Average Reviews:
(More customer reviews)(3.5 stars)
Rod Stewart's latest CD, "Soulbook," has him singing fairly well but it's not exactly the best album he has ever released. For Rod's fans when he was doing a much, much different style of music, this may not be for them unless they also like this genre of music, too. Rod's voice may not be quite as strong as it was twenty or more years ago; but that's the aging process. I will say that Rod still delivers his songs from the heart and that's admirable. The track set lets the songs flow rather well into each other and that enhances the album but then again there are a few missteps along the way. Some numbers are stronger than others for sure!
"It's The Same Old Song" is very well done; and this starts the album off in a good direction. The drums and percussion add a lot to the arrangement. The music fits in very well with Rod's vocals and he never misses a beat, either! "My Cherie Amour" features Stevie Wonder singing with Rod; I like it but this is truly Stevie's song. Moreover, at this stage in his life Rod's voice just can't measure up to the Stevie's original performance back in the day. Sorry, Rod! On the other hand, however, "You Make Me Feel Brand New" charms me with its beauty; Mary J. Blige does a great job with Rod and that's grand. They should do more duets together! I also really like "(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher;" the arrangement works wonders for this classic tune.
"Let It Be Me" is a stunner that has Rod Stewart singing wonderfully with Jennifer Hudson. Hudson was the perfect choice for this duet--heck, she could sing out the phonebook and I'd be standing there applauding! Rod's vocals are also easy on the ear. In addition, "Rainy Night in Georgia" is a big highlight of this album. "What Becomes of the Broken Hearted" is another song that gets a fine treatment; Rod sings this and the backup singers harmonize to perfection.
Whether or not you'll like the other tracks depends on your personal preferences. To my mind, other songs that make the grade include "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" and "If You Don't Know Me by Now." The arrangements for the other tracks are good but they could have been better and Rod's voice just isn't quite solid enough to rank as high in my book as it used to rank although I do get the clear impression that Rod sings with all his heart and soul and I admire that.
Overall, "Soulbook" is an album for people who like classic soul music and covers of those tunes; and Rod Stewart diehard fans may want to get this because they would probably like to have everything Rod ever did or will do. The more casual fan, however, would do well to keep looking for other soul albums; this is a pretty good album but it's just not completely distinguished.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Soulbook
2009 album from the Grammy Award winning Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Famer. SoulBook is a collection of classic'60s and '70s era Soul favorites sung by one of the most interpretive voices in music. Stewart is personally passionate about this project, which is a return to his beginnings when he fronted The Jeff Beck Band and the critically-revered band The Faces, iconic in the history books for fusing American roots music - Rock, Soul and Blues. Soulbook reunites Stewart with his longtime collaborators, producers Steve Tyrell and Steve Jordan, of Rolling Stones/Xpensive Winos fame, who also brought in top musicians Ray Parker Jr., Waddy Watchel, Darrell Jones, Dean Parks and David Paich to join Rod in the studio for the album.
0 comments:
Post a Comment