Roger Chapman

Roger Chapman is, and always was, a marmite voice – many find his throaty rasp difficult and uncomfortable while just as many see in him a soul singer who gets to the depth and heart of the music: me, I’m definitely on the love side but I’d also be the first to say that there have been times when he picked the wrong material.

This album is absolutely the RIGHT material.

Musically this is filled with swampy Southern funk and his voice fits into the gospel canon like a dream while the band he has gathered are superb at every turn.

It’s actually a remastered version of his 2007 album ‘One More Time For Peace’ but with a few added tracks and a much more dense and detailed sound than I remembered from before but it also feels more complete than before – not just a reissue, more a re-imagining.

So, from all this where will the listener be?
Hopefully with a big smile on their face. From the opening track Chapman’s voice is in full throat, no holding back and no pretence. The musicians around him are like a who’s who of British class – Steve Simpson, Micky Moody and Geoff Whitehorn take guitar duties and Tim Harries and Henry Spinetti (bass/Drums) will give you one of the tightest rhythm sections in the game. Old friend Jim Cregan as well as the likes of Paul Hirsh, Max Middleton and Roger Cotton offer up keyboards and Sonny Spider adds harmonica to the mix.

So many standouts here – ‘Take Me Down’ is a sublime gospel number with Chapman on the edge of losing it all through but never going over the top while ‘Devil Got A Son’ has a dark funk and strut to it. A lot of the album has a Dr John sound to it (no bad thing) but he doesn’t go down into the Bayou depths.
The album closer is a version of ‘Jerusalem’ that just sets the hairs on the back of your neck tingling – soft and subtle and somehow more passionate because of it.

I love this album. Chapman is on top form and the material is brilliant. A total package – oh, very yes.