“… soul music that's so much of the old school that it might as well drive a car with fins.” - MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL “ Easily one of the best deep soul albums we've heard in years.” – DUSTY GROOVE Initially a sensation among record collectors, Durand Jones & The Indications began to receive recognition from music fans of all kinds. Their fiery single, “Smile” caught the ear of regional record-man Terry Cole of Colemine records, who swiftly pressed up a batch of 45s. That’s when the realization came that maybe I could make something of this.” People were running and jumping and afterwards they were giving me money and stuff. But one day the organist could hear me in the choir, and said ‘boy I’m gonna give you a song.’ So I sang the song… the whole church just flipped out. “My grandma always heard me singing at home, and she said, ‘I’m gonna put your ass in the youth choir,’” remembers Durand Jones, “I was reluctant. But this is what God is telling me to do – move and groove. If his vocal stylings were learned from old records, he has learned well well enough to turn them into his own.Ĭhicago’s Divino Nino opened with a loose set of breezy soul that at times felt like Brazilian pop and featured at least one song sung in Spanish.“Did I expect to do this shit once I got out of college? Hell no,” Jones relays, laughing. With a voice that could bring the rafters down, whisper as if into a lover’s ear, and shout nearly as mightily as James Brown, he voided all concerns over the history, sending the crowd into fits by the end of the first tune. As one would hope, Jones himself was the key witness. Jones’ alto sax solo on an extended coda to “Now I’m Gone” was a swank take on soul-jazz saxophonist Lou Donaldson’s tone.ĭuran and his band blew all those cobwebs into the night, though, with songs worth their own weight in lyrics, melodies, and groove. “How Can I Be Sure,” with a fine falsetto from drummer Aaron Frazer, sounded like a soulful version of Bread’s “Make It With You.” “Walk Away” evoked Hall & Oates’ “Sarah Smile” and, on record, includes an electric sitar solo that would have been in the pocket in the ‘70s. “Long Way Home” tapped a beat and lilting instrumental figure that recalled Main Ingredient’s ‘70s hit “Everybody Plays The Fool.” “What I Know About You” was awash with recollections of vintage vocal groups. Last night, songs from the new album especially, were littered with evidence waiting to be evaluated.
The elephant in the room for Indications music is the balance between inspiration vs imitation. Guitarist Blake Rhein moonlights for the Numero Label, a record company that fetishizes obscure old recordings.
The band formed a half-dozen years ago while its members were students at Indiana University in Bloomington. The sounds of Marvin Gaye, the Stylistics, Otis Redding, and James Brown, among many others tickled musical memory. The Durand Jones & The Indications frontman's solo venture is a deeply personal one, detailing the Southern Black experience in his Louisiana hometown By Thomas Smith 4th May 2023 If this.
“It’s morning in America,” Jones sang, “But I can’t see the dawn.” He forcefully asserted that the country might be dawning for some but for African Americans it is still winter.Įlsewhere, musical quotes, insider references, and downright déjà vu coursed through Jones’s music, especially during tunes from the new album. Not far into an electrifying 90 minutes in the A&R Music Bar last night, Durand Jones and the Indications eased into “Morning In America,” one of the best songs from the group’s masterful sophomore studio album “American Love Call.” The song clearly is an homage to Gil Scott-Heron’s 1975 broadside “Winter In America,” in political stance, melody, and pessimistic tone.
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