A wonderful record that's was brought to my attention yesterday, late in the year. One that would certainly have been included in my own rundown of favourite albums had it come to my notice earlier on in the year.
It's Mother, the second album from Cleo Sol, one of the voices of the spectacular SAULT, probably the greatest musical phenomenon of recent years. But this sounds nothing like SAULT really. It's more grounded in Carole King and through that, King's essential pop and soul roots, which means Aretha most of all.
Mother is not shamed by such comparisons. It's so good. It's genuinely soulful. I was also reminded of Anita Baker's 1986 album Rapture which I was generally astonished by at the time of its release and have been ever since. Like Rapture, Mother taps into the essentially giving, loving and spiritual, qualities of the feminine. A man could not have made this record.
It's great to hear a record like this in 2021, which has been such a cold and frightening year for so many people. It's a reminder of warmth, love and rebirth, things we all need right now. A magical album.
Thanks to Joe Mitchell for making me aware of this. A virtual friend. But perhaps those are the best sort.
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