I’m sure Shaun Escoffery needs no introduction to regular visitors of jazz-not-jazz because I’ve included reviews of his records and collaborations constantly over the years. See the reviews for his albums Shaun Escoffery and Soulonica and the reviews for the 12″ singles Let It Go and the Urban Vinyl EP and Shaun’s collaboration with Yolanda Charles here and here.
Finally Shaun is back under his own name on Oyster Music with the Move Into Soul EP. This time Shaun and producer Geoffrey Williams, both were also responsible for the famous Space Rider, decided to add their personal touch to some of soul music’s greatest songs. “It’s a dream project. I get to work with Shaun, which is a joy; I get to have a go at recreating some of my favourite tunes from masters such as Stevie, Marvin et al, and I get paid for it! I’m a lucky man,” says Geoffrey. “We’re not trying to please everyone, we’re doing what feels good & right to us. Hopefully you’ll like what comes out. It’s all an experiment and Shaun sounds amazing in all the tracks we’ve done so far.”
This EP is an appetizer for Shaun’s forthcoming Move Into Soul album. If the four songs on the EP are an indicator of what we can expect from the album than Shaun and Geoffrey will deliver a very strong album. We all know the songs and the original versions by Gladys Knight & The Pips/Marvin Gaye, Sam Cooke, Timmy Thomas and Nina Simone (well, at least every soul music fan should know them…so if you don’t please do your homeworks) but it’s impressive to hear Shaun adding his own meaning to the songs while retaining the original spirits. I especially like the way I Heard It Through The Grapevine starts with an impressive intro of keys and strings that don’t reveal you’re listening to a cover version until Shaun starts singing. And it’s Shaun’s voice that can give you goose pimples by the way he sings the opening lines on Why Can’t We Live Together or by the way he re-interprets Feeling Good as a mellow soul song. Even if you don’t like the idea of remakes you should give this EP a try. Be prepared to hear something amazing.

Tracklisting of Move Into Soul: 1. I Heard It Through The Grapevine/ 2. A Change Is Gonna Come/ 3. Why Can’t We Live Together/ 4. Feeling Good | released 2005 Oyster Music

For more infos visit oystermusic.com and shaunescoffery.co.uk.

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