East Side Story

Emily King | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 11, 2011)
• Original Release Date: 2007
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: J Records
• ASIN: B000TJ6AME
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #92,512 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 4 1/2 stars - A promising debut., August 27, 2007

By 

W. E. Phillips (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: East Side Story (Audio CD)

The promotional posters for East Side Story boast the tagline: 'beyond definition.' I don't think I could put it much better than that. Emily King fuses many different genres like jazz, hip hop, R&B, pop and even reggae to produce some great music that sounds quite different from anything else out there at the moment. The album reminds me a bit of Lauryn Hill's Miseducation in that aspect. King's voice is light, soulful and bluesy and unlike many in the business, she chooses to use some live instrumentation, which truly brings a new dimension to the music. The whole album sounds very 'live' and heart-felt.

As ashamed as I am to say this, the first time I heard of this wonderful artist was on the website for the TV show, Charm School. I listened to the first single "Walk In My Shoes" and instantly fell in love with the song. The thumping bassline and the crisp rimshot with Emily's emotional delivery of the "you don't know what I've been through" type of lyrics made a perfect track.

The rest of the album, I am glad to say, is equally great. "Colorblind" is a heart-wrenching autobiographical tale of the troubles of growing up bi-racial. "Alright" is a nice inspirational mid-tempo. "U & I" is an old school soul throwback love song with beautiful harmonies and production. "Hold Me," one of my favorite tracks, is a reggae-influenced song of infatuation. King delivers an emotionally-charged cover of the classic, "Ain't No Sunshine." "You Can Get By" encourages a woman to leave an abusive realtionship going nowhere. "E Melody" is catchy. "It Was You" is a painful breakup song and the production matches the sentiment. "Moon" is layered with lush guitars and vocals. Ms. King gives some political commentary on "Business Man," which--if I'm not mistaken-- points the finger directly at owners of diamond mines in Africa. "Never Be Lonely" is another one of my favorite tracks. The song has a great horn section at the end and it tells of the classic "I-want-you-back" tale. "Ride With Me" is a relaxing gospel/reggae/soul mid-tempo. The album ends in a version of "Walk In My Shoes" with an added verse by Lupe Fiasco. His rhyming is excellent, but I still prefer the original.

Overall, this is an excellent album from a very talented artist who is here to stay. Her music and subject matter is highly varied. The production and songwritng is great, as well. I highly recommend it. (By the way, this is not an EP like the page says. It's a full-length album.)

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An Underlooked, Underappreciated Musical Gem, December 26, 2007

By 

M. J. Moore (Chicago, Illinois United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: East Side Story (Audio CD)

I cannot recall how I discovered Emily King. I am a huge Pop/R&B/Pop music fan, so probably in my extensive musical searching and study, I came across her. Hearing her lead single, Walk In My Shoes, on her website instantly sold me to the fact that she has talent. Hailed in some circles as an Alicia Keys, like Keys, Emily is bi-racial and has a natural knack and talent for music. The main unfortunate aspect is that this musical gem has been under-supported, under-promoted, and certainly, underappreciated. Produced by Carl "Chucky" Thompson primarily, this CD contains some standout tracks that could definitely work on radio. Although Emily is in her early 20s, she doesn't just stick to the oft-mentioned topic of love. She experiments with being interracial on the nice, unique mid-tempo Colorblind. She challenges folks to "Walk In My Shoes" on the lead single, first track and also on the bonus track featuring a rap by the great rapper Lupe Fiasco. She even talks about the Moon and a Business Man. Emily reminds me slightly of Joss Stone, Alicia Keys, but she primarily has her own style--some slight funkiness, a little bubblegum pop, old-school R&B, tinges of Hip-Hop and a unique voice that fits all of the songs, this effort definitely needs to get recognized in this era of supporting talentless acts.

Top 3 Standout Tracks:
u&I---This song should definitely be a single. It's a fun-loving romance song with a swirling mid-tempo beat and a catchy hook.

Business Man--Emily tackles a deep topic in this slightly acoustic sounding slow song. It makes you think.

Never Be Lonely--The instruments seem to pay homage to the 70's Motown/R&B sound, as does a lot of the CD. It's a nice song.

This is a wonderful CD. I recommend it if you're looking for quality music.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars LOVE it..... but not at first., October 8, 2007

By 

R. Thornton (Philadelphia, PA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: East Side Story (Audio CD)

Where do I begin? I'm listening to it now... It's the kind of good that makes it difficult to multi-task. I am somehow forced to concentrate on the music. Taste in music is so very subjective and our individual response to music, or how much we're moved by it, will be different. But I'm captivated by Emily's music. I've been listening to this cd over and over again for the last week. And I'm a bit strange, I guess, because, as I mentioned in the title, I didn't love the whole thing at first. But this is typical of me. There are cds that I love, top to bottom, the first time out. But there are others, this now included, that take me listening maybe three times completely before I get it. But, man, do I get it now.

