Tuskegee

Instead of new material – a new genre

It looks totally logical and easily predictable that Lionel Riche, an amazing soul performer, who started his career over thirty years ago, has recently seen some slowdown in his activity. The singer stopped working for his name a long time ago, and it is his name that works for him now. Fresh studio products come out more and more seldom, and concert tours become shorter, but it would be unfair and silly to blame Richie for paying his tribute to age. The artist’s new studio work, his first actually in four years, might appear a little disappointment to his fans for not being a selection of new songs. This record is a compilation of already released material, yet performed differently. First of all, each of these tracks is Richie’s duet work, and secondly, Tuskegee is the singer’s first full-scale effort in the genre of country. Lionel’s choice is easy to explain if you consider that this is the music of his childhood, the one he grew up to. And it is for the right reason that the collection is called Tuskegee, after the popular artist’s native city.

Tuskegee is a risky experiment crowned with success

Lionel Richie dared a very serious experiment and he had more chances to fail bitterly rather than to have a triumph. Just think of it: fourteen songs, each performed by a different duet. Tuskegee could end up turning into a tasteless, idealess and meaningless mix of everything, but it resulted in a beautiful and elegant album with a stylish framing. The success of the record was guaranteed by the enthusiasm of guest singers who enjoyed greatly their participation in this project, and story-telling character of most of the track-listing of Tuskegee. The first circumstance promises a new and emphatic vocal on each following song, and the second must intrigue the listener with a fresh piece of tale every next time. The highlights of Tuskegee are also different from one another, and that is one more big advantage of the album. You Are is remarkable for its guitar, Deep River Woman pleases the ear with vocal harmonies having a lot of common with gospel traditions, and Dancing On The Ceiling will be remembered thank to banjo.

An excellent result of well-organized and inspired work

Tuskegee sounds so consistent and integral that one may believe it is a work of one ensemble. Sure, the main part is assigned to Lionel Richie, but his fellows try hard to stay on the same level. Some of the songs eventually seem to be completely new pieces to have little to do with their original verses. It is sufficient to name a classic hit called Hello, which was transformed by a very powerful singing from Jennifer Nettles, or a moving balled called Angel, with Pixie Lott. Neither age nor past experience of the invited artists matter to Lionel who only knew that his colleagues here are remarkable representatives of the contemporary country stage. Respect for one another and full commitment to this creative process are emanated by the voices of all the people involved in it. That is why the record embraces you with its genuineness and sincerity. On the whole, Tuskegee, arguably, is going to be a greater joy for those who love the genre, and less to those who love Lionel Richie because they might have counted on a substantial unreleased material. But we have to admit that the record gathers amazing songs which have received a new life.