This is Grace Potter and the Nocturnals playing “One Short Night,” from their 2010 album, Grace Potter & the Nocturnals. If you like soul, you should listen to this band, and their latest album is a great jumping-off point. Even Grace Potter’s debut album was really great, so if your local record store doesn’t have this in stock, don’t feel like you’ve been swindled. Every album they’ve put out is full of good music.
I’ve heard Grace Potter’s voice compared with Janice Joplin’s and Aretha Franklin’s. I don’t know about that, but it is still beautiful and expressive. I imagine that playing in a backup band is a tough job. It can’t be easy to play with other musicians specifically to support someone else’s vocal performance. The whole band has to hold together and play music that is both rocks and does not interfere with the vocal performance. The Nocturnals do this job impressively well. Listen to the guitar part in “Hot Summer Night,” and you’ll know what I’m talking about. The song doesn’t revolve around the guitar, but it just wouldn’t be the same without it. Soul is a genre that relies on complex arrangements, but The Nocturnals make every flourish feel totally functional.
I often mention how I love music that sounds old but isn’t. This album would be perfectly at home in the 1960s. I wish there were more music like this out there, preserving that era’s sound without resorting exclusively to covers and standards.
This album is truly great. Buy it.
Sincerely,
Reverend Harris
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