As the world’s deals with the current pandemic, some singers are still readily releasing music. No stranger to cover albums, Dru Hill & Playa member Smoke E. Digglera drifts away from R & B to show off his vocal chops on his new album, A Juke Joint. Taking on jazz standards is a difficult undertaking for any singer. When Smoke announced the free project earlier this week, I initially thought he would modernize the songs or give them a hip hop feel.
To my surprise, Smoke generally keeps the same vibe of the original versions while singing the songs in a modern jazz style. The first song is his Smoke’s take on Robert Alda’s Luck Be a Lady. Music purists know the song from the musical Guys and Dolls. Smoke sings his version with smooth tenor with sprinkles of a rich baritone. I feel that this version would feel right at home on an episode of Godfather of Harlem.
Smoke’s version of Nat King Coles ‘Tis Autumn was also a surprise. Avoiding the pitfalls that some cover singers make when invoking Cole, Smoke uses his vocal to guide through the song with a natural flair. Ray Eberle’s “Imagination” and Kaye Ballard’s “Fly Me to the Moon” (later popularized by Frank Sinatra) were also enjoyable.
The standout track, though for me on this project, would have to be Smoke’s take on George Michel’s “Kissing a Fool.” Keeping the song’s original minimal instrumentation intact, gives the listener a chance to see how strong of a vocalist Smoke is.
I’ve been a fan of Smoke’s since his group Playa dropped their still classic solo album, Cheers 2 U in 1998. Throughout a fourteen year solo career that spans eight solo albums Smoke E. Digglera continues to provide fans with real R&B. As fans officially await his debut album with Dru Hill, a cover album of jazz standard will do just fine. The EP is available for free download at Smoke’s official site store.smokedigglera.com.
Final Grade B+
It’s hard to believe that an iconic singing competition like American Idol has produced only two Black male winners in its more than two-and-a-half-decade history. Jamal Roberts made history last year when he won the show, following Ruben Studdard’s well-deserved victory in Season Two.
One wonderful aspect of supporting physical media is that I never run short of albums to choose from when deciding what to cover for Second Listen Sunday. Often, I’ll head to the man cave, browse through my CD collection, and an album will pop out at me. This week’s pick is T-Pain’s fourth album, “Revolver.”
One of my favorite singers, Mr. Eric Roberson, is performing this weekend at America’s legendary music venue, The Birchmere. To show Eric some love, I want to highlight something longtime R&B fans have always known: he’s had remarkable songwriting talent.
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