It's 10 years since Ben Harper arrived on the scene as an intriguing folk-blues voice. Since then, he has suffered from one of the inherent problems that faces any blues-based artist: it's not a genre that readily allows for a lot of diversity or growth, so even if you own and like one of the man's albums, it's easy to greet the arrival of a new one with a shrug - do you really need another? By collaborating with the Blind Boys of Alabama, Harper has changed all that. They went into the studio and the magic happened: a whole album's worth of material was recorded in eight days. Musically, Harper's sweet but pained high voice is the perfect contrast to the bass contributions of Blind Boys Clarence Fountain and George Scott; beyond that, the sheer gravitas of his companions forces Harper to raise his performance, pushing his vocals right to the edge, whether on his own songs or on gospel standards such as Satisfied Mind. Harper's band, the Innocent Criminals, don't get left behind either - whether funking up Wicked Man or subtly shimmering Picture of Jesus into existence. This is the best album of Harper's career, and a work that should appeal way beyond either band's fan base.
Virgin