Listening to this cd reminds me of what I felt when I heard Alicia Keys', "Songs in A Minor". Alicia isn't the best vocally, but her energy, her sheer creativity and her music's depth completely blew me away. Considering the then current poor state of R&B music, her music was a revelation. It was real music, just like in the old days, devoid of all the big name producers and their cookie cutter, synthesized sound. Just real music. Well, that's how I feel about Emily's cd. She's better than Alicia vocally (just listen to the opening verse of "Never be Lonely") but has all of that freshness, creativity and musicality. It's true R&B music, stuff a thug could listen to when chillin' and yet is diverse enough to have him listening to some arrangements that touch on other, softer, genres of music.

Creative... fresh... Did I say that yet?

Another thing that blew me away was the fact that the cd is produced by Chucky Thompson. If you don't know his name, you surely know his work, his sound. Chucky Thompson was THE sound of Bad Boy R&B music, 1994 - 1997. In my opinion, he was uniquely instrumental in the success of Bad Boy and the artists they worked with during these early years, Mary J. Blige (tho' not signed by Bad Boy), Faith Evans, Frankie (his cd was great although he didn't achieve much success). But key among all these artists is, of course, Mary. And key among all of her cds is the one that Chucky Thompson produced, "My Life", my favorite R&B cd. I didn't know that Chucky produced this album till I bought the cd. Listen to "Colorblind" on Emily's cd. It's trademark Chucky Thompson. I miss that sound. Hopefully these two will have the chance to collaborate on a second cd because their chemistry is incredible.

What's even more compelling about this cd is how much is said in these songs. They're songs that, without ever being corny or preachy, speak of self-respect and not allowing life and it's trials slow you down. Others speak of finding and losing love.

A couple others have commented on how disappointed they are that this cd isn't being adequately promoted, if at all, and I'm no different. It's a real shame because, given the same promotion, she could be as successful as Alicia. Good thing I happened to pick up a copy of XXL magazine's Hip Hop Soul spin-off mag earlier this year or I would have completely missed this gem. Makes me wonder how many other incredible cds have been released that I completely missed.....

My favorites on the cd?.... Heh... that's tough. Very rarely have a listened to a cd that is this consistent. But I'll try.

My ratings by track:
1. Walk in my shoes (Thick and punchy, a throwback to early 70's soul/funk) - Five stars
2. Colorblind (Such a refreshing sound, lively, with a killer beat and fantastic vocal arrangement. A feel good song, even though it is discussing a topic was a difficult one for her when growing up) - Five stars +
3. Alright (Samples Bruce Hornsby's "That's just the way it is", a sample that I didn't get immediately, but she blended it with a heavy R&B beat. Sounds great) - Four stars
4. U&I (A very lighthearted song, the first time we hear her plucking. It's about falling in love, finally. BEAUTIFUL song) - Five stars +
5. Hold Me (A punchy, mid/upbeat song. This song gets you the first time you hear the chorus.) - Five stars
6. Ain't no sunshine (A remake of Bill Withers' song. While I'm not a huge fan of remakes, Emily does this song fantastic justice) - Four stars
7. You can get by (An offbeat/punchy song, very beat and guitar driven. A simple, yet, effective arrangement that truly highlights her creativity) - Five stars
8. E Melody (This is Emily's favorite track and makes a strong case for my favorite also. Strong beat. If you're head isn't nodding hard enough to make your neck tired, something's wrong) - Five stars +
9. It was you (Woooo... this one took me a minute to love. The song is downright beautiful, the vocal arrangement on the verses is chilling, but, when the hook came on the first time it threw me off. The melody during the hook doesn't do what you might be expecting it to. But after listening several times I can appreciate her desire to purposely do something different. Three thumbs up) - Five stars
10. Moon (Laid back. That's all I can say. Laid back) Five stars
11. Business man (What a pretty song. The subject matter doesn't strike me as the most relevant, but it is beautiful.) Four stars
12. Never be lonely (This song touches me personally, so my review may be jaded. But I LOVE this song. Emily's vocal ability is displayed on this song more than any other on the cd. Of the songs she wrote alone, this is the best and strangely enough, probably also the most sell-able. Reminds me of Minnie Ripperton song.) - Five stars +
13. Ride with me (Reggae influenced, if only by the use of a steel drum. The song stays with you, absolutely relaxing and infectious. A strong second, of the Emily only songs, to "Never be lonely") Five stars +
14. Walk in my shoes* - Bonus track - Remix (Lupe Fiasco's rapping does fit the music quite well) Five stars

Buy the cd and enjoy it, then, so that Emily has a fighting chance, recommend that your friends buy the cd rather than burning them a copy of it.

Enjoy!