Ralph Soul Jackson
The Alabama Love Man
The Rabbit Factory
Born and raised in (surprise, surprise) Alabama, Ralph βSoulβ Jackson has been a regular on the southern Soul club scene since 1965. And yet The Alabama Love Man is his debut album.
The album begins with βI Canβt Leave Your Love Alone,β a funky, brassy number with groovy keyboards and a deep soul. Itβs a great rip-off from the Big Chill or Studio 54 soundtrack.
Β βYouβve Been Very Good to Meβ is slower and seductive, but more likely to put you to sleep than put you in the mood. βSearchingβ is better, and βVehicleβ has a killer bass line, but βSomewhere in the Worldβ and βThere Must Be a Reasonβ could cure insomnia. βFor Just One Secondβ and βIβll Take Care of Youβ are even worse. Itβs Soulβ¦ without the soul.
Itβs hard to tell if the flatness is due to weak vocals or weak production but either way the album is a total let-down β especially after such a fun (familiar?) first track.
Overall, The Alabama Love Man sounds like something youβve heard before, done badly.
Snarky McBoobs
Album Review: Ralph Soul Jackson – The Alabama Love Man
Rachel Anna Andren