I was pondering while listening to this why usually have so little to say about soul albums, and I think it’s because soul tends to slide straight into the emotional centres of the brain and bypasses the intellect, so forming any kind of coherent thoughts to express myself is very difficult.
This album brings soul into the Eighties, but it’s still very similar to the Seventies soul. The album opener, So Many Sides Of You, kicks in with a bassline worthy of Stevie Wonder in terms of the sheer brilliance that you feel straight away, and Womack’s vocals recall Wonder more than, say, Marvin Gaye, in the way that he can move from smooth to a bluesy growl at the drop of a hat. This is something like his thirteenth album (probably not counting songwriting credits for others) so really, he ought to be able to do this in his sleep.
There are touches of other musical genres, notably a touch of country to Just My Imagination with not only its slide guitar but in the direction of the melody. And again, you see, I have little to say about the album. It’s nice. Doesn’t do a lot to change soul, but if you wanted a solid soul album that’s got a bit of grit in it as well rather than pure smoothness, this one does the trick.
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