Over the years there have been many singers touted as the new face of soul music. For every Prince there are 10 Lynden David Hall's. However when the filofax was king Terence Trent D'arby ruled the roost. With a voice that was equal parts Sam Cooke, Rod Stewart and Marvin Gaye he nicked a few moves from James Brown and dazzled the music fraternity with his good looks and wit. He did the talkshows, the glitzy parties and had a string of celebrity girlfriends (Paula Yates, Susanna Hoffs- the tasty one from the Bangles) His debut album Introducing the Hardline went on to sell 9 million copies, won a Brit for best newcomer and world domination beckoned but I think you can guess what happened next.
Following the trend he went from popstar to pariah after a few ill-advised publicity stunts (appearing as a messiah-like figure crucified on a cross and declaring himself better then the Beatles) and an album that contained whale noises and a kazoo. It was all tongue-in-cheek stuff but his cockiness rubbed a few editors up the wrong way and Neither Fish Nor Flesh was panned by the critics.
Although Joe Public may have written him off as a big-headed 80's has been he has knocked out a couple of high quality album's in the 1990's and after a big bust up with Sony has just released his new album on his own label entitled Wildcard! Did I mention he has now changed his name to Sananda Maitreya....wait ...come back.
Forget the name change, his eccentricity and the stupid philosophical mumbo jumbo he regularly distributes on his website. This boy can really sing, I mean really sing. His voice is a masterful instrument which could make a Westlife song sound like a classic. He is not averse to a good tune as well. The album is as eclectic as usual with a melding of Jazz, Funk, Rock, Gospel and Soul all perfectly blended together. "O Divina" the first single off the album even sounds good with a banjo intro. Other highlights include "saying about you" which bounces away on a funky bassline and showcases his skill with melody. It would surely be a hit if released by Gareth Gates. It truly is a crime that work of this high quality is left ignored whilst are charts fill up with mass produced infantile crap. It would not be remiss to say that if you want to hear The White Album filtered through Sign of the Times you could do no worse then pick up a copy of this gem.
<*dv_0*>Review submitted by Dara Yazdani
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