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d i s s i d e n t
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a r t i s t : Howard Tate
t i t l e : Rediscovered
d a t e : 2003
l a b e l : Private Music
g e n r e : Soul
r l s. d a t e : Dec/2003
t r a c k s : 12
b i t r a t e : 192kbps
s i z e : 66,1 MB
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Having been left for dead - quite literally - Howard Tate and his return
to the music world made for one of the more remarkable and most unexpected
stories of 2001. With Rediscovered, his first new studio album in nearly
30 years, Tate makes the comeback complete. While Rediscovered makes for a
perfectly fitting (if perfectly obvious) title, it works on another level:
the album reunites Tate not only with the music world, but also with his
key writer and producer, Jerry Ragovoy. Ragovoy, who had long been
particularly sympathetic to Tate's style and taste in material, produced
this set and wrote or co-wrote 11 of its 12 tracks, adding his touch on
piano to most of them as well. The recaptured combination is at its most
magical on the ballads "Sorry Wrong Number," "Don't Compromise Yourself,"
and the Elvis Costello collaboration "Either Side of the Same Town." The
latter, which in lesser hands would be just another tale of a dismantled
relationship, is colored with vivid imagery and some of Tate's most
inspired and colorful interpretation. "Don't Compromise Yourself,"
clearly inspired by some of the more unseemly aspects of the music
business, is another standout in its remarkably personalized reading,
while the equally personal "Eternity" allows him to interpolate a touch
of the preacher. The album closer, a revisitation of his previously
recorded (and lauded) "Get It While You Can," serves the same spiritual
purpose. All the facets of Tate's voice that had drawn R&B aficionados to
his work in years past are still present, particularly his sweetly
effortless falsetto fills. His delivery is wiser but not wizened, and the
absence of overemoting is a refreshing reminder that so often in deep
soul, less is more. A few tepid bar-blues arrangements temper the power
of the collection; the Uptown Horns, while entirely competent, are
nowhere near as innovative or funky in arrangement or delivery as, say,
the punchy brass section on Tate's self-titled 1972 release.
Additionally, the tracks "Organic Love" and "She May Be White (But She
Be Funky)" are a little too gimmicky for their own good (though the
latter slyly and smartly addresses lingering attitudes against
miscegenation). These quibbles aside, Tate proves with Rediscovered that
his was - and remained - a voice to be reckoned with, one
underappreciated yet worthy of being considered alongside such luminaries
as Al Green. Rediscovered, yes - and one hopes, someday, rewarded.
- Joseph McCombs
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01-Mama Was Right [03:50]
02-Show Me The Man [03:58]
03-Organic Love (100% Natural) [04:04]
04-Sorry Wrong Number [02:38]
05-Either Side Of The Same Town [03:41]
06-All I Know Is The Way I Feel [05:26]
07-Don't Compromise Yourself [04:20]
08-Don't Need No Monkey On My Back [04:01]
09-She May Be White (But She Be Funky) [03:29]
10-Kiss [04:26]
11-Eternity [04:18]
12-Get It While You Can [03:49]
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48:00 min
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e m a i l: diss@subdimension.com
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