appearance on the funk compilation, Funk in Italia, before releasing his third album, Funk me […]
Fourward
Some artists are the type with whom listeners grow comfortable. You throw their CD on and you know what you’re going to get. There is nothing wrong with that as long as the groove doesn’t become a rut. Then there are the risk takers. These are the artists for whom mastery of a certain style […]
Finding My Way (2013)
Using a tasty hodgepodge of Anthony Hamilton’s mature soul and Musiq Soulchild’s crooning, Birmingham, Ala. singer/songwriter Gabriel Tajeu is bending the rules of Southern soul. At heart, he’s a singer/songwriter, using Stevie Wonder-meets-John Mayer flexibilities to maneuver around a plethora of styles that are quite comparable to the singer/songwriter code. What you get in […]
