Those of a certain age remember turning on the radio and immediately being transported to another world as the opening chords of “Love Child,” “Standing in the Shadow of Love,” or other popular Motown classics made popular by the Supremes, Marvin Gaye, and many others.
Sure, there are a plethora of musical story tellers today but none that offer the graceful phrasing and haunting melodies that equaled the classic R&B. Listen to Once Again, the latest offering by pianist John Legend, and you’ll realize this sound isn’t a lost art. Legend’s music is as close as you’ll come to hearing the distinctive Motown melodies without dusting off some of the label’s “Greatest Hits” anthologies.
But even if you aren’t a Motown fan, Legend’s music is lovely. The opening track, the graceful “Save Room,” sounds a bit like Barry Manilow. “Each Day Gets Better,” hints at the sounds of Billy Joel. Want more range? “Show Me,” has opening chords reminiscent of those on “Glycerine” made famous in the mid-1990s by the rock band Bush.
Perhaps it’s not surprising that Legend, a three-time Grammy winner, has collaborated with everyone from hip-hop artist Kanye West to Lauryn Hill and Jay-Z.
But don’t think Legend’s music is a parody of great music of yesteryear or an echo of today’s major hit makers. The former child prodigy adds his own personal twist of jazz and bossa nova to his modern day stories about fresh love, lost love, and reconciliation (No wonder he calls it “Music to Make Babies by”).
That’s not to say that Once Again is flawless. Some of the lyrics are a bit silly such as those on “Stereo” (“Her name is Melanie, says she digs my melodies”) or “Another Again” ("I think we’re gonna blow it and we know it, but she’s naked again").
But overall, John Legend makes music magical again.
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