With his second album, Victim Of Love, Charles Bradley becomes a bona fide modern day soul hero. Bradley was discovered working as a James Brown impersonator only a handful of years ago and released his debut album, No Time For Dreaming, in 2010 at the ripe old age of 62. Signed to Daptone Records, he immediately embodied its revivalist spirit and joined a swath of artists, such as Sharon Jones, that have been integral in reintroducing soul to the mainstream. The Brooklyn-raised and subsequent late-bloomer has been proclaimed the “screaming eagle of soul”, cemented by this year’s follow-up LP. It’s a near faultless tribute to the power of modern R&B with funk to make your hip bone dip low and that kind of soul that’ll make your heart soar and drown all at once. He is again backed by the impeccable Menahan Street Band.
It kicks off in silky style with Strictly Reserved For You. That iconic Daptone groove and fat brass section really shines under the credence of his deliciously worn vocal, crooning ‘I’m tired of the city life’. Bradley could have possibly challenged the great Otis Redding for the title of king of the Stax Record stable if he had only been born a decade earlier. Tracks such as Let Love Stand A Chance or Crying In The Chapel with all their heat and hollerin’ have the same sensual desperation as Redding’s Pain In My Heart. The track Confusion echoes the lustful viciousness from parts of Gil Scott Heron’s defining album, I’m New Here, offering up a heady cocktail of funked-up persistence and blisteringly psychedelic refrain. But it ain’t all sorrowful; You Put A Flame On It lightens the mood with a distinctly Motown feel adding a bright and bubbly ode to the one that “makes him whole”. At 64-years-old, Bradley’s talent has possibly blossomed at just the right time. The lyrical content has an added weight with titles such as Hurricane and Through The Storm suggesting a weathered existence. Let us hope the well doesn’t dry up anytime soon.
BY ADELAIDE FRENCH
Best Track: Victim Of Love
If You Like These, You’ll Like This: OTIS REDDING
In A Word: Soul-deep
