MuthaFunka said:

The "in" thing. Funny.

Dude, soul music is just that-Soul music! Last I heard there wasn't a decade attached to a genre. This term Neo Soul gets me because all it is is brothers and sisters relying more on real instruments and actual good song writing. That's not Neo (new). Some of these artist that are labeled "Neo Soul" aren't doing anything that sounds like old school soul records. When this term was first coined I hated it (just like many of the artist who do this music). It's not homage to old school, it's artist who actually want to do more than that cookie cutter r&b shit.
[Edited 8/5/08 5:46am]
[Edited 8/5/08 5:47am]

I like both tracks that were posted. They're easy to listen to. Yes, they are derivative as hell, but at least they are well done and not the hack jobs that some other artists could have thrown own there, i.e, no attempt to add a hip beat, no flavor of the month guest singer and no rappers.

SoulAlive said:

Why? I thought "Instant Vintage" sounded good for '02 when it came out.

Raphael is playing here on the 27th. Perhaps I should check his show out.

sextonseven said:

Ooooo, can I go?

missfee said:

You don't need my permission. Are you in NY?

Damn I thought those other tracks were great, but this is awesome!! So lush, sounds like a '68 Delfonics tunes. I wonder if Thom Bell had anything to do with this track.

http://www.soulbounce.com...is_sim.php

I am a longtime TTT fan, but I'll say it since noone else has:

Raphael is a pretender and has no style of his own. Ray is the epitome of why neo-soul sucks. From the first 3T record right up to this song, he's always content to rehash the work of someone else. Do you know how easy that is?

Tony Toni Tone single-handedly killed real soul music. They were the first R&B band to get a ton of respect, from critics and fans alike for music that featured sampling and interpolating old songs into "new" songs. Basically they used hip hop production techniques and live instruments to make soul. And it was cool as long as we had real music and bands out there.

But since then all we get is the same tired unoriginal BS. Everybody trying to be somebody they are not.

It's one thing to be influenced by the past, but this cat is usually jacking whole sections of music and lyrics. Ray = Lenny Kravitz = Michael Bolton = Hall and Oates, etc. They have a song or two of originality, but mostly ride on the inspiration and hard work of real musicians and songwriters that came before them. Yes I know dude can play a little bass and guitar. So what? Doesn't give him credibility. Back in the day, everybody played a little something.

In today's talentless music industry, he stands out and that is pathetic. How many Grammys has the cat won? 10? I know it's a lot. But why? What are we celebrating? Who can't paint by numbers?

Some of these guys in R&B right now, if they were not black, and made the exact same music... people would laugh 'em off the stage! We'd be like, why is he jacking Al Green? Why is he jacking Curtis Mayfield? Why is he jacking Marvin Gaye? Isn't that a Stylistic's song? But instead we cheer them on, for sounding like these guys. It's sad. Maybe we've forgotten what real music is supposed to sound like. Maybe we've lowered our expectations because we know that their aren't many "real" artists on the scene anymore. Maybe we're tired of holding our breath waiting on the industry to deliver the next Prince or Stevie or Aretha.

With that said, though, I'm all in for the new Ray Wiggins cd too. Just like I was for everything else the cat has done since '88.

I am a longtime TTT fan, but I'll say it since noone else has:

Raphael is a pretender and has no style of his own. Ray is the epitome of why neo-soul sucks. From the first 3T record right up to this song, he's always content to rehash the work of someone else. Do you know how easy that is?

Tony Toni Tone single-handedly killed real soul music. They were the first R&B band to get a ton of respect, from critics and fans alike for music that featured sampling and interpolating old songs into "new" songs. Basically they used hip hop production techniques and live instruments to make soul. And it was cool as long as we had real music and bands out there.

But since then all we get is the same tired unoriginal BS. Everybody trying to be somebody they are not.

It's one thing to be influenced by the past, but this cat is usually jacking whole sections of music and lyrics. Ray = Lenny Kravitz = Michael Bolton = Hall and Oates, etc. They have a song or two of originality, but mostly ride on the inspiration and hard work of real musicians and songwriters that came before them. Yes I know dude can play a little bass and guitar. So what? Doesn't give him credibility. Back in the day, everybody played a little something.

In today's talentless music industry, he stands out and that is pathetic. How many Grammys has the cat won? 10? I know it's a lot. But why? What are we celebrating? Who can't paint by numbers?

Some of these guys in R&B right now, if they were not black, and made the exact same music... people would laugh 'em off the stage! We'd be like, why is he jacking Al Green? Why is he jacking Curtis Mayfield? Why is he jacking Marvin Gaye? Isn't that a Stylistic's song? But instead we cheer them on, for sounding like these guys. It's sad. Maybe we've forgotten what real music is supposed to sound like. Maybe we've lowered our expectations because we know that their aren't many "real" artists on the scene anymore. Maybe we're tired of holding our breath waiting on the industry to deliver the next Prince or Stevie or Aretha.

With that said, though, I'm all in for the new Ray Wiggins cd too. Just like I was for everything else the cat has done since '88.

funksterr said:

Tonyies didn't kill soul music. it died in the late 70's and early 80's when everyone became content with synthesized bass lines and synthesized horn riffs and drum machines and every soul singer thought they needed to use vibrato in every song.
The tonyies did sample on their cds but that was not the extent of their creativity. they had good songwriting skills. Every song did not use a sample.
Ray Ray toured internationally as shiela E's bass player when he was a kid of 19. i think he can play more than a little bass. his father was a blues musicians so i think he respects the music of the past. Marvin Gaye hated singing those early motown songs. Shit, he wanted to be Frank sinatra or perry Como. He envied how they just sat on a stool and sang a song. Al green was great but damn lets be real, just about every Al song had the same drum beat. The Beatles as great as they were copied motown and Chuck berry to death even after they were established.

Everybody rides on the backs of others you can't single out Ray Ray or many other musicians. Even back in the day of Albert King and when B.B. king were young you could not sample by today's standard but these guys would blatantly take a section of a song from Louis jordan or Duke Ellington and use it in their song. This was their way of paying homage.Fans would say "hey thats from Louis Jordans caldonia" A louis Jordan would take it as a sign of respect rather than scream they stole that. Maybe because back then every musician felt like hey we are all in the same boat, guess they didn't know the business side too much. I guess it is done so much today people are tired of hear samples. the same way i got tired of hearing drum machines instead of real drums.

Much of what is being done now has already been done before, even by the so called "real musicians" Everybody is riding on somebody's coat tails. If you wanna pick on somebody pick on this pop shit and these flash in the pans. Ray Ray and the Tonyies. Shit James Brown ripped off David Bowie's Fame for his song Hot I need to be loved.

LittleBLUECorvette said:

Totally reminds me of Delfonics, and the drum pattern from "Walk On By" by Isaac Hayes!

Damn I thought those other tracks were great, but this is awesome!! So lush, sounds like a '68 Delfonics tunes. I wonder if Thom Bell had anything to do with this track.

http://www.soulbounce.com...is_sim.php

Damn I thought those other tracks were great, but this is awesome!! So lush, sounds like a '68 Delfonics tunes. I wonder if Thom Bell had anything to do with this track.

http://www.soulbounce.com...is_sim.php

The Way I See It, I know where my money's going on September 16.