Come to the River

CDs can usually be found in the blues bins, but is an album that has as much to do with R&B and black gospel as it does with the 12-bar format. A moving, earthy singer who sounds like he's spent a lot of time around black church choirs, has a deep, booming voice that serves him impressively well, whether he's tearing into the classics and "My Babe" or treating us to gospel-drenched soul singing on the title song and the ballad "Please No More." approach to R&B shows no awareness of urban contemporary -- he obviously prefers the great Southern soul music of the 1960s and has become an expert in that area himself. From Chicago blues to Memphis R&B, has clearly done his homework. ~ Alex Henderson