by I. Vasquetelle
I have to be honest, for the most part I’m not a fan of today’s R&B. I think it has lost its soul and it’s
much too formulated. It all started with Keith Sweat, and more specifically Guy. Don’t get wrong, I dug Guy (Teddy Riley, Andre Hall, and Timmy Gatling), they were a good group that made some great radio and club tracks, but I believe that after the later ‘80s, the genre of R&B was never the same. I give Teddy Riley credit for invented a new sound for R&B, and subsequently, in my book, this new sound (New Jack Swing) helped remove the vibe and soul of the artform. For the most part, artists of the ‘90s weren’t able to deliver the true feeling of classic Soul music. Sure there were hit makers like Jodeci, Boyz II Men, and R Kelly, but it just didn’t do it for me. Too many of these groups were influenced in a big way by the sound of Hip Hop (rapping, drum machines and keyboards) and the true essence of Soul was lost.
I mention this because after listening to the new album by Anthony David, I have gained some confidence that there may be hope for the genre. His upcoming album entitled “The Red Clay Chronicles” will be released on Brash Music this September. It’s reminiscent of the classic Soul and R&B of the ‘60s (think Al Green, Smokey, Jackie Wilson, etc.). He also does a stand out job of remaking the soulful 80’s hit “Something About You” by UK 80’s band Level 42. There have been very few artists to do their part to revive the classic sound of Soul during the last decade including the 90’s neo-soul rendezvous (D’Angelo, India Aire, Maxwell, and Erykah Badu); add Anthony David’s contribution in the upcoming “The Red Clay Chronicles” to the list for this decade. I hope that this could lead to a resurgence of the smooth, soulful lost art of R&B that gives me the kind of feeling that I get when listening to Marvin, Otis, Sam, The Chi-Lites and other greats.
