Soul Express CD Review

When I first saw this CD my first reaction was "why a compilation of stuff that everyone already has anyway?" - but this was an erroneous knee-jerk reaction to a very timely and conceived album of new gems and recent highlights from the enviable, quality inventory at Expansion Records. This CD designs to raise the agenda for new artists who are the exponents of quality R&B in 2004, and there are not many out there, folks, willing to do that and in my humble opinion anyone such as Ralph Tee doing so so admirably needs all the support that we can muster.

Many tracks, of course are familiar to readers of Soul express; be it the printed magazine or the website, so what I shall do is highlight the tasty morsels that you may not be familiar with. My favourite, Steve Harvey, is responsible for the sturdy, bass groove of "You Remind Me" by Ashley Ta'Mar. This is so typical of Steve's excellent work; modern, stripped down and readily accessible to R&B fans both old and new, but with that exciting raw edge of 70s live sensibility. Talking of 70s sensibilities, please do not skip the essential remix of Impromp2's "Give It Up" which is straight out of the "Forget Me Nots" bag and, surprise surprise!, features a certain Freddie Washington on bass and Patrice Rushen sharing vocals! This is a far superior version and arguably a stepper of great distinction. Here's to more from these two genuine talents in the future!

Blue eyed soul is the order of the day with the Scandinavian outfit, Hofstone. I am reminded of a vocal blend of Eric Benét, Glenn Lewis and possibly Ray Hayden of Opaz fame, and in addition to the superb 80s styled music is just brilliant. I want to hear more from this outfit. Mysti Day provides the addictive "You Gotta Go" which is one of THOSE songs that will become jammed in the old grey matter for days. I heard this last summer on Solar Radio and never managed to catch who this artist was. Thanks, Ralph!

Gwendolyn Joy, I have been advised, is Gwen Scales, and following the sheer nonchalance I felt when hearing her recent set with Charles, I am very happy to have this great, great song. Vocally when Gwendolyn lets rip I am reminded of a 70s Nancy Wilson. Real instrumentation, real song writing and one hell of a singer make "What I See In You" a contender for one of THE songs of 2004!

I have reviewed Emerald Jade's fantastic CD already, and it was nice to see the Lady recognised by the inclusion of "You Bring Joy (To My Life)" on here. A real treat for many will be the anthemic "Journey" by Otis & Shugg. This slipped out, almost unnoticed, on CD single back in the spring of 1997 backed with the dreadful street tune, "I Can Do Whatever". Dropped by Interscope, this set has been highly sought after many serious fans and collectors. I have not heard anything else other than the tracks on the single. I only hope that the rest of it is on par with "Journey" - and thanks to Expansion we will soon find out. What a classy way to close down an album! I think that you will agree that this is a well rounded, accessible and poignant reminder of what quality there is out there at the moment, amongst all the dross.

As long as the good stuff comes out, companies like Expansion will release it and the likes of myself and other dedicated scribes will continue to write about it. Although a lot of this has already been released, I feel that there is more than enough on here to merit a purchase. Recommended.

- Barry Towler