Customer Reviews

Barefoot Soul

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Those who rate this recording anything below a deserving Five stars (I'm giving it Six stars), should be embarrassed to make such an uneducated statement (are we listening to the same thing?). This piece does have some of the familiar SD material, take "Louise", how much more SD can you get. Now I could sit and analyze each piece, but I'd rather stay on the surface, and let the listener make his/her own judgement. As seasoned listeners, which SD fan's are, "barefootsoul" gives us a natural progression, as we would expect from such fine composer/arrangers. Do we really want the same thing with each "new" release. Go listen to the radio if you want that. Each time I listen to "barefootsoul" I hear something new. There is so much happening in this recording , I've never before heard such an interwoven recording by any artist - ever. Kudo's to the Engineer, the mix is Outstanding - even Brilliant! "Barefootsoul" is a piece to sit and listen to, with no other distractions. I promise you you won't be dissapointed.

The long awaited new studio release of Sonia Dada may leave fans slightly disappointed. While it has rich musical styles and takes the band to new regions of their city rock style, it unfortunately lacks the finesse of the earlier albums. Essentially, in prior albums, Sonia Dada never sounded the same but always sounded like Sonia Dada. This album takes them to such experimental lengths that hardcore Sonia Dada fans may be left wondering if they are still listening to their favorite band. On the whole, however, this album leaves the unbiased listener happy with it's full ranges and bright new musical feels.
Most of the songs, though quirky when placed together on one album, stand on their own merit quite well. "Baby Woke Up" contains syncopated beats and smooth lyrics that SD fans will die for. "Raise the Roofbeam" slows the album down to a soft jazz that is highly attuned for easy listening. "Angel" delivers cheery themes with a minor key bridge which combines the best in what sounds like 50's ballad with traditional SD blues.
All in all, if you are a Sonia Dada fan, but still love diversity, by all means buy this album. It only dissapoints those who wish to hear more of the same.

My husband surprised me with the new Sonia Dada CD last night, and I could hardly wait to listen to it. I should have waited! What the heck happened! Sonia Dada worked over a year on this release, unfortunately it sounds like it is was wiped together in a matter of weeks. I have been an avid fan of theirs for years and I'd been anxiously awaiting this new CD. Unfortunately, it has none of the energy and strong harmonies/melodies of the previous CD's. Boring and lackluster come to mind. The final cut ended rather abruptly, making me wonder if somehting was wrong with my CD. No, it was just a bad ending to really disappointing CD.

This record is a big disappointment. I was a huge SONIA DADA fan - well I still am a huge fan of all the previous records, but this one seems to be an experiment gone bad. The band's sound and songwriting kept getting better and better with each record and now this mess. The first track has an interesting "You Sexy Thing" 70's vibe to it, but I found the majority of the rest of the CD unlistenable. No hooks, no incredible vocal arrangements, and extremely boring instrumentations. The band has moved to more of a jazz/gospel sound with Shawn Christopher taking the vocal forefront on most of the tracks. The only positive thing is that Sam sings on one track. I am sure that there is an audience for this type of music, but SD would have been better served to put this record out under a pseudonym. I doubt many SD fans will like it. Although I think Shawn has a great voice, Scotty has always been the main voice of this band and the fan base has been developed on a signature blues/rock/jam sound with phenomenal vocal performances by Scotty. One of the biggest disappointments of the past 10 years as far as I am concerned. I was hoping that this record would finally catapult SD into the mainstream, but it looks like we will have to wait. I hope that the band learns from this mistake and reverts to their signature sound on the next record. I urge SD fans to listen to this record before purchasing it.

The classic sound of Sonia Dada rings true, but this is clearly not their best album. About half of the songs are just above mediocre to the point that I can't/won't remember their names.

I absolutely love this new CD! It took me a few plays to "get it" - but now that I have, it hasn't been out of my CD player. Like the other reviewers, I also love their early stuff and seeing them in concert is amazing! This CD seems a bit more focused than earlier ones, and the songs are less raucous but for me, the whole album works as a cohesive, soulful and beautiful musical journey. 'Raise the Roofbeam' is an absolute gem and Shawn Christopher delivers it beautifully. I love the way 'Daisy' starts in a kind of a hallucinogenic trance and then segues into this jaunty New Orleans feel - how DO you spell 'hoosgow' anyway?? 'Baby Woke Up' is funky and feel good,
'Louise' is one of those narratives along the lines of 'Anna Lee' and 'Happy Together' is just a hoot as a couple banters about the ups and downs of their relationship e.g. "Ain't no two bit drug stuck pickup pimp cowboy gonna put a noose around my neck for love or money..." ... and so it goes. The playing on this CD is incredible - every note has its place and while this may be a more laid-back album than ones in the past, the playing is spry and energetic and the 3 vocalists do an amazing job of interpreting lyrics that are clever, thoughtful and sometimes allegorical - did I mention I love 'Sometimes' (including the abrupt stop!)? Anyway.... this is a great CD - under headphones, in the car, late at night - whenever and wherever you want to hear music that has real soul!!

Ever since seeing Sonia Dada at Jazzfest in 2000, I had hoped they would relax and steep themselves in a New Orleans groove. The Amazon reviewer is right on, this is a groove reminiscent of Little Feat circa Time Loves A Hero. This is the album I have been waiting for Sonia Dada to make.

I see that someone else has the same opinion that I have about this CD. What a HUGE disappointment!! I also love the first three studio releases but this one will rarely get any more time on my players. They have always been able to rock out as well as show off the best vocal talent anywhere. This new release is very boring. Vocally fantastic as I would expect, but still boring. Only one real rocking piece, the rest sound like they are ready for "lite rock". Hank is even back playing so there is no excuse for not using one of the best drummers around in a better way. This one seems destined for the cut-out bin. I wonder, this is on a new label. Did the new label dictate the monotony or did the band decide on a different direction? Everyone remembers Dire Straits first CD and Brothers In Arms, but who remembers Comminque? We all know about Warren Zevon's Sentimental Hygiene or Bad Luck Streak In Dancing School but who remembers Transverse City? Come on, guys, don't make us wait four more years to make up for this.

I first heard "Baby Woke Up" on a sampler CD from Paste magazine.
I love this album, I like and maybe love some of their other material. I don't get the fans that don't like this. So it's a little slower....Since my usual cup of tea is Dandy Warhols, Beta Band, Eleni Mandell, Sam Phillips. Latin Playboys and recently Kings of Leon, unfortunately none of my friends like anything by Sonia Dada. What a pity for them!

IF you don't have any SoniaDADA yet... what'cha waitin' for?!? They're all WAY worthy...I would have to recommend LiVe or My Secret Life, but the other ones rock too. very 3-D! This one's not a disapointment, just different, a little on the mellow side ... recorded...NO SUBSTITUTE FOR LIVE...after that..
It's ALL GOOD!!!
if you like any of the others, you'll grow to love this one too.
:0 heartfelt tunes,THE INTURMENTALS ARE INCREDIBLE AND holy ----THE VOICES!