The Brand New Heavies | Shelter
Back in the Day Music Review
The Brand New Heavies – Shelter (Delicious Vinyl – 1997)
By Randy Holmes
The Brand New Heavies, the Ealing, London and South East, UK based Acid Jazz/Funk/R&B pioneers of the '90's, broke through on this side of the Atlantic in 1990 with their smash hit "Never Stop" that featured the talented singer N'Dea Davenport. But on this 1997 Delicious Vinyl Records MASTERPIECE, it featured a brand new (no pun intended) lead singer in the more than able songwriter extraordinaire, ultra talented ........ and beautiful I might add, Ms. Siedah Garrett. Rounding out this groovetastic band are Mr. Simon Bartholomew (Guitar, Background Vocals), Mr. Andrew Levy (Bass Guitar, Tambourine, Background Vocals), and last but certainly not least, Mr. Jan Kincaid (Vocals, Keyboards, Drums, and Percussion).
First single and accompanying video, "Sometimes", are what well crafted and sonically magnificent engineered records should sound like, FONKAY AND IN THE POCKET ! The low end theory of the electric bass, the 'kick you in the grill' Fender Rhodes chords, the funky of the funkiest time kept back beat of the drums, the wah wah'd electric guitar runs and funky riffs will undoubtedly have that rump shaking. Its feel good nature and overall vibe, chugs along with an infectious groove as Siedah belts out sounds from a sexy whisper, segueing into mid range musings, and climaxing into delicious and ear pleasing notes.
The album’s title track, "Shelter", is clearly one of, if not the BEST song, on this entire 13 song extravaganza ! What makes this track percolate is the intentional heavily distorted male lead vocal by Heavies drummer Jan Kincaid ! That cat wailed on this song like it was the last time he was ever going to grace a mic !! ... and GOD BLESS him for it ! Another element that reeked funkiness are the tightly arranged strings and it's performance ! KILLER !! The once again, wah wah'd guitar, the hard hit Hi-Hat/snare combo in tandem with the heavy footed kick drum, the omnipresent Fender Rhodes, the occasional Hammond B3 fills, and Siedah holding it down on the sassy BV's {Background Vocals}, are custom-fitted to have this track on the repeat mode in the iPod. One important key ingredient you might notice is the rhythm pattern of the tympani and the acoustic piano. It's very reminiscent to the rhythm pattern of a song by the short lived female vocal trio Jade and their 1992 hit, "Don't Walk Away" (Giant Records/Warner Bros.). But in any regard, it's a SICK TRACK !!
The Heavies take the tempo down a bit with the feel good breezy feel of "Feels Like Right". Siedah handles both the lead and background chores on this one. No one, and I mean, NO ONE can lay down lead and background female vocal parts like Ms. Garrett. They're dynamic, on key, perfectly in sync with one another, and they're just solid and pleasantly sound great !! ..... and she exerted that on this song. The acoustic piano intro sets up what will be a nice excursion into Loveland, with the mellow teasings of the electric bass, the gentle and buttery Fender Rhodes, the sly guitar licks, the underlying support of the percussion, and a beautiful Flugelhorn solo puts the finishing touches on a song worthy of praise. Good song !
Another Siedah Garrett lead vocal track - the "no longer taking mess from a cheating so-called significant other" lyrical subject matter of "Stay Gone" - is another highlight of this great disc. Siedah lays it down with a slightly bluesy, grit & grimy yet sexy, take charge attitude in her vocal delivery. The ringing of the left/right stereo panned Fender Rhodes, the jazzy/funk overtones of the electric bass guitar, the light and gentle pluckings of the acoustic guitar, and the subtleness of the drums culminate in a tour de force of UK coolness!
On sleek and chic "You Can Do It", the One Way Featuring Al Hudson 1979 R&B standard, the The Heavies recorded their rendition in the same mode of the original. They kept it danceable, groove-laden and downright fonkay ! What brings this banger home is the snaky performance of the Hohner Clavinet, the hip licks of the electric guitar, the cool du jour live horns and arrangement, and the, once again, chordal feel of the ivory keys tinkling of the Fender Rhodes. Siedah delivers yet another stellar vocal performance, sliding and gliding into notes and registers as only a true pro can…and trust me, SHE CAN DO IT !! {Pun intended this time, wink !}
The remaining tracks I did not review would only take up a lot of space that would normally be reserved for my fellow colleagues. That's how good this record is. To hear them, you'd just have to go out and cop it ! Trust me, it's more than worth checking into. Even though it was released 14 years ago, you can still purchase it. It's never too late to get up on great music. I'll even help you out, the following is the link to Amazon.Com's website where you can get a copy, there's plenty left, but I strongly urge you to act now :
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_0_14?url=search-alias%3Dpopular&field-keywords=raphael+saadiq&sprefix=raphael+saadiq#/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_3_29?url=search-alias%3Dpopular&field-keywords=the+brand+new+heavies+shelter&sprefix=the+brand+new+heavies+shelter&rh=n%3A5174%2Ck%3Athe+brand+new+heavies+shelter
Visit The Brand New Heavies Official Website/MySpace Page at :
http://www.myspace.com/thebrandnewheavies
You can find all members individually on Facebook as well.
Happy Listening !
Randy Holmes
The Urban Music Scene
Posted by Administration at 4/11/2011 12:50 PM 
Categories: Funk, Rhythm and Blues, Videos, New School Soul
Tags: 90s Music Music Videos
Categories: Funk, Rhythm and Blues, Videos, New School Soul
Tags: 90s Music Music Videos
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