It Is Time For A Love Revolution is nostalgic rock and roll master Lenny Kravitz’s 8th studio album. It debuted at #4 on the Billboard 200 in the first week of February, and though it didn’t last long there, this was Kravitz’s first Top 5 album since his Greatest Hits CD in 2000. And for good reason: though uneven in some places, this is the best batch of ‘60s and ‘70s throwback rock Kravitz has put on one album since the 1990s.
For starters, on the tambourine and handclap-happy "Love Revolution," the reverb on Kravitz’s vocals is so expansive, it’s almost as if he wants his message of rediscovering love to be heard over the hills and very far away. Speaking of Led Zeppelin, early single "Bring It On" does not hide from its '70s-era Zeppelin influences. In fact, with its methodical, midtempo drumming and “Blackdog”-like starts-and-stops, this rocker flaunts them.
It’s not just a Zep tribute, however. There's some Hendrix influences (the Iraq War-criticizing “Back In Vietnam”), Beatles-esque melodies ("A New Door," and the harder rockin’ "Good Morning") and James Brown influences on the album as well (via “Will You Marry Me”).
New single “Love Love Love” was released this summer on radio and video (MTV, VH1 and BETJ). This standout straight up hard rock tune is driven by simple, single notes and riffs that hardly let up, and Lenny lets out his inner Anthony Kiedis late into the song as well.
The swirly guitars and funky bass lines on “Dancin’ Til Dawn” is like late ‘70s Stones, and is sure to get the (female) bodies moving on the dance floor all night long, just like the singer imagines in-song. The radiant, psychedelic and Hendrix-hinting "This Moment Is All There Is," with its moderately paced groove, slightly flanged cymbals and spacey guitar solos is another highlight, as is “If You Want It,” with its self-empowering lyrics and Jimmy Page guitar heroics.
The highly emotional and personal "A Long And Sad Goodbye" is about Lenny's dad Sy Kravitz, who passed away on October 29, 2005, the night before his tour with Aerosmith began. The ghost of George Harrison can be felt throughout this modestly paced tune, which is capped off by a soulful guitar solo by longtime Lenny sideman Craig Ross.
Not every song is quite as memorable or perfectly mixed, however. The piano-led "I'll Be Waiting" may have hit potential but is a bit overproduced - the synthesized strings are a bit much here, just as they are on “Will You Marry Me”. But the former track has a soulful vibe and pop appeal to it that recalls "Again," the hit single from Kravitz's Greatest Hits collection, released in 2000. And on final track “I Want To Go Home” the verses are a bit too light on emotion and melody to match the serious anti-war/pro-troop mood of the song, which features lyrics like: “When I have to take a life, does that make peace”.
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