Customer Reviews

Bring It on Home: The Soul Classics

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

is Neville's voice. I recently saw him at a local venue, where he performed a lot of the music on this fine CD. I hadn't purchased any Neville music since his great jazz memories album, "Nature Boy" -- but I went right out and bought this. Neville's not afraid to remake Sam Cooke or Percy Sledge, and his take on "Stand By Me" and with Chris Botti's trumpet on a new mix for "Rainy Night In Georgia" permeate your thoughts and just about make you forget the originals. Neville did this CD as a tribute to Katrina victims, and his own family's difficulties as the result of the storm. A consummate performer, with a voice that just doesn't quit, Neville is even more at home with sould classics than he is with gospel or jazz. Run, don't walk, to buy this CD!

This four time Grammy award winning performer exposes his soulful roots with a thirteen song tribute to some of the world's greatest legends of soul and R&B. Even though his awards are in the Pop and Country music categories, his vibrato style clings to the classic songs, infusing them with inspiration and hope for troubled times.

The track list reads like a Who's Who, with guests like Chris Botti, Chaka Khan, Mavis Staples and David Sanborn performing the songs of Otis Redding, Ben E. King, Sam Cooke, Percy Sledge, Al Green and Marvin Gaye among others.

In some cases, you'll have to admit that there ain't nuthin' like the original, but Neville gets full marks for a passionate performance anyway. The ones I like are Ain't No Sunshine, originally by Bill Withers; Stand By Me - Ben E. King; You Send Me - Sam Cooke; Respect Yourself (featuring Mavis Staples) - Staple Singers; Let's Stay Together (featuring Chaka Khan) - Al Green, and People Get Ready (featuring David Sanborn and Art Neville) - Curtis Mayfield.

More than just another oldies compilation, this is an album that Aaron Neville fans can be proud of.

Amanda Richards, September 24, 2006

I've loved Aaron Neville's voice for many years and this has to be one of his finest recordings. Neville is one of those rare artists that can literally sing anything and do it well, but this is his home turf. I bought the CD the day it was released and actually didn't want it to end. His duet partners compliment and blend without overshadowing that incredible falsetto tenor. Do I have a particular favorite? Rainy Night In Georgia might be it, but there is nothing on this CD to "skip". Do yourself a favor and treat yourself to this incredible recording by an artist that only gets better with age.

There are quite a few albums lately with artists covering songs already made famous by other artists. This is one of the better ones because it's a totally new interpretation of older hits. It kicks off with the classic 'Rainy Night In Georgia' and you've never heard it done like this before. With the different arrangements, etc, it's totally awesome as is "Dock Of The Bay'. Neville's falsetto can be sometimes quite annoying but he keeps it slightly under wraps here. An album worth buying.

I love Aaron Neville. He can make average songs sound like masterpieces. But here he is singing the masterpieces, so imagine how they would sound like. This album is pure gold. I have been listening to it over and over again since I got it and I have been recommending it to all my friends too. Its tough to chose a favourite from this brilliant album but I think "People Get Ready" has the most emotion in it. Treat yourself to the joy of Aaron Neville's soulful vocals and decide for yourself.
The tracks are :
Rainy night in georgia (feat chris botti)
Aint no sunshine
(Sittin on) the dock of the bay
Stand by me
You send me
Respect yourself (feat mavis staples)
When a man loves a woman
Lets stay together (feat chaka khan)
Its all right
People get ready (feat david sanborn and art neville)
My girl
Aint that peculiar
A change is gonna come

Aaron Neville definitely has one of the most inescapable voices of today. He is versatile as well which may very well be his draw or his appeal. He can sing rock, country, pop, jazz, and soul equally well. There are very few singers that can pull that off. Here, Brother Aaron returns to form after his exceptional jazz standards album with soul classics. Sure, maybe the classics don't have the vigor of the originals sung by the original artist, but the vigor of Aaron Neville with his mellow, yet soulful vocals is present from the opening "Rainy Night In Georgia" to the chilling closure, an exceptional remake of Sam Cook's classic "A Change Is Gonna Come". Something that perhaps Neville can boast of is the fact that his voice doesn't sound the least bit altered by age as some of his contemporaries have been. Aaron sounds as strong as he did in 1967 when he was singing the classic "Tell Me Like It Is".

Ultimately, there is no need to go through every track and critique them. For the most part, the arrangements are simple, but not so simple where the album sounds cheap. "Ain't No Sunshine" for example doesn't quite have the same feel as the original Bill Wither's take,but it is soulful nonetheless and features some character from Neville which makes it very enjoyable. "You Send Me", another Cooke classic, is well sung here by Neville with both the simplicity that Cooke sang in the 1950s as well as the soulfulness of Aaron Neville. "When A Man Loves A Woman" is as beautiful a take as I've heard and "People Get Ready" is another standout. I could continue to praise all the rest of the numbers but there is no need; they are all consistent.

My largest criticism might be that the guest collaboarations don't necessarily make BRING IT ON HOME any better than it would've been with just Aaron Neville. However, what is good is that the spotlight is on Aaron Neville and the album is simply immaculate, as always. 4 stars.

Aaron Neville is the most soulful singer of our time. The collection of songs chosen for this CD is a good collection. However, the arrangements could have been better.
His previous version of 'A Change is Gonna Come'is much better than this one, at least I think so. In fact, his previous versions of 'Sittin on the Dock of the Bay' and 'Ain't no Sunshine' are much better also.
Not that these aren't good, they're just softer in tone as is this whole CD, so the songs blend well in succession.
Aaron is definitely timeless, as are these songs. And this CD is a worthy buy. However, I much prefer 'The Grand Tour' and 'Warm Your Heart' to this CD. 'Nature Boy' was also very well done as far as standards go. Just stating personal preferences.

I love the voice of Aaron Neville. I also love all the performances of the musicians on this CD. My favorite track is Rainy Night In Georgia. Chris Botti gives this track a smooth sensual quality with his trumpet playing. He compliments Aaron's vocals well. Respect Yourself is a fun upbeat duet with Mavis Staples. Lets Stay Together is another highlight duet with Chaka Khan. They harmonize beautifully together. Sittin on The Dock Of The Bay is a groovy sounding track especially with Ray Parker Jr. on the electric guitar. I love the tone of Aaron's voice on the track You Send Me. It sounds very pretty and romantic. It's All Right and People Get Ready are really uplifting tracks. Aint that Pecuilar sounds so soulful and energetic. I love Aaron's rendition of this song. Stand By Me is one of my all time favorite tunes. It is a great song about friendship. Joe Sample's piano playing is so good on this track. Bring It On Home is an excellent CD of classic soul songs.

You can't go wrong with Aaron Neville! His voice and these songs just transport you back in time! There just is no one out there like him. Sets a mood and keeps it! Love it!

It is hard for me to rate an Aaron Neville disc, because I just love the way he sings. It is very hard to find a song by him that he kills. And in this CD he took GREAT classic soul songs and sang them his style. Just wonderful!