| All Artists: Shemekia Copeland Title: Never Going Back Members Wishing: 4 Total Copies: 0 Label: Telarc Original Release Date: 1/1/2009 Re-Release Date: 2/24/2009 Genres: Blues, Pop Style: Electric Blues Number of Discs: 1 SwapaCD Credits: 1 UPC: 089408369223 |
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Search - Shemekia Copeland :: Never Going Back
 | Shemekia Copeland Never Going Back Genres: Blues, Pop For more than a decade, Shemekia Copeland has been paving a road that will inevitably lead to her reign as Queen of the Blues. By some standards, she may already be there: numerous blues awards in the U.S. and elsewhere, a... more » |
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Album Description For more than a decade, Shemekia Copeland has been paving a road that will inevitably lead to her reign as Queen of the Blues. By some standards, she may already be there: numerous blues awards in the U.S. and elsewhere, a GRAMMY nomination, a resume that includes work with musical titans like Dr. John and Steve Cropper and film giants like Martin Scorsese and Wim Wenders. Never Going Back captures Copeland at a crossroads on that artistic path - a place where numerous new avenues are open to her. While Copeland will always remain loyal to her blues roots, Never Going Back takes a more forward view of the blues, and in so doing points her music and her career in a new direction.That pursuit of a new and different sound led to producer Oliver Wood, a member of the acoustic and highly organic collective known as the Wood Brothers - a combo whose ranks also include bassist Chris Wood, co-founder and ongoing member of Medeski, Martin & Wood. In addition to handling production duties, Oliver Wood also lays down guitar tracks on every one of the album's dozen tracks and even contributes backing vocals in a couple places. The sizable crew of guest musicians also includes Chris Wood, keyboardist John Medeski and guitarist Marc Ribot. Similarly Requested CDs
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CD ReviewsTHE DYNAMIC SHEMEKIA COPELAND SINGS A POWERFUL VOCAL BLUES M RBSProds | Deep in the heart of Texas | 02/24/2009 (5 out of 5 stars) "Five HUGE Stars!! WOW!! Multi-"W.C. Handy award"-winning Shemekia Copeland rocks the blues!! In what may be her best recording yet, this 29 year-old blues-belting queen is on fire, singing with a verve & power well beyond her years. Daughter of blues legend Johnny Clyde Copeland, she gives a virtuoso demonstration of the versatility of one of America's greatest musical art forms, tossing R&B, soul, jazz, country, rock, folk, gut-bucket, and ballads into the mix for diversity. Aided by a wonderful backup group and very adept 'pitch-riding' background vocals, Ms Copeland is nothing short of sensational, sending the powerful message that the blues can be sad but it doesn't have to be depressing: it can even be inspiring. The 'best of the best' begins with Shemekia's loping, intense "Sounds Like The Devil" and then 'doubling down', there is the smoldering gut-bucket "Dirty Water" that has some intense guitar backing and rocking bass and drum. Then there is the touching, gentle blues "Black Crow" (which went straight to my iPod) and "Never Going Back to Memphis" is marvelous with an electric guitar solo that pours on the heat. "Born a Penny" and "Limousine" are radio-ready. And "The Truth is the Light", the venerable "River's Invitation", and the inspirational duo "Rise Up" and "Circumstances" keep up the level of this CD's excellence. Huge 'props' to the arranger and the hard-swinging backup groups that are perfect setups for Ms Copeland's dazzling blues artistry. She has "a want and a need" to sing and it shows. Shemekia Copeland is the real deal!! My HIghest Recommendation. Five BLUESY Stars! (This review is based on an iTunes Plus download. DO NOT trust the sound samples, they don't even scratch the surface of this great music.)" Flaming and Smokey Blues at its Best C. White | Huntsville AL | 02/26/2009 (5 out of 5 stars) "I recently saw Shemekia perform "Never Going Back to Memphis" on Letterman's show which led me to buy the CD. As far as I'm concerned this has some of the best blues songs I've heard. I especially enjoyed "Sounds Like the Devil", "Dirty Water" as well as "Never Going Back to Memphis". Shemekia's soulful and smoky voice paints fascinating pictures in these songs. These are Blues with an up-tempo rhythm. The other thing I loved is the instruments behind her. You feel like you are in a small room with just her and a few great blues instrumentalists. I don't quite know how to say it except that the sound is "clean" without a lot of processing. In a way it reminds me of the old Sun studio sound - but of course a different venue and better recording capabilities. The middle tracks run a bit more down-tempo and have a jazz/blues type sound. They aren't my favorites - But they make for a good ride through the CD. " Strong Blues Singer and a Good Variety of Songs Art and Music | 02/27/2009 (5 out of 5 stars) "Telarc Records is well known as one of the leading producers of independent roots and blues music. Thus it is no surprise that this new release by Shemekia Copeland is top-notch in every way.
Shemekia sings with clear diction and carefully controlled dynamics. Her intonation is excellent, and she has a good control over microtonal intervals. She is primarily a straight-ahead singer with a strong voice and does not need to lean on a lot of frilly decorations. The recording quality is excellent and so are the backing musicians. I especially like the well-rounded guitar work of Oliver Wood, who easily navigates the impressive variety of styles included here. Overall, the songs have modern blues overtones, but there are also shades of funky blues; vintage-style R&B; Old Mississippi blues sounds, and gospel-style blues. Telarc is doing a good job bridging the gap between traditional and modern blues styles. This is a good recording by talented, veteran musicians." |
