Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
pretty fly for a white guy, 18 April 2008
Jamie Lidell's 2005 album Multiply showcased his extraordinary voice together with music which combined old school soul and funk with more modern dance sounds. It was a Gonzalez remix of the title track with its simple piano accompaniment which showed the real strength: the voice. Jamie Lidell is a white guy from England who lives in Berlin and sounds like a combination of Stevie Wonder, Prince and Otis Redding. Marvellous.
New album Jim plays to these strengths opening with piano on the glorious Another Day before full backing comes in. Wait For Me bounces along with fantastic backing vocals and the soulful sound continues complete with handclapping chorus on Out Of My System. All I Wanna Do is a gorgeous, heartfelt ballad, Lidell's voice placed layer upon layer to build the backing. It's all about the voice rather than fussy production this time around. Which isn't to say that the dance influence isn't there; first single Little Bit Of Feelgood is a funky floorfiller and Figured Me Out has some crazy keyboards which reminded me of Doctor Fink (who played with Prince). There are even guitars to lead in the stomping Hurricane before things get a disco tinge on Green Light. It's Jamie and piano again on Where D'You Go? before the album finishes with the beautiful Rope of Sand, another stunning ballad with simple orchestration.
That's a very brief rundown. The production really focuses in on the voice and it's the kind of scrutiny that many singers would crumble under but on this personally titled album 'Jim' is revelling in his gift. The only way to know for sure how good he is, is to buy the album and enjoy.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Incredible - JIM is a new soul legend!, 12 Mar 2008
After his previous effort, Multiply, I struggled to see how Jamie Lidell could better himself. But having heard JIM, I've lost that bet with myself. JIM is ten tracks of classic soul and funk, shot through with a feel that's entirely now. I've seen the odd comparison to Steve Wonder in the press, something that I think will be cemented as fact after hearing this. 'Where D'You Go' is a blast of feelgood piano, 'Hurricane' sounds like Beck on a very good day and 'All I Wanna Do' manages to be laid back without wasting a single beat. Exceptional.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sheer soul genius, 2 Jul 2008
Jamie Lidell's released work has changed somewhat dramatically since I first encountered the electronic bleeps and scratches of his first full album, 'Muddlin Gear'.
His second, 'Multiply', really piqued my interest; here was a clearly accomplished vocalist and musician who had found his niche and a talent for creating endearing, innovative, foot-stompingly danceable music.
With 'Jim', his effortless soaring vocals hit every sweet note available while his astonishingly earthy tone, at its best, is spellbinding. At worst, his voice is a gentle...what am I saying? There is no worst.
Sliding between the impossibly funky with songs such as 'Out of my System', 'Little Bit of Feel Good' and 'Hurricane' and the pant-wettingly seductive in 'All I Wanna Do' and 'Green Light', 'Jim' is an absolute tour-de-force and I cannot recommend it highly enough. Lidell's voice is complemented by driving piano, delicate horns, subtle electronic touches and a fascinating story told with a sensitive lyric, and there is not a weak song in sight. Not since Jeff Buckley's 'Grace' have i given (very nearly) every song on an album a 5-star rating!
I have decided not to focus on the obvious comparisons with other, perhaps more well-known artists, as these have been mentioned aplenty in other reviews around the Web. Suffice to say that, try as my inner demon might, I cannot unfavourably compare the sound of 'Jim' with any soul music I have ever heard. Much has been made of his marriage of futuristic and retro sound, and with good reason, but all that I can say is that no comparisons need be drawn. Otis is smiling.
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