This reissue of the 1971 concert film Soul to Soul soundtrack (not to mention the Blu-Ray) is a treasure. It’s packed with jams, grooves, and funk.
“Hi, everybody!” says Tina Turner to start off the concert. After the reply, she says, “We’re gonna go to work now,” and, boy, does she, Ike Turner, and their band ever do it. The title track is a flat-out rocker with Ike Turner’s guitar chugging out a steady riff while Tina sings, “This is where it all came from, the rhythm that will turn you on.” to the Ghanaian crowd who were going bonkers from the first note. “River Deep – Mountain High” has Tina belting out fierce proclamations of love while the band almost struggles to keep up. They then drop a blues classic, “I Smell Trouble,” and Tina’s voice becomes a whole different instrument that probably had everyone in the audience spellbound.
Already off to a blazing start, The Voices of East Harlem come on next with “Run, Shaker Life” and keep the fire burning. Their version of the gospel classics “Choose Your Seat and Set Down” and “Walk All Over Heaven” are lively and exciting. Les McCann and Eddie Harris‘ cover of “The Price You Gotta Pay to Be Free” is so damn groovy that it’s difficult to describe. That Hammond B3 organ, the slick bass, the jazz drums, and the psychedelic guitar all combine to give you quite a thrill.
The Staple Singers next take the stage with one of their classics – “When Will We Be Paid?” “Are You Sure?” is another gospel classic that they deliver with power and love before going into the revival-ready “He’s Alright.”
Santana then comes on with a different sound altogether, but no less energy. “Jungle Strut” has the whole place jumping and Carlos Santana shredding. This live version of “Black Magic Woman / Gypsy Queen” blends Latin and African rhythms into a wild psych-rock jam. Santana’s guitar sounds great. The mix of this is well-done.
Wilson Pickett comes out to wrap it up with three of his classics: “In the Midnight Hour,” “Funky Broadway,” and “Land of 1,000 Dances.” His horn section earns their pay right away on the first track, sounding funky and triumphant. Pickett gets the crowd singing with him on the second, and by the third he’s practically leading a gospel revival and has the place almost in a riot.
Again, this is a treasure of good stuff. The full concert event was over fourteen hours long. I don’t know if we’ll ever see or hear all of it, but it must have been a great experience judging from this record.
Los Angeles-based musician Lee Lewis presents his new single, “White Flag.” Today’s single marks the first taste of new music from Lewis since his striking reimagining of Nelly Furtado’s “Maneater,” praised by FLOOD as a “stirring, soulful examination of queer Black identity.” “White Flag” is atmospheric, guided by a smooth bassline, and inspired by Bond films. The track is Lewis’ most personal song to date, expressing the built-up resentment when his relationship was reaching its breaking point and finds him declaring “enough is enough.”
“In many ways, ‘White Flag’ serves as the preamble to the slow death of something chaotic and toxic, a moment where self-worth finally begins to outweigh the emotional cat chase,” Lewis reflects. “It marks the point where I start to recognize that love should not cost me myself. In the song the chorus sings ‘I’m waving my white flag.’ It’s me saying, ‘I surrender, you win, I lose, I have to let this go.’ Sonically, it’s my take on Bond music: luxurious, sultry, and powerful. The song sits in the richest part of my voice, allowing it to feel warm, buttery, and intimate. ‘White Flag’ is about surrender, not as defeat, but as self-preservation. It’s the sound of laying down my armor after a battle that took far too much from me.”
Lee Lewis, raised in the historically Black neighborhood of Ladera Heights, discovered his musical talent early. He trained at the Colburn School of Performing Arts and later at the University of Cincinnati’s College-Conservatory of Music, studying classical voice.
Transitioning to pop music, Lewis overcame the challenge of adapting from classical precision to expressive, varied textures. His emotional delivery, marked by smooth riffs and runs, have captivated listeners and led to sold out shows in Brooklyn and Los Angeles.
