Tuesday, April 10, 2012

LIONEL RICHIE: SINGER/SONGWRITER



Check out the latest album from Lionel Richie TUSKEGEE, his 10th studio album. The R & B pop Icon shares his popular hits with the top country performers of today.
Richie is able to hold on to the integrity of the original song while enhancing the talents of his country counterparts, and exposing a whole new generation as well as a whole new genre to the infamous recordings of Richie from the 1960s into 1980’s. It’s ingenious actually, in one swoop he has revived his career and added a whole new generation to his belt as followers of his music.

After graduation from Tuskegee Institute with a major in economics, Richie went on to Auburn for graduate school, but was heavily involved with the Commodores, as a singer/sax player by then and the rest is history. As a member of the Commodores,1960-1968, they released  ‘Brick House’, ‘Easy’, ‘3 Times A Lady’, ‘Still’, and ‘Sail On’. In the 1970’s Richie was writing songs for other artists. Like ‘Lady’ for Kenny Rogers, as well as producing other artist. In 1981, he and Diana Ross released ‘Endless Love’.  In 1982 he went solo, and subsequently released a boat load of singles, that are easily recognizable to this day, just by playing the first note.

There are skeptics with this new release, which is true with everything, but who would have thought that the sound of R&B could slide into the country genre and you don’t even realize what happened, until your hear an unfamiliar steel guitar lick, or an occasional twangy country voice. It is actually refreshing making the old new again and reminds us of the incredible voice Lionel Richie has shared with us over the years.

Outstanding vocals & harmonies:  ‘My Love, (feat. Kenny Chesney). ‘Just For you’ (feat. Billy Currington) ‘You Are”  (feat. Blake Shelton) ‘Sail On’ (feat. Tim McGraw).
Also notable; ‘Easy’ (feat. Willie Nelson) and ‘Lady’  (feat. Kenny Rogers) and various others.
Tunedin4u.blogspot.com

No comments:

Post a Comment