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Back to Mine - M J Cole Artist: Various artists Available nationally at all good record stores Win a copy of this album here
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Classical grooves
The classically trained Cole (aka Matt Coleman) is one of the hottest mixers, producers and artists in the UK music scene. Most of his work is done behind the scene, collaborating for the likes of Soul II Soul, State of Mind and TLC. He has however released his own album, the acclaimed Sincere. Most of the tracks on this Back to Mine release fall into that ill-defined genre, acid jazz. Certainly, many of them display their jazz roots fairly obviously. The opening cut, Lee Curtis' "For Louise" features a muted trumpet and vocals reminiscent of Shirley Bassey set against an insistent groove - a winning combination. Similar jazzy riffs and even torch song vocals are prominent on the likes of John Ellis' "The People I Love" and Goldie's "Believe (M J Cole Remix)". >>> |
But Cole doesn't get stuck in a jazz groove, mixing up the selections with reggae (from Outkast and Burning Spear), soul (The Commodores) and even classical music in the form of Ravel's "String Quartet in F Major (Tres Lens excerpt)" by the Borodin String Quartet. Somewhat surprisingly, the cut from Outkast, who are now the most recognizable name on the track listing, is arguably the weakest track on the record. But then, the other cuts are extremely strong. The standout track though is Zero 7's "Destiny", an outstanding cut featuring a wonderful combination of great vocals, brilliant lyrics and a very classy groove. As the liner notes say, it's "smoother than the smoothest on a smooth day". M J Cole's Back to Mine is a fantastic combination of handpicked cuts from one of the bright lights of the UK music industry. Given Cole's pedigree, you'd expect an interesting selection for "after hours grooving", as the cover describes it. Well, the term "interesting" doesn't cut it to describe this CD. It's nothing short of outstanding. Karen Bennett Send us your feedback on this article or anything else in The Blurb |
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If
you're not familiar with the "Back to Mine" concept, the series of albums
under that name feature some of the biggest names in dance music compiling
a selection of tunes they would play if you went "back to theirs" after
a show. Previous "Back to Mine" releases have featured the likes of Everything
But the Girl and Morcheeba. The latest in the series (the ninth, in fact)
features 15 tracks selected by the UK's latest musical prodigy to hit
the big time, M J Cole.