Detroit News give 'A Soulful Tale...' an A-!!
Motown and Philly swap songs for 'Soulful' set
By Susan Whitall - Detroit News
For soul fans, the news last year was tantalizing: Classic Motown and Philly soul artists would collaborate on a project that would have the Philly artists giving their spin on some famed Motown songs and the Detroiters interpreting Philly soul gems. Many of the artists involved were singing as well as ever but just needed a new break and the right old-school musicianship and producers behind them. Anticipation was high.
Now, the two-CD set, "A Soulful Tale of Two Cities," is out today, available at cdbaby.com or at soulfultale.com. The CD set is made up of two discs -- "Philly does Motown" and "Motown does Philly." Producers Phil Hurtt, along with Motown's Lamont Dozier and Clay McMurray -- joined by Bobby Eli of the famed studio group MFSB, Bunny Sigler, the Funk Brothers and veteran Philly soul engineer Gene Leone -- were behind the controls and performing in the studio for the action, which took place in Philly and Detroit.
The "Philly does Motown" side starts out kicking with Jean Carne's supercharged version of Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground." Other highlights: producer Hurtt polishes off a stunning falsetto for "The Girl's Alright"; Jimmy Ellis of the Trammps makes "Isn't She Lovely" even livelier than the Wonder original, if that's possible; and the side ends with a six-minute Philly soul party sung into outer space by Sigler on Marvin Gaye's "Got to Give It Up."
Then it's Motown's turn. Ollie Woodson of the Temptations shines on the Philly classics "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" and "(For the Love of) Money." Dozier, who was a singer long before he was a Motown songwriter/producer, stuns with his gut-wrenching, on the floor, begging "Me and Mrs. Jones." Cal Street is better than ever with her Velvelettes on "One of a Kind Love Affair"; and Bobby Taylor is a revelation on "Love Train," "Sunshine" and "Sadie."
The pleasure of this CD is multi-faceted: You're reminded of the great original song, you get to each city's soul masters put their own stamp on the competition's songs and you can enjoy the kind of vocals that need no computer wizardry to yank them into tune. Quibbles? One or two, vastly outweighed by the plusses. Get ready for what Kathy Sledge calls on "Dancing in the Streets," a "Philatroit" good time. Grade: A-
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070116/ENT04/701160389/1036
By Susan Whitall - Detroit News
For soul fans, the news last year was tantalizing: Classic Motown and Philly soul artists would collaborate on a project that would have the Philly artists giving their spin on some famed Motown songs and the Detroiters interpreting Philly soul gems. Many of the artists involved were singing as well as ever but just needed a new break and the right old-school musicianship and producers behind them. Anticipation was high.
Now, the two-CD set, "A Soulful Tale of Two Cities," is out today, available at cdbaby.com or at soulfultale.com. The CD set is made up of two discs -- "Philly does Motown" and "Motown does Philly." Producers Phil Hurtt, along with Motown's Lamont Dozier and Clay McMurray -- joined by Bobby Eli of the famed studio group MFSB, Bunny Sigler, the Funk Brothers and veteran Philly soul engineer Gene Leone -- were behind the controls and performing in the studio for the action, which took place in Philly and Detroit.
The "Philly does Motown" side starts out kicking with Jean Carne's supercharged version of Stevie Wonder's "Higher Ground." Other highlights: producer Hurtt polishes off a stunning falsetto for "The Girl's Alright"; Jimmy Ellis of the Trammps makes "Isn't She Lovely" even livelier than the Wonder original, if that's possible; and the side ends with a six-minute Philly soul party sung into outer space by Sigler on Marvin Gaye's "Got to Give It Up."
Then it's Motown's turn. Ollie Woodson of the Temptations shines on the Philly classics "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" and "(For the Love of) Money." Dozier, who was a singer long before he was a Motown songwriter/producer, stuns with his gut-wrenching, on the floor, begging "Me and Mrs. Jones." Cal Street is better than ever with her Velvelettes on "One of a Kind Love Affair"; and Bobby Taylor is a revelation on "Love Train," "Sunshine" and "Sadie."
The pleasure of this CD is multi-faceted: You're reminded of the great original song, you get to each city's soul masters put their own stamp on the competition's songs and you can enjoy the kind of vocals that need no computer wizardry to yank them into tune. Quibbles? One or two, vastly outweighed by the plusses. Get ready for what Kathy Sledge calls on "Dancing in the Streets," a "Philatroit" good time. Grade: A-
http://detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070116/ENT04/701160389/1036
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