Review: Vanessa Bell Armstrong: Experience

Let me start by saying this. Vanessa Bell Armstrong is one of the greatest voices of our time. To me, she is in the same class as Aretha, Patti, Gladys...the great voices of soul. She is a song stylist. Her voice is unmistakeable--and you can hear all the younger girls (and boys) taking her runs and doing lesser imitations of them.

Ok. Having said that.

It has to be hard to be Vanessa Bell Armstrong. She came out under the wing of the legendary Mattie Moss Clark and her first two albums were produced by the brilliant (and sadly departed) Thomas Whitfield.

Whitfield set her up for a hard lot. Those first two albums were so incredibly profound, that Armstrong has struggled in the subsequent years to come up with material that could match the fire of her beginning albums.

Her transfer to Jive Records in the mid-80s took her from being a classic singer singing classic material to a contemporary singer attempting to remain viable in an ever changing market. While she had great singles during those years, she never really managed to come up with cohesive albums that expressed the fire and passion of "Peace Be Still" and "Chosen". Perhaps the closest she has come was "The Secret is Out" (produced by John P. Kee) and "Desire of my Heart" (produced by Jon Cleary). Those producers at least attempted to write material specifically geared for her instrument that displayed the range of who she is as an artist. There were some disastrous moments as well: "Brand New Day" (produced by Deitrick Haddon) is perhaps the greatest tarnish on her crown. The album seemed more of a portrait of her struggle to find herself without Whitfield, who I would declare, unabashedly, as her musical soulmate.

EMI signed her and three years ago, she released "Walking Miracle", a car crash of an album, that was, however, an attempt to rebuild her recording career. They called on Smokie Norful, the Jerkins Brothers and Victor Caldwell to all attempt to come up with something. "It's Over Now" seemed to be the track that struck a cord, while the rest of the album, in my opinion, came up flat. If Smokie Norful had been Daryl Coley, then his compositions might have worked for her. Instead, it was just a cavalcade of gospel charades that left the listeners tired.

So, finally, the label came up with the idea to record her live, which I agree, needed to happen. They brought in gospel's most sought after producer, Donald Lawrence, who has recorded a ton of successful projects for himself and other artists. Another great idea. He produced the comeback CD for The Clark Sisters a few years back and it seems logical. I must say, in addition, I have no doubt that this album will be huge success.

And now here's my opinion of the album.

Vanessa Bell Armstrong is flawless as a singer. Her vocals on this album soar. She has the craziest and most soulful runs on the planet and she emotes with her every breath. She is, as Thomas Whitfield established in the 80s, a consummate song stylist and she does her best to bring this material to life.

My problem with this album is with the material and with Donald Lawrence's production. It is far too clean (my same gripe with The Clark Sister's Reunion CD) and does not sound live. It is overproduced and over-overdubbed. The production is simply too big. Vanessa feels almost hollow in the middle of this overdone project. The audience sounds canned (with exception of "I Will Praise You" and the conclusion of "The Glory") and everything sounds like a recreation of a live album versus being a live album itself.

"Good News", composition-wise, is a jigsaw puzzle, clamouring for ideas like a bad trip on Mapquest while the Kirk Franklin-esque spoken intro on "Hand of the Lord" feels awkward and contrived.

There are great moments. Her union with Rance Allen on "You Bring Out the Best In Me" was an inspired idea and Rance most definitely steals the show...and we definitely needed her revisit of "What He's Done For Me" (from 1983's "Chosen)...even though I wish it captured the joy of her late 80s performance of it on Oprah. While the album's closer, "The Greatest Power" isn't my favorite lyric in the world, Vanessa certainly stirs it to a boiling point.

Regardless of whether or not this album is an artistic landmark, it is a great representation of the staying power and vocal prowess of Vanessa Bell Armstrong.

I Hate To Break It To You...

So yesterday a friend that I thought was fairly evolved posted a comment on twitter (that is now, hysterically, removed) about how he used to tell the Lord that he alot to do on earth before He (yes, the capital He) came back, but now hoped that He would come sooner than later--or something to that effect.

Before I could help myself, I tweeted back "He ain't comin'".

As a former church kid, I grew up frightened to death of the return of Jesus. I saw the "Thief In The Night" movies and had nightmares for years of being 'left behind' when the emminent rapture would take place. I was literally traumatized. I would wake up having night terrors as a child and run through the house to make sure everyone was still there. I was frightened of being left alone...on and on and on. Because let's be real...one could never really be sure if their name was written on the Lamb's Book of Life (Yes, there is a BOOK)...or if it had been erased if you had unrepented sin in your life. It's all very confusing.

