The Electro-Soul Master Is Back!

If the freebies from Bradd Marquis didn’t get you into the holiday spirit then this free, progressive soul gift from Erik Rico should take all the bah humbug out of your spirit. On The Re-Works Project, producer, singer and songwriter Rico capably takes on such luminaries as Sade (“Sweetest Taboo”), Prince (“Dorothy Parker”), Marvin Gaye (“I Want You”), Al Green (“Still In Love With You”), and James Brown (“Make It Funky”). In doing so, he manages to do the impossible: inventively make these covers sound fresh without losing the emotional intention of these classic cuts. These looser arrangements are less linear and Rico’s signature electro-soul production transforms the originals more organic, homegrown feel into songs with a bit more “thump” and technological sheen. Still,  each song holds its melodic center well enough for its essence to remain, sometimes in spite of Rico’s earnest pulling at these cuts’ familiar threads.

The Maestro In His Stevie Days

Rico’s voice has grown richer, heavier, and more confident since he first came from behind the hip hop production boards and to the fore as a soul singer with his 2007′ EPs, Journey Back To Me and A Higher Frequency. Then, he was compared to Stevie Wonder, but hearing him actually cover Wonder’s “Too High” (here as “2High”)–deftly, I might add–only traces of 70s Wonderment remain. After some of the more unfocused moments of A Higher Frequency, it’s great to hear the always experimental Rico evolve into a more cohesive and accessible artist with The Re-Works Project. We know that he’s got that mass appeal sound down and has recently taken Europe and Asia by storm, we know that a full-length album is coming any day, right? Right? ( He says, impatiently rapping his fingers against the Soul Patrol desk.)

TAGS: A Higher Frequency, Al Green, Erik Rico, James Brown, Journey To Me, Prince, Sade, Stevie Wonder, The Re-works Project