As a rising star during a time when Black artists are reclaiming genres they pioneered, Lewis believes Black musicians should freely occupy both mainstream pop and R&B spaces. “I just want to exist in both worlds. Black artists should be accepted in both.”
Soul to Soul, a vibrant and historically significant 1971 concert film — featuring performances by Ike & Tina Turner, Santana, Wilson Pickett, the Staple Singers, Les McCann & Eddie Harris, and the Voices of East Harlem — will be available again on the concert’s 55th anniversary of March 6. Released by Liberation Hall in partnership with Reelin’ In The Years Productions, Soul to Soul will appear for the first time on Blu-ray. Additionally, Soul to Soul: Music from the Original Soundtrack will arrive at retail on vinyl LP, CD & digital on the same date. The film will also be released on DVD.
Pre-order all formats at Bandcamp. Pre-order Blu-ray & DVD at Amazon. Pre-order LP, CD & digital at Amazon.
In February 1971, several dozen African American soul, jazz, and gospel artists embarked on a journey that would change the lives of everyone involved. They traveled from New York City to Ghana, West Africa to take part in a 13-hour concert entitled Soul to Soul. The concert was a celebration of 14 years of Ghana’s independence from British rule. For most of these artists, it would be their first trip to Africa. For the African American musicians, this was a journey about personal roots, the ancestral homeland, history, discovery, loss, pain and joy.
Directed by Academy AwardⓇ winner Denis Sanders and produced by Tom Mosk and Richard Bock, the resulting concert film/documentary had a limited theatrical run in late 1971. In 2004, Reelin’ In The Years Productions President David Peck secured permission for a DVD release from the producer and copyright holder of Soul to Soul. With the help of a clearance specialist, he was able re-clear all the artists seen in the 1971 film.
Now, 20 years later, Soul to Soul will have another chance to connect with audiences via a partnership between Reelin’ In The Years Productions and Liberation Hall. Steve Scoville of Blue H2O Productions restored the original edit by reconstructing each scene using the high quality 2K transfers from the original film elements, which were shot in the 4:3 aspect ratio. The film’s soundtrack has been digitally remastered by Randy Perry.
Above all, Soul to Soul is an electrifying concert film that features its players at the peak of their powers. Over 100,000 Ghanaians attended the celebration of the meeting of the cultures of the two continents. The Ike & Tina Turner Revue, featuring frontwoman Tina furiously shimmying alongside the Ikettes, delivers fiery renditions of “River Deep-Mountain High,” the project’s first digital single; “Soul to Soul,” a cut specifically written for this concert; and a cover of Otis Redding’s “I’ve Been Loving You Too Long” [The latter track appears as a special Blu-ray outtake]. Wilson Pickett, the most popular American artist known to West Africans at the time, took the stage at 4:30 AM to deliver a rousing finale of “In the Midnight Hour,” “Funky Broadway,” and “Land of a 1000 Dances.” Gospel, soul, and R&B family group the Staple Singers were on hand to perform “When Will Be We Paid” and “Are You Sure” just five months before they recorded their legendary hits “I’ll Take You There” and “Respect Yourself.” Pianist Les McCann and tenor saxophonist Eddie Harris introduced many members of the audience to jazz via spirited performances of “The Price You Gotta Pay to Be Free” and “Hey Jorler,” the latter featuring local Ghanaian artist Amoah Azangeo. The Voices of East Harlem, an ensemble featuring young gospel singers, contributed “Run, Shaker Life.”
Santana, with guest percussionist Willie Bobo, was the wild card. The San Francisco group only had one African American member but, paradoxically, given its reliance on Afro-Cuban and other Latin American rhythm constructs, played the most African-sounding music (“Black Magic Woman”/”Gypsy Queen,” “Jungle Strut”) of any of the American guests. In Rob Bowman’s expanded liner notes for the Blu-ray, he quotes musicologist John Collins as stating, “They had a big impact on the local guitarists. The students were really fascinated by what Santana was doing with Latin music and rock… The obvious equation was, if you can unite Latin music with rock, you can do the same with African music. That’s actually what happened.”