So years later, after some transitions out of organized religion, yet still maintaining a connection with the Christian community, a co-worker asked me what on earth the rapture was. She had no clue. As I began to tell her: "They say that one day a trumpet will sound...dead people will rise from their graves and begin flying through the air...people will be taken out of their cars and ascend into heaven", I errupted into what I think is the most hysterical laughter I have ever uttered. The ridiculousness that at any stage in my life--even at a one digit age--is preposterous to me!!! Really? People read this in the Bible and take it literally? For real? Well, I did.

Maybe that day was my own personal rapture.

My godmother used to end every conversation with "Jesus is soon to come". One day, I just couldn't take it anymore and exclaimed "He's NOT coming"...just like I did yesterday. I hate to be like the kid who tells everyone there is no Santa Claus, but I just find it a shame, that people spend so much of their lives waiting to escape the opportunity to be here by dreaming of being rescused from our existance--complicated it may be--by White Jesus.

I know that I believe we each have our own individual moments of rapture. That moment that we come into a new consciousness...the moment we see 'the real' us...the moment we allow ourselves to unfold into our greatest gifts and watch them manifest in our lives.

People have called me faithless. People have even asked me if I'm an athiest. Absolutely not. My sense of Spirit is strong and with me all the time...even if I believe that there will be no trumpet sounding, dead raising or disappearing acts by the chosen few.

Highly Recommended: O Magazine, November 2009

The focus of the November 2009 issue is "How To Become The Person You Were Meant to Be", which features an article written by the brilliant Anne Lamott. It's worth the $5 just for this quote:

"Here's how I became myself: mess, failure, mistakes, disappointments and extensive reading; limbo, indecision, setbacks, addiction, public embarassment and endless conversations with my best women friends; the loss of people without whom I could not live, the loss of pets that left me reeling, dizzying betrayals, but much greater loyalty, and overall, choosing as my motto William Blake's line that we are here to learn to endure the beams of love."

Preach. Go pick it up.

PODCAST EDITIONS: NEW!

There are a few podcasts that have been added to the que. Interviews with Elizabeth Cunningham, Susaye Greene, Patsy Moore and my group SOULKISS.

Click here to download.

Videos of each artist are below! Enjoy!

OTB Returns

It's hard to believe it's been almost a year since there was anything posted here. Since the last post, I left Nashville and moved to New York, released a book and a remix album, joined forces with Kare Alford & David Sosa and formed a trio called SOULKISS, did a summer tour with them, and am hard at work with them on our first album, a new solo project for me, and two new books.

Prior to my Nashville departure, I had very much muted myself. If you go back and read some of the older posts here, you will see that we were very loud in the beginning and had alot to say. I took a lot of heat for my opinions and had a lot of conflict even amongst my own management about it. So I shut up. I think I needed to...but in that time, I determined that I needed a happy medium.

I need to express those things. I need to speak my truth.

Truth. What is truth.

I realized a few weeks ago, as I re-read some of my old writings, that truth expands. I have realized that our understanding of what our truth is is not the same yesterday, today and forever. It unfolds. It expands. It undresses. The layers unravel like an onion...and then we finally reach the true core. The core that we are and have always been underneath all of the accessories.

So, what you read here is more of an unravelling. It's what, hopefully, happens for all of us in life. I am not here to provide answers, but rather to ask questions. And in the questions, we find the glory.

More podcasts are in development. They are not here to push product, but rather to provoke discussion.

So here we are. Let's engage.

I still believe that there's a call to us all to love all humanity....

Condolences to the Bilal Family

If you have been a listener of "Out the Box" at any time, you have no doubt hear the music of Mohammed Bilal (who was also a guest on the show). We offer our condolences to Mohammed and his family who are grieving the loss of Mohammed's father, Baba Rafiq, a huge figure in the Bay Area's arts scene.

Please find a note from the Bilal Family below.

All, For those of you who are hearing about this for the first time, Baba Rafiq has been in the hospital (ICU) for almost a month due to his heart condition. Rafiq's physical body is giving way. He will join the spirit world soon. For those who don’t remember, Rafiq is a pillar of the Bay Area community. With the Upper Room, he provided a space for young people to gather and explore arts, activism, and social justice. Many of the our greatest artists got their start and/or were shaped at the Upper Room- Goapele, Martin Luther, Saul Williams, Mohammed Bilal, Kimiko Joy, Will Power, Midnight Voices, Michael Franti, Ledisi, Heiro, Robert Henry Jonhson, Housing Authority, etc. Mind Motion was spinning at the Upper Room years before being on KMEL.

