Alice Russell is, quite simply, one of the great modern soul singers. Teaming up with some terrific musicians and producers on the Tru Thoughts label, we should all count ourselves lucky to have these songs and that voice on these shores. Without further ado here are 5 of the best.
Mr Scruff & Alice Russell – Music Takes Me Up (2008)
Starting out with a track that hasn’t left the box since the day it was released. Teaming up with another favourite and mainstay Mr Scruff, a guaranteed floor filler every time:
A Fly In The Hand (2005)
The My Favourite Letters album (with TM Juke) overflows with gutsy soul music, there isn’t a duff track on there, “Humankind” and “Mean To Me” are keepers amongst many. This one has a virtuoso vocal performance and a killer bass line in perfect conjunction:
Lights Went Out (2009)
The Pot of Gold Album is another wall to wall smash. It was a wrench to leave out the remix of “Got The Hunger”, long time favourite Ticklah adding a soulful skank to an already magical vocal. However if this mesmerising live version of “Lights Went Out” doesn’t knock you sideways, then there’s not much we can do for you:
Quantic & Alice Russell with the Combo Barbaro – Look Around The Corner (2012)
Some of the very best of Alice Russell’s work has been with the excellent Will Holland, most recently with a terrific vocal on “A Life Worth Living” from the 2016 album by Quantic presenta Flowering Inferno. In 2012 they teamed up with the Combo Barbaro for a full album with predictably great results. The title track, “Look Around The Corner”, is one of the best, here is an equally great live version:
Citizens (Link & Miss Guided Remix) (2013)
The last full album was 2013’s “To Dust”, and is packed with quality, the infectious groove of “For A While” and the excellent “Heartbreaker” to name a couple. However we’ve gone for a remix this time, with Link adding some drum n bass to the excellent Citizens:
Always Room For One More
As with many great soul singers there are a few cover versions out there, this live version of the Gnarls Barkley track Crazy is a cracker. But a final shout out should go to Nostalgia 77 & Alice Russell – Seven Nation Army (2004), an absolute killer that was in the Funkdub box from day 1 (and released the same year we started). Do check out the original, but we’ve gone for a 2017 live version, also featuring the evergreen Hot 8 Brass Band:
No comments