Interspersed between these stunning performances, the camera crew followed the American musicians as they visited local villages, met kings, and shared food and dance with the Ghanaian community.
In his August 19, 1971, film review for The New York Times, critic Howard Thompson wrote: “Soul to Soul will hook you. We defy anybody to watch the final half hour of this color documentary of a soul and gospel music concert, performed in Ghana, without tapping a foot. But it is the sea of rapturous black faces, those of the visiting American artists and their Ghana audiences, that makes this movie a haunting experience… Mainly and compactly, the film sticks to the concert, brilliantly evoking the performances and crowd reactions in a flow of closeups and panoramic shots, to the stabbing, pounding pulse of the music.”
CD & DIGITAL TRACKLIST (LIB-2192)
Ike & Tina Turner – 1) “Soul to Soul,” 2) “River Deep-Mountain High,” 3) “I Smell Trouble” | TheVoices of East Harlem – 4) “Run, Shaker Life,” 5) “Choose Your Seat and Set Down”/”Walk All Over God’s Heaven” | Les McCann & Eddie Harris – 6) ”The Price You Gotta Pay to Be Free” | The Staple Singers – 7) “When Will We Be Paid,” 8) “Are You Sure” | 9. “He’s Alright” | Santana – 10) “Jungle Strut,” 11) “Black Magic Woman”/“Gypsy Queen” | Wilson Pickett – 12) “In the Midnight Hour,” 13) “Funky Broadway,” 14) “Land of 1000 Dances”
LP TRACKLIST (LIB-2191):
Due to space limitations, the LP features 10 tracks.
SIDE A: Ike & Tina Turner – 1) “Soul to Soul,” 2) “River Deep-Mountain High” | The Voices of East Harlem – 3) “Run Shaker Life” | The Staple Singers – 4) “When Will We Be Paid,” 5) “Are You Sure,” 6) “He’s Alright”
SIDE B: Santana – 1) “Black Magic Woman”/”Gypsy Woman” | Wilson Pickett – 2) “In the Midnight Hour,” 3) “Funky Broadway,” 4) “Land of 1000 Dances.”
This is always a tough decision, although my number one album of each year tends to arrive early and not leave. This trend continued in 2025.
#5: Sextile – yes, please.
Thrilling electro, sexy bass, erotic lyrics, club bangers, provocative cover, you name it, this album has all of it. It shot up into my top ten of the year as soon as I heard it and was one of the hottest records of 2025.
#4: Lonnie Holley – Tonky
Beautiful, soulful, and powerful, Tonky has soul legend Lonnie Holley encouraging us to all come together in turbulent times, “protest with love,” and embrace our neighbors. This is an album that rings true in any year, but we needed it in 2025.
#3: No Joy – Bugland
I hadn’t heard anything from No Joy in a while, so it was great to hear from them again and with such a good record. It mixes shoegaze with psych and pays tribute to the healing properties of nature and presence. I didn’t realize how much I missed No Joy until hearing this.
#2: DITZ – Never Exhale
These fiery post-punk Brits seemed to come out of nowhere (to this Yank, at least) and unleashed one of the loudest, wildest records of the year. The album is about anxiety and panic, but it never goes completely off the rails. It keeps you on the edge of your seat or helps you burn off aggression, depending on which track you blast.
As soon as I saw that album cover, I knew Death Hilarious was going to be a monster of a record. My gut was right. This is another heavy stunner from Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs in a line of material that has yet to miss. The topics of loss (friends, creative energy, relationships) and satire are biting and empowering. You’ll growl, stomp, and roar along with this record. You’ll laugh at the absurdity of our times with it, and then dive into the mosh pit with glee.
There’s already a lot of good stuff lined up for 2026. Let me know what you’re looking forward to the most!
It’s time for my annual review of my favorite albums of the previous year. Who made the top 25 (or 40+) albums I reviewed? Read on!
