Customer Reviews

Change Is Gonna Come

5 star:		(70)
4 star:		(21)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I was walking pass by my TV when Soul Train was on and I heard her voice. It made me stop dead in my tracks and listen. I wasn't able to catch her name so I went online trying to find the line up for that weeks episode and due to me be lazy that means I must have really heard something magical in her voice. It is swamped in soul. The kind of voice that Aretha and Gladys have and it comes out of such a compact package! Her cover of "A Change is Gonna Come" almost runs close to Cooke's and in just that kind of comparison is something that many "artists" these days lack.

I caught the appearance of Leela James on Soul Train a few weeks ago and had to have this disc. A nice varied album with rich, soulful vocals on most tracks. Songs range from mostly original traditional and modern soul to bluesy track or two, only a couple of clunkers --"Music" is rather petulant. The cover of the No Doubt pop tune is ok, but nothing special. A one star hit for the phony record noise on some tracks, Ms. James' voice is too good for silly gimmicks. Leela James is a super talent and I look forward to future releases.

Leela has strong lyrics, strong voice and dignified messages. She balances new and old very well. I see her less as a representation of "neo-soul" and more as a return to REAL R&B - a day when people didnt use computers hide their vocal flaws and rappers to hide their lack of charisma. Leela has everything necessary to keep you tuned in and grooved. The Change has come!

Aside from poor sequencing, this album suffers from TMC syndrome...too many cooks in the kitchen...

- the musical interludes are dope, but who's album is this? Leela's or Gordon's? The track list posted here says it's 14 tracks, but it's really 19 including the interludes...what was Gordon tryin' to make? The Miseducation Of Leela James?

- that Wyclef joint "Ghetto"...ummmm, no. Wyclef has done good work before, but this is NOT one of those times...

- "Soul Food" (and it's preceding interlude as well) is really nice, but there's no real hook...it's sounds unfinished...Raphael (and Jake and 'nem) made a dope groove tho, and it kinda makes up for it..."Rain" has the development that I wish "Soul Food" had...

- This interlude before "When You Love Somebody" shoulda been a whole song...

- and speaking of "When You Love Somebody", why didn't she just remake the original Al Kooper song from a female point of view?

- "Mistreating Me" - this song had me rockin' back and forth like I was in chu'ch...

- Gwen Stefani has got to be jealous. Production wise, I hate how Gordon gave "Don't Speak" the "Fugees' 'Killing Me Softly' remake" styled treatment, but vocally...let's just say if I were Gwen, I'd sue Leela for making me look bad...lol...

- "My Joy" - (see "Mistreating Me" for comments...)

- the two kanye joints are good...I'm glad he didn't rap on them, but if they ever become singles, I KNOW they will be remixed to maximize on the single potential...not that I hate Kanye's rappin', I actually dig it at times; it's just that Leela doesn't need all that...

- "Prayer" is REALLY nice! So is her Sam Cooke remake...I have no complaints there...

- "Long Time Coming"...*sigh*...R&B stands for Rhythm & Business (©George Clinton), this song is proof...lyrics withstanding...

Overall, it seems like there was more focus on Leela getting some product out rather than making a tight, concise and cohesive album, and it shows...with a voice like hers, that kinda disappoints me because all of the hacks who are WAAAAY less talented than her have to do that to sell records, but I don't think she should have to.

I ain't givin' up on Leela tho...Aretha's first Atlantic album wasn't focused...hell, to be TOTALLY honest, the first Aretha LP that I thought was a perfectly sequenced piece of work was "Sparkle", and look how she turned out...

With the right producer and a focused direction, Leela can make some LEGENDARY stuff...but this album as it stands is not.

If you've read this far, DO NOT let this review deter you buying her album - Leela needs the music buyers' support to be able to make that next album the better piece of music it needs to be...

It might be a little late to be just reviewing Leela James' album, but as they say, better late then never. I was first introduced to Ms. James as a VH1 You Oughta Know (or was it still Inside Track back then?) artist, and after listening to A Change Is Gonna Come, I'm sure glad I was.

Even though the subject matter of "Music" is starting to get played out, I don't understand why most of the reviewers don't seem to like that song. But it IS true that the rest of the songs are a lot better than that. "Good Time" and "Rain" are just plain funky, while "Soul Food" is very satisfying. And if you think you'll already know what "Mistreating Me" is about, just listen to the song and you'll find some very interesting lyrics. Kanye West also drops in to produce two back-to-back gems that compliment each other: "It's Alright" and "Didn't I".

