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One of the biggest abhorences in the last 50 years of music was the late 80's/early 90's because for one reason or another the managed to achieve without calling it that, post-soul.Post-punk was all the lack of talent with the absence of energy. Post-soul, is all the movements without the actual soul. This frankenstein of a movement was perpetuated by the likes of Vanessa Williams, Luther Vandross, and Babyface.This is is always overproduced and marked by two distinct features; some synthetic version of strings or a choir, and a bass guitar that likely doesn't have notation to read, its some improv jazz guy who needed a paycheck and they had him come in to "freestyle."Its a disguesting show of form over feel, but we know that. What I want to know is - who listens to this ****?
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There's a lot of good old school soul singers around and they're all not over the age of 60. Bettye LaVette is one of the older singers was ignored during golden age of soul and she's making some of the best music of her life right now. Sharon Jones' music sounds like it's straight out of the old Stax studio in South Memphis. Sharon Jones and and a collective of old school soul singers record on the
Daptone label, an artist owned label based in Brooklyn NY. This most exciting soul singer I've heard in the past couple of years is a 32 year old Canadian soul singer name Jully Black. Jully has yet to find a big audience in the USA or Europe but this 2007 version of
Seven Day Fool is sublime. Check out the Jully video below for evidence that real soul music is alive and well.
I'm at a loss to explain the Vanderossation of soul music in the 80s. Some things are beyond all rational explanation. I used to wonder how Billy Joel sold millions and millions of albums yet I've never met a single solitary person who had a Billy Joel record in their music collection. Who are these people? Are they also the invisible cabal responsible for the success of Lady Gaga, John Mayer and Michael Bublé? Maybe they've put something in the drinking water that lulls people into purchasing hideously banal music. I'm baffled.
I'm a big fan of your style of writting. Only the brave or the foolish express themselves the kind of unflinching honesty you've shown in your journal so far. Those who champion integrity are usually rewarded with a crown of thorns and a big wooden cross to lug to their own crucifixion.