Charles Bradley | ||
| Allmusic Biography : Soul and R&B; singer Charles Bradley definitely didnt arrive as a recording artist by taking the easy route. A gritty, fiercely passionate vocalist in the tradition of Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett, Bradley worked for decades as a journeyman soul shouter and sometimes-James Brown-impersonator before he was belatedly discovered in the 2000s by the soul-focused Daptone label, which released his first album, 2011s No Time for Dreaming, when Bradley was 62 years old. Delivering plain-spoken original songs and idiosyncratic covers of rock tunes in a vintage R&B; style, Bradley became the subject of a celebrated documentary (Charles Bradley: Soul of America), cut two more acclaimed albums (2013s Victim of Love and 2016s Changes), and performed on top-rated TV shows and at major international music festivals before fate brought his late-in-life career to a close in 2017. Born in Gainesville, Florida in 1948, but raised in Brooklyn, New York, Bradley spent a good part of his childhood living on the streets. A transformational moment came when his sister took him to see James Brown at the Apollo in 1962. Bradley was struck by Browns energy and stage manner, and began practicing microphone tricks with a broom at home, dreaming of being a star on his own stage, and it was a dream he would never abandon in spite of all sorts of mishaps, misdirects, and general hard times. Bradley escaped Brooklyn by joining the federal Job Corps program, which took him to Bar Harbor, Maine, where he learned to cook, a profession he was to fall back on time and time again. He also put together a band in Maine and began playing local gigs. The band didnt last long, though, and when most of its members were drafted, and with the Vietnam War hanging in the air, Bradley moved to Wassaic, New York, where he worked as a cook at a hospital for the mentally ill. Nine years later, he left that position and hitchhiked west, ending up in Alaska for a time before moving to California, again taking a job as a chef, and for the next 20 years he performed music on the side, playing whatever gigs he could find. When he was laid off from his position, though, he began to doubt his decision to live so far from where he grew up. Bradley eventually relocated back to Brooklyn, this time working at odd jobs instead of cooking. He never let go of his musical dreams, and he began performing his James Brown-inspired routines in such local clubs as Black Velvet, attracting a loyal following and eventually capturing the attention of Gabriel Roth from Daptone Records. Roth immediately brought the fiery singer into label sessions, releasing a single, "Take It as It Comes," that showed what Bradley had to offer as a vocalist. Roth also introduced Bradley to Thomas Brenneck, then a guitarist, songwriter, and home producer for Dirt Rifle & the Bullets. The pair had an affinity for each other musically, and together they released two singles on Daptone as Charles Bradley & the Bullets before the actual group by that name disbanded (most of the members went in an Afro-beat direction with the Budos Band). Brenneck and Bradley continued to work together, and after Bradley told him about waking up in his home one morning to discover his nephew had shot and killed his brother, Brenneck suggested they tell the story in music as a catharsis and as a cautionary tale. The result, tracked with the Menahan Street Band, was a pair of impassioned singles, "The World (Is Going Up in Flames)" and "Heartaches and Pain," which Brenneck released on his Daptone sublabel Dunham Records. These werent songs drawn from Bradleys Black Velvet act, but were instead highly personal and striking outings that put his own emerging voice as a singer and songwriter at the center of things. A full album for Dunham, No Time for Dreaming, appeared early in 2011. Bradley received global acclaim for the album, and toured relentlessly to support it. His follow-up, Victim of Love, was released in the spring of 2013. In 2015, Bradley released a single through Daptone that featured a powerful, soul-charged reworking of the Black Sabbath number "Changes." The single and its accompanying music video became underground hits, and the song became the cornerstone of Bradleys next Dunham/Daptone album, 2016s Changes. Sadly, Bradley received a cancer diagnosis in the fall of that year, and succumbed to liver cancer in September 2017 at the age of 68. However, he remained thankful for his relatively brief time in the spotlight late in life, and was quoted as saying "I love all of you out there that made my dreams come true." Dunham and Daptone paid homage to Bradleys artistry with the 2018 release Black Velvet, a collection of unreleased material from his sessions for the labels. | ||
