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Of All the Things
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Of All the Things
Current price: $34.99
Barnes and Noble
Of All the Things
Current price: $34.99
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Could it be? Is it really possible that one of the most innovative collectives in modern music could stoop to making a throwback soul record? (Perhaps they should have recruited
Joss Stone
as a guest vocalist.) Sarcasm aside, it's obvious that a soul record from a group like
Jazzanova
is quite a different proposition from the usual retro rot. So confident in their middle age that they feel no need to innovate (at least, purely for its own sake), the Berliner sextet ends up delivering one of the best soul albums of the era (or any other). True, the influences may be easy to spot -- Philly soul here, Motown there, plenty of '70s progressive jazz with taut strings or breezy woodwinds -- but with arrangements as accomplished as these are, and productions that crackle as gloriously as these do, the group can rest comfortably with their theft, genius as it is. Each track has a vocal feature, which might disappoint a few dance fans, but as with the first
production LP (
In Between
), listeners won't spend long wishing they could hear instrumentals of these songs. The caressing vocalist
Paul Randolph
is responsible for a large share of the highlights, while
must be proudest for snaring the smooth soul maverick
Leon Ware
to appear on a cover of his own
"Rockin' You Eternally,"
with backing vocals from fellow Detroiter
Dwele
. (Still,
Phonte
from
Little Brother
is responsible for the record's greatest feat -- delivering a fine soul vocal on the opener
"Look What You're Doin' to Me,"
then rapping just as well for
"So Far from Home."
) It's to be expected that
would turn in excellent productions with every track, but what's most impressive about
Of All the Things
is the work that
haven't made their forte in the past -- songwriting, arrangements, and the pairing of each vocalist with a song that works perfectly for them. (Credit for much of the songwriting and arranging for horn or strings goes to
Stefan Leisering
.) Whereas in the past,
's preeminence was obvious on the surface,
displays their subtle powers for music-making. ~ John Bush
Joss Stone
as a guest vocalist.) Sarcasm aside, it's obvious that a soul record from a group like
Jazzanova
is quite a different proposition from the usual retro rot. So confident in their middle age that they feel no need to innovate (at least, purely for its own sake), the Berliner sextet ends up delivering one of the best soul albums of the era (or any other). True, the influences may be easy to spot -- Philly soul here, Motown there, plenty of '70s progressive jazz with taut strings or breezy woodwinds -- but with arrangements as accomplished as these are, and productions that crackle as gloriously as these do, the group can rest comfortably with their theft, genius as it is. Each track has a vocal feature, which might disappoint a few dance fans, but as with the first
production LP (
In Between
), listeners won't spend long wishing they could hear instrumentals of these songs. The caressing vocalist
Paul Randolph
is responsible for a large share of the highlights, while
must be proudest for snaring the smooth soul maverick
Leon Ware
to appear on a cover of his own
"Rockin' You Eternally,"
with backing vocals from fellow Detroiter
Dwele
. (Still,
Phonte
from
Little Brother
is responsible for the record's greatest feat -- delivering a fine soul vocal on the opener
"Look What You're Doin' to Me,"
then rapping just as well for
"So Far from Home."
) It's to be expected that
would turn in excellent productions with every track, but what's most impressive about
Of All the Things
is the work that
haven't made their forte in the past -- songwriting, arrangements, and the pairing of each vocalist with a song that works perfectly for them. (Credit for much of the songwriting and arranging for horn or strings goes to
Stefan Leisering
.) Whereas in the past,
's preeminence was obvious on the surface,
displays their subtle powers for music-making. ~ John Bush
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