Joss Stone. The Soul Sessions

I have most of Timmy Thomas's albums. He's great, basically, very funky.

As for remixing Verve or Blue Note, unless the money is used to release or re-release proper music, the people concerned should be shot without hesitation, IMO. They're a danger to society.

-- Ian

 

Michael,

I also have the Verve Remixed 180g double LP set. Unlike some of my fellow esteemed forumers, I find Verve Remixed and Blue Note Trip an interesting and entertaining take of old Verve & Blue Note material. The good thing about the Verve Remixed is that the vocals of the original artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone etc have been preserved and used in the tracks but just overlayed with well recorded club beats.

It must be noted, however, that I do like the traditional stuff as well. Many of my LPs and CDs are jazz oriented and I do attend a lot of live jazz concerts but the Verve & Blue Note Releases provide a different twist on things and perhaps would entice new younger buyers who would not normally have bought the traditional Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holliday & Nina Simone etc material. So who knows, in time, these 'new younger buyers' might even be keen to explore more of the 'original materials' made years ago by the aforementioned great artists and many more appearing on the album. So they get two big thumbs-up from me.

Verve Remixed:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00006316V/ref=sr_aps_music_1_1/202-2149972-6345410



Enjoy the music,

Lawrie.

 

I also have the 2 Verve Remixed CDs and think they're rather good

Michael.

 

Great Production..............but come on musically they suck big time

How anyone who has the temerity to champion this muzak whilst lampooning the marvellous Norah is beyond me.

It's lifestyle music to me, Sunday morning on the sofa reading the Times whilst quaffing coffee.

Background fodder, chillout experience. It is not music that holds my attention, the originals are though.

 

I disagree, I don't think greatness can be acheived by being solely a good singer, or good writter. It is the combination and complete package. IMO, music should be self expressive. This cannot be acheived if you are relaying somebody elses words. Just sit back and think how much she contributed to the album and how easily she could be replaced by another generic soul singer. With that how much credit does she therefore deserve. As you said, there are many good singers, so why praise her any more than the many others.

I don't actually have a big problem with her covering other peoples songs, if it wasn't for her complete lack of emotion. Great soul is heart-wrenchingly sincere and powerful. I see none of that with Joss. It's incredibly calculated, gimmicky, smooth and bland.
When she sings "Fell In Love With A Boy", do you really believe her?

How many black artists do you know who have been picked up from the UK, taken to America and put in a studio with numerous soul legends? List any talented black soul singers who do not write, who have had the same commercial push she has.

Rascism exists period.

 

She reminds me a bit of the much missed Lowell George, the great Littel Feat singer/guitarist. He also put out a really superb solo album called Thanks, I'll Eat it Here, which once appeared in a Mana promo.

Same sort of influences, I suppose.

 

Just extrapolate that argument to classical music or jazz and it quickly falls apart. Take a recording of Horowitz playing Rachmaninov Preludes and he could "easily be replaced" by any other pianist - does that mean Horowitz lacks "true greatness"?

What about jazz singers and musicians playing all the jazz standards, do they all lack "true greatness"?

Music (well, good music) is as much about the interpretation as the original writing and through the interpretation it becomes self expressive whether the performer wrote the music or not.

Just to illustrate the point:

The version of Summertime on the first remixed CD is one of the best I know

Michael.

 

Actually, now I come to think of it, they shouldn't be shot.

Set the hounds on them instead.

-- Ian

 

Have to say I can't agree with you at all about greatness only being achieved if the singer writes the songs. Looking back a long time to another white soulstress going across the pond, Dusty Springfield's Memphis album is a case in point - it is genius interpretation nothing more nothing less - even if she couldn't convince herself of the fact, poor lamb. Mind you that was a mature singer in her prime.

As to Joss - I've only heard Fell in Love with a Boy on the radio and being a big fan of all things black, white, red and stripey, I really struggled with it. It made Auntie Ants positively angry.

 

Maybe I didn't make my point clear. But I was talking about soul music and this in my opinion the very thing that clearly differentiates it from other genres. There are people who would argue a strong case that the Joss Stone album is not even soul music. Even I would say the album is more entertainment than her statement, and in that sense it is not soul.

 

Joss Stone maybe not, but Aretha Franklin didn't write most her stuff, don't go telling me she hasn't got soul?

 

Hi,

Oh yes it can. Soul music is full of greats. Arethea Franklin, Jackie Wilson, Candi Staton, Maxine Brown, Chuck Jackson, The Four Tops, Temptations, Detroit Spinners, Gladys Knight & the pips etc all hit the heights by not writing their own material. It's true that they did rely on others (song writers, musicans, producers etc) but this is the same for any artists.

No. Music should be enjoyable. If it's self expressive fine. But I understand what you mean in the context of soul music.

Again this is rubbish. Some of the best soul songs are different versions of other people songs. E.g. Aretha Franklins version of Respect is a classic of poular music. But this is a cover of an Otis Redding tune. Wilson Pickett did a wicked version of 'Hey Jude'. The Temptations were the No. 1 soul group of all-time yet they depended on people like 'Smokey Robinson & Norman Whitfield for their hits. Holland Doizer & Holland wrote a big chunk of the classic Motown hits for other people. Gamble & Huff wrote some 70s classic for other people. The list is endless. Yes there are plenty of legends who wrote & produced their own material but most didn't.

Like a lot of artists, you have limited control unless you are the producer or arranger. A lot of albums can be replaced with better singers. Yes Joss could have easy been replaced witha better singer. I have mentioned this in an earlier posts that other could sing better than her but that is not the point.

The point I'm making is that she was a 16 year old white girl from Devon having a go at old style soul. This style is, more or less, done these days by old (over 50 soul singers). I find the record enjoyable. It's not perfect & it's, by no means, the best thing since sliced bread. It wouldn't make my fave 100 albums list but that doesn't mean I don't like it. How many 16 year old white girls do you know that could have a bash at this?

Certain styles of performer will appeal to the masses, rightly or wrongly. A young girl will appeal to a wide market.But she will help to reopen doors for the original artists. You could class Joss as a 'blue eyed Soul' artists.

In the 5 months since I first talked about Joss Stone, a number of people on this forum have gone out & bought the album. This has influnced a number to seek out music from the orignal artists & their peers. If waxing about Joss Stone has made someone go out and buy album by Laura Lee, Betty Wright, Timmy Thomas, Al Green, Sam Moore, Howard Tate, Solomon Burke etc, then it has been all worth while. Joss Stone can act as a stepping stone to finding some great music.

Aretha Franklin & Whitney Houston are two. There are many more.

Not many but this more to do with marketing than with racism. There is racism in music but it was worst years ago than now. Plenty black artists are getting a better chance now than say 10/ 20 years ago.


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