Seal - Soul 2 Review
Posted by Wyatt E. on 01.28.2012
Released just in time for him to get divorced, Seal tries his hand a second time at old R&B classics.
1. Wishing on a Star - 4:13
2. Love T.K.O. - 5:37
3. Ooh Baby Baby - 3:01
4. Let's Stay Together - 3:41
5. What's Going On - 4:27
6. Love Don't Live Here Anymore - 4:10
7. Back Stabbers - 3:36
8. I'll Be Around - 3:15
9. Love Won't Let Me Wait - 4:24
10. Lean on Me - 3:26
11. Oh Girl - 3:53
It's funny, I didn't expect for this to come on the heels of Seal becoming a big story. I mean, a covers album is rarely much of an event, and usually it's a stopgap between releases of original material, meant to simply indulge the artist and his/her influences. Instead, Seal has made national headlines due to a falling out with what's-her-face, and now I'm going into Soul 2 thinking about how this is a soul record released by a guy going through a divorce. Oh, great. Well this isn't gonna be depressing as hell or anything.
The prospect of Seal tackling old soul/pop songs is a good one. Seal's voice is smooth, velvety and rarely overreaches, and it's served him well over a two-decade career that's seen him go back and forth between contemporary and electronic pop. It's won him lots of critical acclaim, even if he's only had a handful of real huge singles (the quintessential 1990s love ballad, "Kiss From A Rose" is still a panty-dropper. You're welcome, fellas). Why Seal decided to try out old R&B classics in a more old school setting is anyone's guess - maybe he saw Michael Bublé doing something similar, or hung out with the American Idol crowd too much, and decided he wanted a piece of that action. Or maybe just his own personal indulgences. Either way, can't really blame him.
The first Soul album was imperfect, but a good effort. The main source of contention was that Seal's reach exceeded his grasp. It's pretty hard for most singers on their best day to give new fire to "It's A Man's Man's Man's World" no matter how much heart they give it, and unfortunately, Seal is no different. It's the kind of music that's more admirable than it is a compulsive listen. It did have its moments, at least, and I thought he fit "Stand By Me" rather well. So does Soul 2 fare much better?
Interestingly, Seal has Trevor Horn helping with production, the guy who produced "Kiss From A Rose," and former mastermind behind the Buggles, producer for Frankie Goes To Hollywood and a whole whack of other stuff. It's funny, because this is far from what that resume would expect - it's really similar to Soul in structure and production. It gets lavish at very interesting points: witness Seal's rendition of "What's Going On," which employs a string section, and only gains a drum beat halfway through. It's a curious approach, giving the song a more disarming edge that only eventually gives way to its 1970s R&B roots. This fares much better than "Love Don't Live Here Anymore," as the basic soul structure falls short of recapturing the sheer dramatic punch of Rose Royce's or even Madonna's versions.
Despite missteps, and there are those, none of those lie with Seal himself, who is singing in fine form throughout. He shows his material plenty of passion, and always sounds pretty committed to this stuff. The band shine best when they get a serious groove going, although that lends itself to a different problem. The covers of "Back Stabbers" and "Lean On Me" are pretty good, but they also don't deviate much from the original compositions, aside from a bit more richness in overall sound.
"Love Don't Live Here Anymore," "Back Stabbers," "Let's Stay Together?" Tell me there's not a touch of doom and gloom to this set. It even ends on the Chi-Lites' "Oh Girl," i.e. "Oh, girl / Pain will double if you leave me now / ‘Cause I don’t know where to look for love / And I don’t, I don’t know how." This is actually one of the better covers of the set, befitting Seal's band and voice quite well, and ending on a befitting bleak note.
The 411: Seal's foray into soul is not bad at all. Maybe there's some ill-thought-out ideas here and there, but this sounds fine when it's playing. It's just that it's not something you'd go out of your way for unless you're the sort of person that requires every resulting sound of Seal's vocal cords being in the general vicinity of a microphone. Soul 2 is one for the fans, then, although his interesting approach to "What's Going On" is worth hearing.
