Notes & Personnel Info |  | Personnel: Lari White (vocals); Jerry McPherson (guitar); Connie Ellisor (strings); Jim Horn (flute, saxophone); Mike Haynes (trumpet, flugelhorn); Barry Green (trombone); Tim Akers (keyboards); Michael Rhodes (bass guitar); Dan Needham (drums). | | Lari White's first American album of the new millennium (her last, Stepping Stone, was issued in 1998) was released in the United Kingdom in June of 2004 on the Mesmerizing label. Green Eyed Soul, produced by White, comes to us courtesy of her own Skinny White Girl label. Having established herself in the '90s as a pop-country artist, this set is going to be a change-up for some as the title offers a sleek peek toward what she's going for. White's aim is slick, chart-ready R&B, and nu-soul. It's also a given with White's voice, and that this disc was made in Nash Vegas, her roots sound cannot be covered entirely. But what's most startling is her use of loops and even breaks alongside her studio band. Her love of Southern soul and Motown is everywhere evident, but with the use of technology alongside horns and strings -- check "Right Here Right Now" -- the effect is startling. There are trip-hop beats, turntables, and samplers flitting through the mix and creating rhythms. The country-R&B of "Eden Before the Fall" is driven by slow, electric slide guitar, but ambient sounds and shimmering backdrop electronics color and texture the tune displacing its center. "Because I'm a Woman" is a tight little groover that's part slow-funk anthem, part country song, and part soul rave-up, with a killer refrain. The strutting B-sharp on "High," is pure silk and groove (think Al Green or Ron Isley) albeit it in a thoroughly modern context. White's voice shines throughout; her pitch, phrasing, and emotional involvement in her songs is not only credible but worth celebrating. Make no mistake, this is a very smooth, slick record; but its depth cannot be denied and as a pop record, one of the majors could have scored big with it. Highly recommended. ~ Thom Jurek | | After scoring numerous country hits and one pop hit ("Stepping Stone") in the 1990s, Lari White fell silent for seven years before returning with an album likely to stun most fans. The acknowledgements for GREEN EYED SOUL open on the line "God bless the Reverend Al Green" and the R&B connection is confirmed from the first notes of "Nothing But Love." A soul-drenched gospel number co-written by White, the track could have been swiped from the songbook of the aforementioned Memphis minister. | | While Green is certainly the starting block, and the album channels him further on the groove-laden "We Got It Goin' On," GREEN EYED SOUL is a remarkably diverse record. White shifts with ease from "Right Here Right Now," a Patsy Cline-esque slice of country, to "Eden Before the Fall"'s lustrous trip-hop to "Groove with Me Baby," a neo-soul spoken-word track that sounds like Jill Scott by way of Gil Scott-Heron. White's vocals tread the tightrope between country and soul, evoking the bottomless sadness and rapturous joy both styles embody, which makes GREEN EYED SOUL a fresh, enjoyable listen. |
Producer: Lari White |
Engineer: Eric Legg |
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