Colorblind

Robert Randolph and the Family Band | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 10, 2006)
• Original Release Date: 2006
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: WEA/Reprise
• ASIN: B000H30B7M
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (47 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #22,207 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #96 in Music > Gospel > Urban & Contemporary

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Colorblind isn't an adequate title for this album. Randolph's follow-up to 2003's Grammy-nominated Unclassified is bright and energetic as a tie-dye-patterned pinwheel. Mostly its 11 tunes are about grooves plucked from the era of Sly Stone and Stevie Wonder, dappled with brilliant classic rock musicianship (think Jimi Hendrix and Jeff Beck) and driven by frenetic verve. When things slow down, it's usually to let the young pedal steel virtuoso revisit his roots in the Holiness Church, although the team of pop-world songwriters he collaborates with make the lyrics of Randolph's R&B hymns ambiguous between devotion to a woman or to God. Guests Dave Matthews (singing backup on "Love Is the Only Way") and Eric Clapton (lending second guitar to a hot-but-rote cover of the Doobie Brothers' hit "Jesus Is Just Alright") are oddly subdued, but neo-soul diva Leela James puts sex and smolder into her duet with Randolph on "Stronger." Ultimately, though, this album's all about Randolph himself, who has loosened his grip on the blues and gospel bedrock of his earlier playing to become a master of flashy funk and rock riffs and the owner of a tone so gargantuan it's earned him a place in rock-guitar Olympus--if not Heaven. --Ted Drozdowski

Product Description

On Colorblind, the third album from Robert Randolph & The Family Band, Eric Clapton, Dave Matthews, and Leela James join for a jam-packed, emotion-filled, good-time party mix of funk, soul, rock, gospel, and blues.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I'VE BEEN SAVED!!, October 12, 2006

By 

Thomas D. Ryan "American Hit Network" (New York) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Colorblind (Audio CD)

Robert Randolph and the Family Band may be `Colorblind," but they sure are colorful. From the first strains of "Ain't Nothing Wrong with That" to the last notes of the album closer "Homecoming," Randolph and his band switch styles more often than Christina Aguilera changes outfits. Whichever direction they lean, though, the band brings on the righteous funk with an energy that is almost supernatural. "Colorblind" is a nasty funk lollipop dipped in sanctified soul, then sprinkled with rock and roll energy. I dare you to listen to this CD while sitting down - this is music that could make a paraplegic do the moonwalk.

"Colorblind" is a high energy romp that demands participation, both physically and emotionally. Personally, I think it's great that a musician as talented as Robert Randolph can use his outsized talent for something greater than simply blowing my socks off. While the playing is never less than stellar, the message always takes precedence; family, brotherhood, faith and happiness are in abundance here, but the material never sinks into a sea of platitudes. There is simply too much energy for any of the songs to get bogged down by their message. "Jesus Is Just Alright" is an old Doobie Brothers warhorse that had been sent to pasture years ago but by some miracle (and with a bit of help from Eric Clapton) Randolph and the family band make it sound like a Derby winner. Randolph might be one of the most exciting guitar players alive today, but "Colorblind" proves that he also has the smarts to let the band play like a band, and to let the songs speak for themselves. If you want to have a good time while listening to some high energy, inspired music, then pick up "Colorblind." A Tom Ryan

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Robert Randolph is the next big deal, October 10, 2006

By 

Eli (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Colorblind (Audio CD)

The fiercest live band out there, Robert Randolph uses his studio time to make a studio-sounding album. If you want to know what the fuss is really all about, you better catch him live. As for Colorblind, the album combines the gospel church and the heaviest of metals. The artist is simply the next recipient of the crown. From Hendrix to SRV and now Robert Randolph, the title of "baddest" has a new bearer. Backed by Marcus on drums and Danyel on bass, arguably the best rhythm section in rock right now, and Jason on organ/fiddle, the band's true theme, love, shines brightly on this album. Contributions by Clapton, Dave Matthews and others complement the band's energy by adding familiar voices and sounds to entirely new ones.

12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Boy Rocks!, October 20, 2006

By 

Todd and In Charge (Miami, FL) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Colorblind (Audio CD)

Sure, he's tacking to create a more pure rock, hipper pop-friendly sensibility, and we've got guest stars joining him for a few songs, but this is no Santana Clive Davis fake-out -- these songs rock, Robert's pedal steel guitar sears and grooves, and while you can take the Church out of the Sinner, you can't take the sinner out of the Church.

BTW, I didn't find the remake of "Jesus is Just Alright" to be "tepid" at all -- The Clapper's voice and guitar meld nicely with the fat, tasty grooves laid down by Randolph and company, and I personally found their collaboration to be a highlight of the album. (But call me sentimental -- I still like the Byrds' version best....)

In all, a solid followup to his last album, and one that I hope breaks him through to a larger, more diverse audience.