Stone Rollin' Columbia***
After a career of ups and downs with Tony! Toni! Tone! and Lucy Pearl, Raphael Saadiq enjoyed a blow-out success with 2009's vintage soul-powered album,
The Way I See It.
The superb live shows that went with it confirmed Saadiq had made the right decision to go back to the source. He’s still digging soul’s dusty grooves this time around, but he’s moved on from the Motown and Philly archives to a tougher, grittier, funkier stew of prime soul sounds.
You will hear nods to Muscle Shoals' sass (
Good Man), the fuzzy pop shakes of Sly & the Family Stone (the title track), marvellous Marvin Gaye's post-Motown work (the lovely soulful shimmer on
Moving Down the Line) and Curtis Mayfield at the height of his powers (
Go to Hell).
It’s another strong, vibrant, confident and colourful album from an artist who sounds as if he’s relishing these trips back to the future.
See raphaelsaadiq.com
Download tracks: Good Man, Go to Hell, Moving Down the Line
