Search - Nate James, Em-Cee, Omar :: London Soul: Soulful Rhyme from the Capitol City { Various Artists }

Lifesaver For Those Sick of The Radio

Shona | Clairton, PA USA | 05/28/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I really appreciate good R&B; of course my definition of "good" means a nice beat, smooth vocals, and sharp production. But no matter how good a song is, it can "get old" very quick when you hear it on the radio, in the mall, on TV, in the club, etc. I've noticed that with R&B, the pool of pickings seems slim - and today I can listen to all those Boyz II Men, Jodeci, Tweet or Mary J. Blige songs from 2 years ago when I couldn't then. A treat is to see up-and-coming acts in the genre, but that's a rarity in Miami (dearth of soul/R&B musicians here...)

So I picked this CD up, just out of curiousity. I was expecting some interesting music - a conversation piece. But in two weeks, I've played the CD everywhere - in my house, the car, the iPod. It's a superb sampler that is diverse (the British music scene is a bit more ecclectic that the US) with hip-hop, deep club mixes, R&B singles, and neo-soul ballads occupying the same disc. Some special treats are "Be Thankful" - a remake of the 70's gem by Omar & Angie Stone; "L.O.V.E." by Terri Walker that sounds like it should be a R&B chart topper over on these shores (Beyonce, eat your heart out honey!); "This Thing" by D'nell which is a perfect mix of classic soul and modern remix techniques...but one of my favorites is "The Action" by 4hero; and excellent track that reminds you of De La Soul (well actually, it's Butterfly from Digable Planets on vocals - but I don't know if as many people remember Digable Planets!)

So if you enjoy "indie" neo-soul and hip/hop, and/or you are a DJ looking for solid tracks that aren't being played on the radio, this disc is for you. I'm curious to check out the other CDs in this series as well!"