Album Review: Aloe Blacc - 'Good Things'

Aloe Blacc's Good Things is an album that manages to evoke the spirit of old school Soul, yet still sound fresh and new at the same time. When the album's on target, which it is on songs like "I Need a Dollar," "Miss Fortune" and "Femme Fatale," it's an absolute work of art. And even on the songs that don't completely work, the result is still better than the majority of new music floating out there today. Good Things, released in the U.S. on Sept. 28 2010, is the type of topical, intelligent and entertaining album that Bill Withers might have made if he'd been born in the 1970s instead of 1930s.

Soul singer Aloe Blacc seemingly came out of nowhere earlier in 2010 with his hard times anthem "I Need a Dollar," which is the theme song of the HBO show "How to Make It in America." But despite having little name recognition, Aloe, whose birth name is Egbert Nathaniel Dawkins III, has been in the public eye since the early-1990s as a singer-rapper in the L.A.-based hip-hop duo Emanon. He released his first solo album, Shine Through, in 2006, but it wasn't until he was commissioned to record the theme song to the show "How to Make it in America" that he finally started getting some online and street buzz.

Good Things, which is Aloe's sophomore album, is odd in that the whole is greater than sum of it's parts; Aloe's singing is solid, as are the music, production and song lyrics, but taken individually, none are really extraordinary. But when combined together, they're magic. For example, "Miss Fortune" is a clever song about a young man who marries a spoiled rich girl despite a warning from the girl's father about what might happen. If you'd isolate and analyze the singing, lyrics and production individually, you'd probably come away feeling it was just an okay track. But when packaged together, the song's tone is deep and rich. And 'eep and rich' is also the perfect descriptor for the album as a whole.

Besides "Miss Fortune," the album's two biggest highlights are "I Need a Dollar" and "Femme Fatale," a remake of a 1967 song by rock band The Velvet Underground. Although to be honest, his version of "Femme Fatale" is more a reinterpretation than a remake; the lyrics are the same, but Aloe's has a totally different musical arrangement and is dripping with soulful sorrow. Also worthy of mention is "Life So Hard," another tough times track that's more bleak and wintery than "I Need a Dollar."

Despite the downbeat songs though, Good Things isn't an album drowning in misery. The title track is optimistic, if not completely sunny and bright; and "You Make Me Smile" is a joyful tribute to romance and love. But it's definitely the '70s-style message songs that work best here. Echoes of artists like Curtis Mayfield, Bill Withers and Sly Stone can be heard in Aloe's voice and music, and it's likely that all three of those men would appreciate Aloe's new-retro style of Soul. The bottom line is this: if you're the type who wants nothing more from your R&B music than happy, party songs or tender love songs, then this most likely isn't an album you'll want to hear. But if you appreciate songs that tell an intelligent narrative and have a depth that's more than surface deep, Good Things is definitely something you'll want to hear.

Disclosure: Review samples were provided by Stones Throw Records. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.