Well, sort of. A review in this week's edition of the LA Weekly.

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Lewis Taylor’s Stoned
One of the year’s finest albums you never heard
by ERNEST HARDY



Lewis Taylor is a brilliant soul singer. But his artistic strength and Achilles’ heel is that he’s so much more: Musical tributaries flow in from Brian Wilson, Todd Rundgren, Prince and Jimi Hendrix, just for starters. His near-flawless eponymous 1996 solo debut had the faithful swearing that Marvin Gaye had been reborn, and a slew of high-profile celebs (Aaliyah, Elton John, D’Angelo) sang the praises of this wildly eclectic singer-songwriter/producer. He never gained a foothold in America — never even released the record here — but for a moment was the Next Big Thing in the U.K. But after his followup, Lewis II — which might be described as his Embrya — Taylor lost his major-label record deal and descended to cult/critical-darling status. Subsequently, he’s released one fantastic album after another.

Taylor’s stateside debut, Stoned, is a re-sequenced version of ’02’s Stoned Pt. 1, supplemented with five new tracks (many culled from other limited-edition albums); it’s also one of the finest albums of the year. Taylor’s silky voice, with just the slightest hint of graininess, effortlessly shifts from the self-penned, party-vibed “Lovin U More” to the romantic sweep of “Positively Beautiful,” then covers David Sylvian’s “Ghosts,” Brian Wilson’s “Melt Away” (reverent but passionate) and the Thom Bell & Linda Creed R&B classic “Stop, Look, Listen.” It’s his own lyrics that slay you, however. The gorgeously wrought, self-flagellating “When Will I Ever Learn” is drawn from a well of anguish familiar to anyone who’s ever fucked up a love affair (“Have I been a burden to you?/I tried so hard to please . . .”). Produced to fuse soulful delicacy (those gorgeously layered, Brian Wilson–influenced vocals) with offbeat alt-flourishes, Stoned is heady stuff that floats far above 99 percent of contemporary pop and R&B — likely to its detriment.

http://www.laweekly.com/i...-hardy.php
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This review sounds familiar but it's the 1st write up i've seen for him in an L.A. publication.


tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...dID=182431

theAudience said:

Alright, LA!! I Hope the rest of the U.S. gives him this much love! Maybe we'll even get a few club dates!!





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[Edited 10/26/05 13:33pm]

paligap said:

We can only hope for the best.


Someone is conspicuously absent in this discussion.
I wonder if his "conscience" is bothering him?



tA

Tribal Disorder

http://www.soundclick.com...dID=182431

theAudience said:

dammit, it SHOULD, by now! ...



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also, an announcement from Shout Factory:

" Keep an ear out for Lewis Taylor's first American radio appearance, a a live set on KCRW's "Morning Becomes Eclectic" show (also available through webcast) in mid-November."

oh hell yeah. I will be waiting for the live set. I've never witnessed the man live but the songs that I've heard him perform live are incredible. Hopefully, the rest of the California and the nation will wake the fuck up and stop sleeping.

Will seek this one out!

Sounds promising

psykosoul said:

Yeah, I read this as well. It's long overdue, like some other things. But, GOD works things out in HIS time, not ours.

psykosoul said:

Oh, and good to see u around , psyko. I've missed u. Sometimes I could "feel" u lurking on certain threads. I'd be like "Damn, why don't psy just go ahead and post on this shit right here." I miss my Ohio Player comrade and just overall relateabilty, if that's even a fucking word. Oh well, u know what I'm saying.