I don't know if I'll do like another reviewer and put Leela in the same league as Otis Redding and Aretha Franklin (although she does a damn good job with her rendition of Sam Cooke's title track); speaking of remakes, her cover of No Doubt's "Don't Speak" is also quality. But that leads me to another point. As reviewer E. Sims says, Leela's singing voice sounds a little too much like Joss Stone's, and the thing about that is, well, not to be cruel, but it's like this: when a white artist sings "black" music in a soulful voice, it's invigorating. When it's the other way around, it's a little odd. In other words, Leela sounds like a white person singing like a black person, which might not sit right with everyone.

But that doesn't really bother me, and it's also not the reason why I knocked half a star off my rating; the reason IS because the Wyclef-assisted "Ghetto" completely throws everything off. But A Change Is Gonna Come still proves that Leela James deserves much more attention than she's getting, so help her get some by picking this up.

Anthony Rupert

Since buying this album the word soul has been revived for me. She brings a sound that i thought i would never hear, smooth and soulful, rich and enticing. this is one of my best purchases and i encourage everyone who appreciates good music and artistic talent to not only pick this up but promote it. Singers like James, Jaguar wright and Lina dont get the props they should and only we can change that.

I like the voice (sound and expression), like organs, rhodes and horns (where are de musicians clear credits in the booklet?) etc, but most songs lack dynamics, while Leela has enough not to disappear in a crescendo. It prob is a matter of recording techniques (compression) and producer's ideas. It could mean that the life concert (North Sea next week!) can be great! I hope it will be recorded.

It may be my personal pref; the horns/sax/strings could use more dynamics (crescendo, using more and more notes), could be closer in the recording, making it more alive, more blood, more deep soul. I don't have problem with a horn wich is slighty out of tune, as long as it works. Compare it for exmp. with Bettye Lavettes live recording a few years ago in the Netherlands. It gives me so much warm red blooded soul....

In general soul/rnb of today lost dynamics, the key to a lot of extra feel!

Leela willl be ok, with good musicians, but esp. a good producer who will choose for good rich dynamic arrangements.

Don't use some talkies and pics about 'classics' and other imagebuilding stuff, let it sound!

Around the turn of the millennium Nu-Soul promised to save Soul from the drabble it had become in the 80's. Sadly the genre didn't hold up to its promise. Many in the frontlines of Nu-Soul were plagued by one off strong debuts and troubled follow ups. A lot of the artist from that time seem to have dropped of the radar since. We're still waiting for Erykah Badu to follow up Mama's Gun, D'Angelo is more in the picture because off cocaine addiction, Lauren Hill delivered a strong solo debut and left it at that and Maxwell's latest release is about five years old. The true Soul fan keeps hoping for the music to be put solidly on the map again. Rock survived the eighties, Soul is still struggling.

So naturally I was exited to hear there was a new player in the field. Even more exiting was the buzz. Leela James was going to be a new Southern belle. The press heralded Leela as the rightful heir to the crown of the likes as Aretha Franklin. Leela James was properly taught in church. Promises like that make it hard to live up to. It's because of these promises that Leela debut album disappoints some what.

The production is some what standard formula Nu-Soul. We've all heard these cool beats a hundred times over and start to lose some of its appeal. Especially when you've seen Leela live on stage. Backed by a full live band her live performance is one rocking experience. On disc she seems somewhat toned down to fit the hip lounge bars. Her record is more background music than it ought to be.

That truly is a shame. The material here has very strong potential. The disc features some very strong songs and Leela's deliverance is convincing. Even the Sam Cooke classic, A Change is Gonna Come, is sung with conviction. This is no mean feat. With the right production Leela could cash in on the promise the critics gave us. One cannot help but feel she should be recorded live with that steaming and hard rocking band behind her.

Leela James is by far one of the most soulful, refreshing, and talented artists to come out in recent years. Her sound is rich and unique. As soon as I heard the song, "Music" I was hooked. Definitely worth the purchase.

I love Leela's first single Music, as well as Soul Food, Mistreating Me, Rain, and A Change Is Gonna Come. She is a breath of fresh air for people who want to hear real music/talent instead of some half-singing females. The whole album is good. I agree with most of the reviews about the track sequencing. It throws the listener off. (Not Leela's fault at all). She has so much potential, therefore her label needs to do a better job of marketing her. She deserves better. Overall 4.5 stars.