 | Album: 1 of 4 Title: No Time for Dreaming Released: 2011 Tracks: 14 Duration: 48:53 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 The World (Is Going Up in Flames) (03:22) 2 The Telephone Song (03:48) 3 Golden Rule (03:30) 4 I Believe in Your Love (03:55) 5 Trouble in the Land (01:02) 6 Lovin You, Baby (05:28) 7 No Time for Dreaming (02:53) 8 How Long (03:55) 9 In You (I Found a Love) (03:22) 10 Why Is It So Hard? (04:09) 11 Since Our Last Goodbye (04:17) 12 Heartaches and Pain (02:56) 13 Heart of Gold (03:03) 14 Stay Away (03:11) |
| No Time for Dreaming : Allmusic album Review : On first spin, most listeners wont be able to tell that gutsy soul singer Charles Bradleys Daptone debut wasnt recorded in the late 60s and dusted off for release in early 2011. Subsequent plays reveal subtleties in production and instrumentation that might tip off some, but for the rest, this is a remarkable reproduction of the sound of classic Southern soul. Its combination of Stax and Muscle Shoals grease and grit are captured in what can only be called "the Daptone sound." Horns, percussion, background vocals, vibraphone, and rhythm guitar form a cozy, often sizzling blanket that Bradley wraps himself in. His grainy, lived-in vocals are straight out of the James Brown/Wilson Pickett school; comfortable with both the gospel yearning of slower ballads but ready to make the leap to shouting, searing intensity without warning. The yin-yang between Bradley and his players would be impressive even if the material wasnt as top-shelf as these dozen songs are. All three working in tandem yield a perfect storm of an R&B album, one with clear antecedents to the genres roots with new songs that are as powerful and moving as tunes from the musics classic era. The band even gets its own showcase on the instrumental, Latin-tinged "Since Our Last Goodbye," perhaps an unusual inclusion on a vocalists album, but one that strengthens the connection between the backing group and its singer. Bradley has had a tough life, knocking around for years as a lounge act doing covers until the Daptone folks came calling with fresh material and their patented production. That history is evident in every note he sings; pleading, begging, and testifying with a style that few contemporary vocalists can muster without lapsing into parody. Lyrically the material is a mix of the socio-political ("The World Is Going Up in Flames," "Golden Rule"), heartbroken romance ("I Believe in Your Love," "Heartaches and Pain"), and the joys of true love ("Lovin You Baby"). Some tunes are more personal, especially "No Time for Dreaming" where hes telling himself to get serious about his career, and in "Why Is It So Hard," as he delivers a capsule history of his life-long difficulties. Even if the concepts appear shopworn, the music and performances are vibrant and alive with arrangements that are innovative yet informed by their roots. Retro-soul aficionados who claim they dont make ‘em like they used to will obviously be thrilled with this, but even contemporary R&B fans cant help but be moved by the emotion and passion evident in every note of this riveting set. | ||
 | Album: 2 of 4 Title: Victim of Love Released: 2013-04-02 Tracks: 11 Duration: 40:26 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Strictly Reserved for You (03:43) 2 You Put the Flame on It (03:48) 3 Let Love Stand a Chance (03:59) 4 Victim of Love (03:29) 5 Love Bug Blues (03:00) 6 Dusty Blue (03:21) 7 Confusion (03:44) 8 Where Do We Go from Here (03:11) 9 Crying in the Chapel (03:54) 10 Hurricane (03:32) 11 Through the Storm (04:42) |
| Victim of Love : Allmusic album Review : A lot has happened in the life of soul singer Charles Bradley since his stellar debut, No Time for Dreaming, was issued in 2011. He has not only received attention, but the album sold well, and hes toured extensively. His compelling story is also the subject of a documentary film. The songs he co-wrote with Thomas Brenneck on that recording were steeped in his autobiography and reflected Southern soul music as it was recorded at Stax and Muscle Shoals in the middle of the 60s. Victim of Love is not so much a departure from that sound as a progression of it. These tunes, once more co-written by the pair, reflect the souls evolution as it approached the end of the decade. The material is less dark in its vision -- perhaps reflecting the turn in