Soul man Al Green retains vintage sound on new CD

By Gary Graff

DETROIT (Billboard) - With his first new release in three years, soul great Al Green can again say "Here I Am" -- and, of course, "Come and Take Me."

On May 27, Green releases "Lay It Down," his third album for Blue Note and his follow-up to 2005's "Everything's OK," which reached No. 5 on the Billboard 200.

The 11-track album features a friendly collision of new and old sensibilities; it's as vintage-sounding as anything Green released during his Hi Records heyday of the '70s, but also finds him dueting with relative youngsters John Legend, Corinne Bailey Rae and Anthony Hamilton.

"I thought today's music would have to be played, because that's where we are in time," the 61-year-old Green says. "I think the concept of retaining some of the sound of '75 and '76 and '72, that was real good, and I think they did a great job with it. They mixed it up quite well and still came up with a good product, I thought."

Ahmir "?uestlove" Thompson of hip-hop band the Roots, who produced the album with James Poyser, a songwriter who has collaborated with Erykah Badu and Mariah Carey, says they had vintage Green in mind when they began working on "Lay It Down" in 2005 in New York.

"I told Blue Note that if they truly want a follow-up to 'The Belle Album"' -- Green's 1977 "farewell" to secular music -- "come and see me," Thompson recalls. "I just said that, 'I'm going to create a record that will absolutely be the 30-year follow-up to 'The Belle Album.'

"That's not to negate the last 30 years of his work, but there is a very specific reason why most people consider 'The Belle Album' to be the official last Al Green record, and I really wanted to recapture that sound," he continues.

Thompson says he had early reservations about populating "Lay It Down" with high-profile guests, fearing that "oversaturating" the album with cameos could eclipse Green. The mix proved to be right, however, even though Green notes that "there were five or six more (possible guests) but we can't work with everybody at one time."

The Legend duet, "Stay With Me (By the Sea)," features Bailey Rae on backing vocals. She in turn duets with Green on "Take Your Time," which was recently sent to smooth jazz radio stations.

Green will be touring to support the album. He will play at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival on April 27, and make his first appearance at New York's Carnegie Hall on June 27. He will also perform May 21 on "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno" and receive a lifetime achievement award during the BET Awards on June 24.

"We're just really trying to bridge all the gaps because Al is kind of a common denominator," says Zach Hochkeppel, Blue Note's general manager. "Everybody has an Al Green record in their collection at some point or another. We want to reintroduce Al to everybody who still loves him and wants desperately to have a reason to talk about him."

Reuters/Billboard