All-star line-up on sizzling compilation.
Quality control at Putumayo World Music has raised the bar with this outstanding release, showing theyve done their homework thoroughly.
Spread across 12 tracks we get a flavour of the first generation RnB scene with stellar performances from household names like Irma Thomas, The Emotions (hit single Best Of My Love), Sam Moore (Sam & Dave Soul Man) Angie Stone (UK hit Life Story, 1999) along with the genres rising stars Ruthie Foster (Eric Bibb) and Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings.
The real R&B groove kick-starts with venerable diva Lavelle Whites cover of standard Ive Never Found Me A Man To Love written by Booker T, previously done by Esther Phillips and Al Green.
Grammy-nominated singer-guitarist James Hunter has clearly managed to sound very convincing as a black singer. Englishman Hunter has been a stalwart of the genre, so much so he secured Van Morrison on his debut album Believe What I Say (1996).
Til Your Fool Comes Home is jump-blues with throbbing basslines and sax drop-ins with a hook good enough to get you dance-floor bound. Considered to be Americas party band of distinction, especially in their native New York (parties and corporate events a are their specialties), Cracked Ice tackle Candi Statons Sweet Feeling with style, featuring the dulcet tones of songbird Catherine Russell and the hot sax of Crispin Cioe that create a laidback southern groove.
Panamanian soul singer Kabir, (formerly Ernie King before converting to Islam) shows his vocal class on this nice-slice of grooviness, performed by Will Hollands collective The Quantic Soul Orchestra.
Best known for UK disco chart hit Best Of My Love, Chicago sister act The Emotions show they can drift away from the dance-floor formula on the R&B-lite gem My Honey And Me, from their 1979 Stax album Chronicle.
Porch-Blues classic Wang Dang Doodle by the legendary bassist Willie Dixon, starts with steel guitar slide before evolving into a gospel-blues jaunt dressed by subliminal harmonica is given an overhaul by equally legendary Bluesman Keb Mo and soulsters Sam Moore and Angie Stone, bringing dazzling results due to the crafted interplay.
Similarly, Catherine Russell keeps the original touchstones of its creator Sam Cooke on the sublime country-tinged Put Me Down Easy.
Texan Ruthie Foster, a regular contributor to Eric Bibb albums and support act, gives a vocal masterclass on the smooth stylings of Cuz Im Here, taking her slightly out of her comfort zone.
If things werent buzzing at his gigs, Snooks Eaglin would often yell, Make some noise, dammit, this aint no funeral parlour!. Sadly Eaglin kicked the bucket himself, but not before leaving a considerable body of work including Earl Kings riffy A Mothers Love. Like all great axemen, his solos are disciplined and cool.
After year of grinding out work as a back-up, Sharon Jones career exploded with her 2006 album 100 Days, 100 Nights, a southern flavoured, gospel infused classic.
President Of Soul Rockie Charles died last week aged 67. For years he was on the periphery of the NO scene, Luckily for Charles, local record label owner Carlo Ditta produced his quirky album Born For You, that included the brass-laden Before I Find The Right Girl For Me, a rolling blues ballad typical of New Orleans heritage.
Finally, the Soul Queen Of New Orleans Irma Thomas teams up with 60 year-old New Orleans jazz-pianist Henry Butler on the stirring and deeply-soulful River Is Waiting written by CCRs John Fogerty. Though the original is a guitar based song, Thomas and Butler keep the Deep South in mind and retain its sensibilities, done in a lazy jazz format.
The verdict Truly outstanding.