New album: Liquid Spirit
Artist: Gregory Porter
Label: Blue Note
Rating: 4 stars out of 5
Hard to classify and harder to forget, Gregory Porter's “Liquid Spirit” has to be one of the classiest releases of 2013.
The grittier, hard-nosed albums tend to garner most of the praise, but Porter's strength lies in his gentle directness. As a vocalist, Porter is in a class with Johnny Hartman, Frank Sinatra and Bill Withers. While Hartman and Sinatra were adept at interpreting the songs of others, Porter - as evidenced on “Liquid Spirit” - is a gifted songwriter as well.
Porter's song “Musical Genocide” is a beautiful act of defiance against the horrid state of popular music. Set to music that rests somewhere in that nether region between jazz and R&B, “Musical Genocide” is the type of song that could either win Porter a legion of new fans or have him blackballed from the recording industry.
Other Porter originals such as “Hey Laura,” “Windsong” and “Wolfcry” benefit not only from Porter's assured vocals, but also from the Chip Crawford's sublime, economical piano and the ace rhythm section of Emmanuel Harold (drums) and Aaron James (bass). Both Harold and James have recorded with Porter before, and their musical telepathy has only grown stronger. The interplay between Porter and his band on “Movin’” is intricate and joyful.
Of the few covers included on “Liquid Spirit,” a take on “The ‘In’ Crowd” is a standout. “The ‘In’ Crowd” is a perfect foil to some of the albums somber material, and it proves Porter is capable of throwing down with the best of them.
“Liquid Spirit” will appeal to anyone who appreciates smart R&B, pop or jazz. The influences are varied but not crowded, and above all Porter is the greatest R&B-inflected singer to hit the main stream since Anthony Hamilton. This is a nuanced, appealing album that hopefully won't fall on deaf ears.
Classic album: Night Life
Artist: Ray Price
Label: Columbia/Koch
Rating: 4 stars out of 5
Ray Price's fifth album “Night Life” was released in 1963, apparently just a few minutes before Nashville producers decided to slather every record in town with an infernal string section.
In time, even the music of Ray Price would be drenched in the gooey web of orchestral strings, but “Night Life” was a purse slice of what the old timers call “real country music.” Using Willie Nelson's “Night Life” as the album template, the album begins with a slightly odd spoken word introduction by Price. During this intro, Price thanks the listener for buying his previous album and lays out the theme for the one they're listening to.
Most people would agree that booze troubles and busted relationships are the cornerstones of country music, but as an album, “Night Life” does adhere to a strict theme: The predicaments people who spend their lives in bars can end up in.
“The Wild Side Of Life” is a mid-tempo boot-tapper that could easily fit into a Mavericks set list. It has a nice shuffle, lap-steel guitar from outer space and a mammoth, heartbreaking vocal from Price. Never has a situation sounded so horrid and fun all at the same time. A reading of Charlie Rich's “Sittin’ And Thinkin’” continues in the same vein, albeit in a lighter tone.
Price's “The Twenty-Fourth Hour” is one of the best songs ever written about having nowhere to go at the end of the night. This is tear-in-your-beer weepyness at its finest and could be a major hit if re-recorded today. “If She Could See Me Know” is a crash-course in professional pity, while in “Bright Lights and Blonde Haired Women” Price laments “being lit up like a Christmas tree.” Who knew having a good time could cause such misery?
Price went on to make more money singing middle-of-the-road, uncountrified country music, but “Night Life” (and the four albums that preceded it) are the high water-marks of a legendary career.