BlaqueKnight said:

I think the Pat Boone comparison isn't right. The producers here are clearly trying to mimic the retro soul of Dusty Springfield. Pat Boone was more influenced by Bing Crosby. There's nothing R&B about Bing Crosby. So while yes, the concept of repackaging black music for a larger audience is the same, the execution is different in that one borrows the music while the other just covers old R&B hits.

I don't understand what the hype around Duffy is about.....nice song, not special, nothing new.....

sextonseven said:[quote]

BlaqueKnight said:

I think the Pat Boone comparison isn't right. The producers here are clearly trying to mimic the retro soul of Dusty Springfield. Pat Boone was more influenced by Bing Crosby. There's nothing R&B about Bing Crosby. So while yes, the concept of repackaging black music for a larger audience is the same, the execution is different in that one borrows the music while the other just covers old R&B hits.[/quote

]
Instead of correcting you on the Pat Boone thing, I'll let someone else do it. Pat was ripping BLACK MUSIC OF THAT ERA. A lot of artists were. It was common practice. I'm gonna stand by what I said. I'll pass on this chick.

BlaqueKnight said:

I'm not saying Pat Boone wasn't ripping off black music. But there's a difference in how Pat Boone sounds and how Elvis sounds.

rocknrolldave said:

Really. It's that good.

As for the other issue here, I don't care how much melanin she has in her skin. Some people might, and perhaps that's a reason that her single has done so well- how would I know? However, it's simply a broad and misconceived judgment to assume that those who dig her and her music are merely "sheep". You can pull out as many unheralded black soul artists as you want and claim that they are more authentic and therefore better, but I believe that scoffing at someone of a different race being genuinely influenced by black music (or white music, yellow music, [insert color here] music) just because he/she isn't black is just as ugly as listeners are who would only dig Duffy because she's white. At the end of the day, it's up to the listener to determine if (a) the music is appealing, and (b) if it rings with authenticity.

Moonbeam said:

Now that I DO agree with. Well said.

rocknrolldave said:

Thirded. The musical style here is nearly 50 years old at this point. At what point are artists (of any color) able to explore it without cries of opportunism and worse? (And I say this as someone who posted a couple of disparaging things along these lines about Amy...just rethinking/thinking more about it) All that said, I still think it's just a boring song

Moonbeam said:

Good post.

Hooked on this song

My song of the year so far.

This post is proof of how the power of suggestion works. "Mercy" doesn't sound like Dusty nor does Duffy. Use your own minds, people.

Mong said:

I was talking about the production work on the rest of the album sounding like Dusty Springfield songs, not "Mercy" or Duffy's voice.

Moonbeam said:

imo (a) it isn't and (b) it doesn't...but that's just my opinion if it does it for you, good for you. Myself, I was annoyed with the track after the first listen - boring and repetitive noise.

this girl is really something a talent worth keeping tabs on ...check out my review

Brit-Pop Soul is in a good place right now. With the phenomenal success of Amy Whinehouse, James Morrison, Lemar and the likes of Corrine Bailey Rae and Estelle, add Duffy to that growing list of the growing UK international assault charge on the music market. “Rockferry” is the debut album from this young 23 year old, but she has that old soul vibe – she’s a student of retro. Why the hell does she call herself “Duffy” for? Cmon now girl you can pick a better name than that. [edit:] Ok so her name is Aimee Anne Duffy, but why go with your last name?


This is my first chance sitting listening to this LP and off the bat, it’s a rarity I find myself writing a review this early on. I listen to a lot of things and take three or four choice sittings in different places for my thoughts to come to me but there’s is something transparent about this from the get go.

Rockferry opens with a dark, pensive pace on the immediate title track, with its sparses of light and shade. “Warwick Avenue “, which samples the bass-line groove of the Temptations “My Girl”, is sensual and perfect. This well-sung narrative is balanced by Duffy’s jazzy phrasing where she sings about leaving her lover - “But you don’t love me/I want to be free/But you hurt me.” “Hanging on Too Long “ is what happens when relationships go sour – “It was just my false hope/Thinking we'd last, yeah/It was just my false hope/Forgot all your pests/All those girls you denied/Smashed up hearts hung out to dry/I know its wrong hanging on too long/But I need you more/Hanging on too long/I was a fool for you/Hoping for a spark/For some kind of sign/That you’ll be mine”. Both songs tread in the same territory thematically. This mid-tempo song has a pop-influenced beat and an easily remembered hook.

The bluesy “Syrup & Honey” is another standout cut. Her vocals are just that: syrup & honey, raw, rich and velvety. I guess she uses this metaphor to express this idea of excess, the way in which we go crazy with it on pancakes or icecream or during sex - we just do it without realising it, it sort of reflects in a way the rampant way in which we overconsume with shit and life in general and in the context of how we should treat the people in our lives (Ok so I tried): Don't you be waisting all your money on syrup and honey/Because i'm sweet enough/Don't you be out all night long/Leaving me all alone/Because I need your love. The moral of the story is dont take for granted those that are in front of you, dont just major in the major, major in the minor also because when it all comes down to it spend the time with the ones you love, not in some dead end job or some hopeless relationship, because what you've got is staring in front of you and its sweeter than anything else you will ever find.