#25: GoGo Penguin – Necessary Fictions
This is a solid jazz / prog album full of great beats and slick piano work. It was a pleasant surprise to discover it and this band last year.
#24: Beta Voids – Scrape It Off EP
This is a wonderfully nuts punk EP with songs about women kicking ass, people named Alan, and how much toxic masculinity sucks. A full LP from Beta Voids is in the works, so watch out before they run you over and laugh on the way out of town.
#23: Ric Wilson – America Runs on Disco EP
Speaking of good EPs that came out last year, here’s another. Ric Wilson is still somehow a secret force despite being a top-notch producer, songwriter, rapper, and cheerleader for the overly maligned city Chicago (Don’t believe what you hear. Go spend a couple days there, especially in the summer.). This EP is funky and joyful, which was exactly what we needed when it was released and still need right now.
#22: Bonnie Trash – Mourning You
On the opposite side of the spectrum, here’s an album about grief that’s one of the heaviest records of the year. The lyrics cut deep if you’ve lost a loved one, or even witnessed someone’s grief from afar.
#21: Dusty Rose Gang – A-One from Day One
Just when you thought rock might be taking a vacation for a little while, along comes this quartet to deliver one of the best straight-up rock records of 2025.
Chicago rapper, producer, an all-around cool cat Ric Wilson finds and speaks many truths on his newest EP, America Runs on Disco. The title alone is accurate, whether you want to believe it or not. Wilson wrote the record during his bafflement over the 2024 election results and wanting to shake off the doldrums he was feeling.
He comes up with the funky, fresh, and frisky “They Can’t Get Next to You,” which blends rap with house music and Italo-disco touches. “Blah Blah Blah” (with Kiela Adira helping out on vocals) sizzles and snaps and will slide right into your next house party mix. Party Pupils join Wilson on “Missin’ My Window,” a fun track about not opening the door when opportunity knocks and offers you love or at least a fun night. It sounds like he missed a lot of opportunities while on tour, and “Chicago to London” is a bit of a sequel to it (“Come and get deez these disco balls.”).
The title track drops enough groovy bass to power a couple hip hop albums and comes with plenty of wisdom (“The only way to live is to accept you’ll die.”). “Everybody Red in the Face” has Wilson looking for calm in the storm of rage that’s grabbed the country by the throat, and wondering if he’s the only person searching for it (“Is anybody else out there, or am I alone?”). “When Pigs Fly” closes the EP with bright synth notes while Wilson drops bars that call out people who are embracing that anger or pretending to be hard because they’re afraid to be vulnerable or admit admit they’re wrong.
Wilson continues to drop sweet records like this. He knows the country needs to have a good time. He’s getting up early to make the disco. Don’t disappoint him by not getting any.
Earlier this year, “Americana darling” (Bandcamp) Valerie June released her new album, Owls, Omens, and Oracles, via Concord to high acclaim. NPR Music deemed the album “inspiring…music that’s bringing people together,” while Paste described June as “one of roots music’s premiere cosmic travelers.” Today, June unveils a new single, “Runnin’ and Searchin’,” accompanied by a visualizer filmed by Dr. Ietef Vita in Big Sur, California.
Owls, Omens, and Oracles was a means for June to explore the discovery of a glimmer of hope in challenging times. “Part of the reflection is realizing that we are all oracles who write the future with every choice we make throughout the day,” June explains. “To write about our future, we must know something of the past. From heartbreak to poverty, oppression, injustice, failures, and pain, we all experience loss. ‘Runnin’ and Searchin” is a song that encourages us to use our setbacks as a doorway as we steadily step into the uncertain and unknown path that lies awaiting us with every tomorrow we’re gifted.”
June’s singular sound and energy is an undeniable north star. Her Tennessee twang grips listeners, with her expansive sound growing from her psychedelic folk, indie rock, Appalachian, bluegrass, country soul, orchestral pop, and blues root system. Halfway through a decade of immense and rapid global change, Valerie asserts a multidimensional Blackness steeped in laughter, truth, magic, delight, and interdependence.
