1. This Will Be
2. This Is It
3. People Get Ready
4. I Got The Blues
5. Ain't Nobody
6. You Are The Universe
7. Everlasting Love
8. I Get The Sweetest Feeling
9. No Pain, No Gain / We're In This Love Together
10. Super Duper Love
11. Know Where To Run
12. You're My Everything
13. Do I Love You? (indeed I Do)
14. What's Going On (feat. Richard Cope)
East London and Essex soul band ECHO's new album, 'Soul Proprietor', features covers of 14 well known soul tracks, performed by this talented bunch of singers and musicians.
'This will Be' is a snappy, snazzy opener full of brass and 'easy on the ears' vocals. 'This Is It', famously covered by Danni Minogue in the 90s, continues the feel good upbeat style, more pop than soul possibly - but with all the ingredients of a summer anthem.
'People Get Ready' slows things down a little, think slow dance at the disco and you'll be in the right neck of the woods. This... Read More East London and Essex soul band ECHO's new album, 'Soul Proprietor', features covers of 14 well known soul tracks, performed by this talented bunch of singers and musicians.
'This will Be' is a snappy, snazzy opener full of brass and 'easy on the ears' vocals. 'This Is It', famously covered by Danni Minogue in the 90s, continues the feel good upbeat style, more pop than soul possibly - but with all the ingredients of a summer anthem.
'People Get Ready' slows things down a little, think slow dance at the disco and you'll be in the right neck of the woods. This Motown number is delivered by an effortless singer with a beautiful soaring voice, and a fabulous Clapton-esque guitar interlude. 'I Got The Blues' is pure funk with a true bluesy feel, instantly conjuring up images of a darkened club. The range of instruments and sounds gives this track a real edge, with wind and brass floating around in the mix alongside drums, guitars and keys all combining to create a musical feast for the ears.
Arguably the best known track on this album has to be 'Ain't Nobody'. Originally a hit for Chaka Khan in the 80s, the song's list of cover versions fills an entire screenfull on wikipedia, including the likes of George Michael, Mariah Carey, KT Tunstall, Mary J Blige and of course, rapper LL Cool J. So ECHO are in good company in covering this track, and they produce a superb rendition. Heavy electric guitars meet with the usual jazz instruments and once again the vocals are spot on.
'You Are The Universe' is another foot tapper with fabulous percussion and guitars, and 'Everlasting Love' is another well known track excellently performed and given a few subtle lyric changes to bring a Christian flavour; "You'll never be denied His eternal love".
Similarly a few tweaks to the lyrics of 'I Get The Sweetest Feeling' sees Jesus getting a name check, turning this Soul anthem into a worship track. 'No Pain, No Gain' features an almost 'spoken' mid section as it slowly weaves its way along, before 'Super Duper Love' comes along with is highly infectious drum beat.
'Know Where To Run' again sees those beautiful coaxing vocals taking the lead, 'You're My Everything' slows things down again with this gentle number showing the singer's excellent vocal range, and 'Do I Love You?' brings the band back into the foreground with the keyboards and drums interspearsed with the occasional brass sound, and another wonderful piece of electric guitar playing in the middle of the track.
Closing the album is 'What's Going On' with its iconic opening line, "Mother mother, there's too many of you crying", before it moves into that equally familiar line "You know we've got to find a way to bring some loving here today". Rather than go all guns blazing with this track, they slow it right down, strip it back to its basics, and just focus the listener on the song. I'm not sure I needed the snippets of news broadcasts played over the top towards the end, although I fully see why they've done it, after all the song does ask "What's going on?". Mostly just accompanied by a piano, and the occasional bit of brass, this laid back approach to a classic song works so well and it's a perfect way to end the album.
I wasn't expecting to know many of these Soul, Blues and Motown covers, and whilst there were some I wasn't familiar with, I was pleasantly surprised at how many of them I did know. This is a wonderful collection of great songs, sung impressively and performed perfectly. It's a completely enjoyable album to listen to and sing along to as it take you on a journey of memories and new discoveries. Something a little bit different in the Christian music world, but a great accessible album for all to enjoy.
Review by Dave Wood
LTTM Rating 4.5 Out of 5 Stars Standout Tracks
Ain't Nobody
I Got The Blues
What's Going On