Check it out folks - www.youtube.com/watch?v=LnDC6Mt5ulQ

Duffy has an engaging vocal quality remiscent of greats such as Aretha Franklin and groups such as the Surpremes. Her range is astonishing. Some who may be listening to this might well say “Hey she’s trying to sound like Whinehouse”, but that would be an insult. She strides in a lane all of her own and does it well. Plus her range is so far better. She’s confident, sassy and has the talent of a seasoned entertainer. I would go so far as to say that she's like the female equivalent of Cee-Lo. Yep, thats what I think, for the moment anyways.

This CD has some very clever arrangements and a poetic vibe where jazz meets soul with many songs expressing passion with hot neo-soul licks and beats. Throughout the CD Duffy expresses herself through lyrics of life experiences, relationships, and empowerment. I love the fact that she’s real. “Scared” is another highlight. The lyrics showcase an independent woman who has decided to take control of her situation, even though she’s afraid of the unknown. Rockferry finds it groove mid-point through the album. Although “Mercy” is the only upbeat number on “Rockferry” its a classified banger with funky doo-wop kicks and phrasing, complemented with an unexpected rap three quarters in: Damn is there anything this girl can not do! “I don't know what you do/But you do it so well/U got me begging me for mercy/Why won’t you release me/I said you better release me”.

Check the video here - www.youtube.com/watch?v=KE2orthS3TQ

She wraps it up with the pragmatic "Distant Dreamer". The song is constructed well from start to finish but it could have gone a little bit further for me, felt like she was restraining herself with this one, in light of what she was singing about. Her airy vocals really set this one off, simple drum and bass but effective melody and orchestration : When life gets tough/And I feel like its getting tough/I hold on to a distant star/I'm thinking about/all the things/I'd like to do in my life/

In this world of Timbaland oversaturation and the inability to pass any corner without seeing JT’s ugly face, “Rockferry” proves that Duffy is a talent worth keeping tabs on.

Neophyte said:

You're free to your opinion then, as is everyone. I just think it's bullshit to label those who like it as "sheep".

Is it just me or does Duffy sound just like a modern day LuLu?

i find her voice annoying

Dewrede said:

Dewrede said:

At last, someone with sense.

She's awful. No range and so mannered. I'd sooner listen to a cat being raped by a horse. It's more tuneful.

NWF said:

That's EXCACTLY who she sounds like . It's bloody Lulu reincarnated, for Pete's sake .

i love her. 60s revival, black, white, whatever. i think she's pretty alright!

i should also mention that i rarely, if ever, consider the race of the person singing. why would i? it's music, it's entertainment. not everything needs to be on the racial divide.
[Edited 5/7/08 19:54pm]

BlaqueKnight said:

Elegantly stated.

sassybritches said:

Preach! There's no reason to bring race into this argument whatsoever. I don't mind if someone dislikes her music, but race should have nothing to do with it.

BlaqueKnight said:[quote]

sextonseven said:

Exactly. We haven't gone into the many R&B artist that haven't gotten their royalites.

MsLegs said:

That is true, but I fail to see what it has to do with Duffy.

BlaqueKnight said:

Raze said:[quote]

Moonbeam said:

I managed to listen to it a total of 3 times tonight already on my way to and from what it is I went to do, and I have to say.... I LOVE IT! It's totally the Dusty Springfield/Petula Clark answer to Amy Winehouse's Motown sounds of last year. I like this trend. Can we get MORE British chicks to do homages to 60's r&b?

I don't really care if it's derivative and a pastiche and an homage or a rip-off. So what? Considering what's out there today, it's a nice throwback to when music actually sounded good. So maybe it's not fresh in that context, but this type of music has a certain freshness to it, whether it was made in 1968 or 2008, that you don't get from the soulless crunk and r&b and "hip hop" of today.

But...
quote]

Co-sign! So what if her music is a rip-off of or a homage to (however you choose to look at it) of 60s music? Yes obviously it "heavily borrows" it's style from the music of the 60s , but compared to the abysmal state of music today (hip-hop, Hannah Montana, Girlicious, etc...) music like Duffy's and Amy Winehouse's are a breath of fresh air! Right now, they're a part of very few artists who are daring to do something different beyond the carbon copy, studio-manufactured, just-stepped-off-the-assembly-line, typical R&B princesses, pop-princess, and hip-hop kind of "artists" that are mass-produced each month and force-fed to us each month.
At least Duffy's music borrows its style from a decade when the music was actually music and not a bunch of noise. Kudos to her! I'm totally diggin "Mercy".