“The resolutely upbeat Valerie June” (New York Times) is an author, poet, Grammy®-nominated singer-songwriter and three-time Americana Music Honors and Awards nominee. She’s been praised by Bob Dylan and written music for Mavis Staples. She is the subject of an exhibit at the National Museum of African American Music (NMAAM) in Nashville featuring artifacts from her storied career. She has shared the stage with Willie Nelson, Dinosaur Jr., John Prine, Tyler Childers, Brandi Carlile, Elvis Costello, Robert Plant, Meshell Ndegeocello, and well beyond.
Following a run of shows in Tokyo and the southwestern United States, this fall and winter, June continues on her Big Ole Worldwide Tour.
Valerie June Big Ole Worldwide Tour Dates Sat. Nov. 15 – Barcelona, ES @ Feroe’ 25 Festival Sun. Nov. 16 – Valencia, ES @ 16 Toneladas Tue. Nov. 18 – Madrid, ES @ Teatro Magno Wed. Nov. 19 – Bilbao, ES @ Bilborock Thu. Nov. 20 – Santiago de Compostela, ES @ Outono Códax Festival 2025 (Sala Capitol) Sun. Nov. 30 – Paris, France @ New Morning Mon. Dec. 1 – London, UK @ EartH Theatre – SOLD OUT Tue. Dec. 2 – Brussels, BE @ Orangerie Botanique Wed. Dec. 3 – Amsterdam, NL @ Zonnehuis Thu. Dec. 4 – Rotterdam, NL @ Bird Fri. Dec. 12 – New York, NY @ Town Hall Thu. Jan. 15 – Mon. Jan. 19 – Puerto Aventuras, Q.R. @ Wilco’s Sky Blue Sky – SOLD OUT Wed. Feb. 11 – Pittsburgh, PA @ Carnegie Lecture Hall
For their newest album, Flowers, Durand Jones and The Indications went back to the days of recording to simple equipment while they were all college students at Indiana University, only this time it was just the three of them (Aaron Frazer – drums and vocals, Durand Jones – vocals, and Blake Rhein – guitar) recording in their guitarist’s Chicago studio crafted after multiple successful albums and world tours. The result is an album that lets them get their flowers, as the kids say, and enjoy and build upon their successes both as a band and with their own solo projects.
The lush, brief, titular intro track lets you know this is going to be a lovely time, and sure enough, the beats and bass (courtesy of Michael Montgomery) prove this on “Paradise” — in which Frazer sings about how he must be mad to keep pursuing an unresponsive lover, but he can’t help it. Jones has convinced his lover, at least, because “Lover’s Paradise” has them doing everything from traveling to Paris to catching a matinee.
Frazer and Jones both claim “I Need the Answer” to strife, war, and divisions on the next track. “Why’s it so hard to find the humanity when every man is more than just what you see?” Frazer asks, and Jones as “What will we leave for futures to see who we are?” We all want these answers. We need them. “Flower Moon” is so groovy that it practically warms up the bed for you.
We’re back to some heartbreak on “Really Wanna Be with You,” in which Jones sings about wishing he could be with someone who might’ve been the one, but the ship has sailed. “Been So Long” is about going back to your old stomping grounds and getting the scoop on everyone still there. “Everything” is about how a lover’s attention is all one needs. It’ll be on all of your bedroom mixes this year.
On “Rust and Steel,” Jones compares a crumbling relationship to a car that’s slowly breaking down, and then Frazer claims “A fancy car won’t get you far when you’re on your own” at the beginning of “If Not For Love,” which features a sharp saxophone solo from Mae Sun. The final track, “Without You,” is a plea for a lover to return after Jones realizes, too late, that he’s lost her thanks to his bad behavior.
Flowers is another solid album from DJI. They’ve yet to miss. Give them and this album all the flowers.
