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...Usher
Revolution
Usher Raymond IV (born October 14, 1978 in Dallas, Texas), known simply as Usher, is a Grammy Award winning American R&B singer-songwriter, producer and actor. He rose to fame in the late 90s, releasing the multi-platinum albums My Way and 8701. His success continued with the release of his 2004 album, Confessions, which has sold over 20 million copies worldwide, and earned Usher four American Music Awards and eight Grammy nominations. His latest album Here I Stand, released in May 2008, reached #1 on the Billboard 200 and has currently sold over 2 million copies worldwide....
Ephraim Lewis
Skin
Ephraim Lewis was a British R&B singer from Wolverhampton (near Birmingham). He was born in 1968 and died in violent and mysterious circumstances in Los Angeles 26 years later after having released just one album: Skin. He was in the middle of recording new material with Los Angeles producer Glen Ballard. Seven songs were ultimately recorded with Ballard before Lewis took his own life by jumping off of a balcony at the Argyle Hotel. Just a few hours earlier, Lewis had finished the vocals on one of his new songs....
Christina Aguilera
Back To Basics
Christina Aguilera seemed intent on constantly reinventing herself over the course of her first several albums, and it’s hard not to be impressed by her leaps from teen-pop sensation (1999 self-titled debut) to raunchy, sexually precocious R&B singer (2002’s STRIPPED) to blues and jazz-steeped diva on 2006’s BACK TO BASICS. With its smoky torch songs, occasional big-band arrangements, and allusions to seminal divas like Billie Holiday and Etta James, the ambitious double disc casts Aguilera in the soft, romantic light of vintage soul crooners....
Marvin Gaye
What’s Going On (Deluxe Edition)
This deluxe edition of WHAT’S GOING ON includes a 20-page booklet with
complete lyrics, never-before-published photos from personal family collections and an essay by David Ritz.
Recorded live at The Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C. on May 1, 1972.
Originally released in 1971, WHAT’S GOING ON remains a landmark album, one that redefined music with powerful, anthemic songs that remain pertinent to this day. Before WHAT’S GOING ON, R&B albums were collections of singles, with secondary “filler” material rounding out the LPs. Marvin Gaye changed all this by releasin...
Maysa
A Woman In Love
Maysa takes on a host of classic tunes — yet turns them all into something completely brand new, thanks to the soul-styled vocal charms we’ve always loved in her music! A fair bit of the tunes are standards, but they’re recast here in contemporary soul territory, with a bit of an Incognito twist at times too — the groove that Maysa first forged with Bluey, worked out here nicely with Chris Big Dog Davis and John Jones. Will Downing guests on a version of “Love Theory”, and other cuts include “I Put A Spell On You”, “A Woman In Love”, “The Lady In My Life”, “Round Midnight”, “What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life”, “Spend Some Time”, and “Am I Wrong”....
Gelka
Less Is More
First coming to our attention via the Cafe Del Mar compilations of recent years Budapest Producers/Musicians Gelka seem more at home in the Balearics rather than Hungary. Yet it is the vibe of the latter with its almost guitar dominated folksy roots that gives this debut set an edge in the music of the good groove. Interspersed with some strange sound effects of no benefit, the album largely features a variety of good quality tracks that mix chilled-out funky tempos with the soulful vocals of Ghanaian born Sena. The album’s opening track ‘ So Many Ways’ and the rhythmesque Eartha Kitt influenced ‘ Blame’ with ‘ Angry Eyes’ bring out some rastafarian funk and social comment. Melodic guitar rhythms and relaxed horns feature heavily on the album with ‘When you gotta go you gotta go’ being a real treat over a sunset and a glass of wine! The album’s stand out track though is the catchy ‘Soon’ sang by the very soulful British vocalist Elly May....
Bobby Byrd
Oceana
Jazzamor
Stacey Kent
Dean Martin
