Classical Soul kicks off with an outstanding track, Smart But Casual, that I suspect will be heard on radio stations everywhere, and deservedly so. It really is a very nice track.
Classical Soul is a nicely varied, mix of 9 tracks that are very well written songs by this clearly gifted artist. With many of the songs displaying a lot of the kind emotion that makes for a really great listen. Seemingly drawing from what I can only imagine are him own real life experiences. At different points touching on the most real emotions like love, and the pain of failed relationships can certainly be heard.
If you’re a Marc Antoine fan this is a CD your collection flat cannot be without. In fact, this is one of those CDs that you don’t even have to be a fan of Antoine, or even Jazz to know is good. It’s just good music. Period.
While the entire CD is really very good some of my favorites are track 2 - French Dream, track 7 - Follow Your Bliss, and track 9 - Classical Soul
My Bonus Pick, and the one that got Sore [...as in "Stuck On REpeat"] is track 1 - Smart But Casual. This is a great track!
Classical Soul Release Notes:
Marc Antoine originally released Classical Soul on January 27, 1998 on the NYC Music label.
CD Track List Follows:
1. Smart But Casual 2. French Dream 3. P.C.H. (Pacific Coast Highway) 4. Unity 5. Universal Language 6. Timeless Line 7. Follow Your Bliss 8. New Boundaries 9. Classical Soul
Personnel: Marc Antoine (vocals, guitar, keyboards, synthesizers, bass, programming); Bernadette Barlow, Allan Sovory, Larry J. Blouin (vocals); John Lewis (vocals, programming); Sam Riney (saxophone, flute); Mike Mainieri (vibraphone); Michael Mishaw, Chris Conti, Michael Railton (keyboards); Jimmy Haslip, Armand Sabal-Lecco, Derrick Bourne (bass); Willie McNeil, Lenny Castro, Juliet Prater, Steve Reid (percussion); Jason Daniel Silva, The Lumberjack (programming).
Recorded at Frazzy Frog Studios, France and Slamm Shack Studios, North Hollywood, California.
All songs written or co-written by Marc Antoine. Samples include "The Lope Song" (Eddie Russ/Jazzmasters).