Bradleys life circumstances -- but is no less poignant. His voice is no less gritty, his scream no less heart wrenching, his emotion no less forthcoming. Opener "Strictly Reserved for You" has an uptown, funky bassline and fuzztone guitar. The sweet backing vocals soften Bradleys wrenching toughness enough to make it vulnerable. "Let Love Stand a Chance" is brimming with a slow burning tenderness that beseeches the absent beloved to hear him out. One has to wonder who could refuse a request so searingly rendered. "Where Do We Go from Here" and "Confusion" are drenched in urgent, bristling, psychedelic funk, with wah-wah guitars, fuzzed-out bass, and organ. "Love Bug Blues," is a roiling soulful blues. "You Put the Flame on It," with its uplifting interaction between singer and backing chorus, and underscored by horns, weds world-weariness and optimism. "Hurricane" finds Bradley flanked by horns and B-3 on one side and his backing chorus on the other. Hes testifying to the calamities and darkness in the human heart -- with some wild phase shifting on the instrumental backing. The set ends with "Through the Storm" -- its spiritual soul that could easily be taken as an offering of gratitude to fans. The shimmering guitars, vibes, and slippery, funky snare, frame the horns which in turn accent Bradleys absolute conviction that hes come through the worst. Victim of Love showcases growth -- and a sound not heard before on Daptone -- while not straying from the gritty soul that established the singer; it is every bit as strong as its predecessor and more diverse. You just cant get enough of the real thing. | ||
 | Album: 3 of 4 Title: Changes Released: 2016-04-01 Tracks: 11 Duration: 40:26 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 God Bless America (01:31) 2 Good to Be Back Home (03:01) 3 Nobody but You (03:57) 4 Aint Gonna Give It Up (03:53) 5 Changes (05:46) 6 Ain’t It a Sin (03:51) 7 Things We Do for Love (03:28) 8 Crazy for Your Love (04:18) 9 You Think I Dont Know (But I Know) (03:27) 10 Change for the World (03:32) 11 Slow Love (03:38) |
| Changes : Allmusic album Review : If Wilson Pickett could cover the Archies and Al Green could interpret the Bee Gees, why shouldnt Charles Bradley put his spin on Black Sabbath? Bradleys deep, soulful reading of Black Sabbaths "Changes" (from 1972s Vol. 4) became something of a viral sensation when it first surfaced on a Record Store Day single in 2013. Now its become the title track and cornerstone of Bradleys third album, and in this context it doesnt sound like a novelty, but like the striking, deeply felt performance it truly is. As on his two previous albums, Bradley is one of the most authentic-sounding artists in the 2010s retro-soul sweepstakes on Changes. The production by Thomas Brenneck is straightforward but naturalistically effective, and puts Bradleys rough but passionate vocals in engaging relief with the accompanists. (Most of the album features the Menahan Street Band backing Bradley, though the Budos Band does the honors on two cuts.) Most of the songs on Changes are new, but they sound like they could have been prize Atlantic or Stax rarities from the mid-60s, and the performances honor the sound and the emotional power of classic soul. Bradley spent years imitating James Brown, and the influence of Mr. Dynamite is still audible on many of these tunes. But since he launched his belated recording career, Bradley has developed a greater sense of self and more confidence in his own musical personality. On Changes, the rough-hewn power of Bradleys voice is at its most powerful, and theres a fierce sense of longing and need in this music thats almost tactile in its realism. Charles Bradley doesnt sound like a 60 soul singer, he sounds like a great soul singer regardless of era. And Changes shows Bradley still has plenty of new ground to explore at the age of 68. Thats a lot more than one can say for the other guy who sang "Changes," Ozzy Osbourne. | ||
 | Album: 4 of 4 Title: Black Velvet Released: 2018-11-09 Tracks: 15 Duration: 56:14 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Can’t Fight the Feeling (02:48) 2 Luv Jones (03:51) 3 I Feel a Change (04:26) 4 Slip Away (03:32) 5 Black Velvet (03:29) 6 Stay Away (03:13) 7 Heart of Gold (03:03) 8 (I Hope You Find) The Good Life (05:11) 9 Fly Little Girl (03:19) 10 Victim of Love (Electric version) (04:39) 1 Strictly Reserved for You (Stripped mix) (03:57) 2 How Long (Stripped mix) (03:04) 3 Loving You Baby (Stripped mix) (05:41) 4 The World (Is Going Up in Flames) (Stripped mix) (04:33) 5 A Message From Charles (01:24) |