Now, Rafiq’s family needs your help to cover his funeral and burial costs of $5000. So far, we have raised $890. Anything that you can donate from $10 on is welcomed. We have also set up a PayPal account where folks can make a direct deposit--

https://www.paypal.com/us/cmd=_prq&id=NycORpWSuOlDw5RKkF4r6q7osFgcNqYzJgrzcA

We know that there are people all over the country that would like to pay their respect. So, in a couple of months, we will be hosting a celebration—an Upper Room Reunion. It will be in the Bay Area, in memory of Rafiq (it was one of his last wishes).

We will keep you posted. Please forward this email to others who know Rafiq and feel free to email me with any questions or contact Mohammed by cell @323.481.2144.

Graceful movement,
The Bilal Family

CD Review: Labelle: Back to Now

Well, it's been promised for a long time, but Labelle is finally back.

As a teenager, I discovered Labelle after seeing Patti in concert for the first time. As a crate digger from the cradle, I went to a used record store and bought "Chameleon", an album that would revolutionize my perspectives on all things spiritual, sexual and political. I quickly bought their discography and immersed myself in work that is as highly (if not MORE) relevant today as it was back then.

During an interview with Sarah Dash last year, she told me that Labelle reunion was actually happening...and here we are with the album in hand.

It would be idiotic to expect Labelle to pick up where they left off in 1977. They have had 30 years apart to grow and expand their individual identities. Patti has led an iconic solo career, Nona has pioneered as a singer/songwriter/producer in numerous genres and no one has made the clubs jump more than Sarah has. So how do they return "back to now"?

Well, there's a fusion of their three individual styles, an inclusion of producers (Lenny Kravitz, Gamble & Huff and Wyclef Jean) with a knack for blending nostalgia with a contemporary glint, a lyrical approach that continues to ask provoking questions about relationships, politics and culture and the mainstay throughout are the magical harmonies than only Labelle can lay down.

While Wyclef Jean produced the first single, "Roll Out", it is the Lenny Kravitz productions that most capture the Labelle fire. "Candlelight" and "Superlover" could easily be placed between any song on "Nightbirds" and you'd never notice the difference. My personal favorite, however, is the Nona Hendryx composition "System" (which was originally intended for whatever their 1978 album would have been). "System" is chillingly poignant considering that it was written almost 30 years ago...and feels as if it were written for this generation...but I guess, like all prophetic work, it was.

"Dear Rosa", produced by Hendryx", is another stand-out track: the one that actually sparked the inspiration for this project. The Labelle blend is in full effect...and it is one of the few tracks where Sarah Dash is a little hotter in the mix, and one is reminded of how essential her contribution is to the group.

Nona steps to the mike in "The Truth Will Set You Free", a gospel/rock track, that should most certainly be one of the singles issued to radio from the project.

The album closes with a 1970 recording of the group doing Cole Porter's "Miss Otis Regrets" that is nothing short of chill-bump raising: an interesting way to close this reunion project...a reminder of how Labelle got here...and how, underneath it all, the group maintains it's status as legend.

If I had to criticize anything, it would be that I wish Sarah Dash had been given more time on the mike...and that I wish there had been one more Nona Hendryx production. Aside from that, I have to say that I hope there is another Labelle album in the works...Kudos to Verve Records for bringing us this monumental album.

Teena Marie: De Ja Vu

We've had much to say about Teena Marie's work on this blogspot. She is undoubtedly one of the most underrated artists of our time, yet her following continues to grow...and more and more people find out about...and herald...her work.

This video clip from her performance at BB King's in NYC this past weekend proves why. She is an artist still in her prime who is at ease with her legendary status...and she lives in the spirit of her music...and it is pure beauty.

Terrence Howard: Shine Through It

I know this album has gotten mixed reviews, however, I don't see how anyone could miss the beauty in it. In my book, "Shine Through It" is one of the Top 10, if not THE release of the year. It is a daring exploration of roots oriented music and poetry...and one of the most honest, introspective works I've heard from any artist in quite some time. What makes it even more daring is that it is coming from an artist who could have made a blockbuster album...and instead, chose to follow his muse. Kudos to Terrence Howard.

We're Back...

Well, sort of.

It's been an interesting hiatus: re-evaluating what OTB is...and what it has been about since it's inception of November of 2006.

The podcast still lives...at times...but I thought it was important to bring it back as we approach the most important election of my generation. As an artist, there couldn't be a more crucial time to use our platform and our voice.

So...here we are. Be sure to download my interview with my friend and comrade Patsy Moore...and be sure to check our Q&A as well.

More articles and commentary will be forthcoming.

Tim