Ebony Alleyne - You Caught Me Off Guard

It's a whole glorious brand new day for Ebony. In about four weeks time, her wonderful album is finally coming out on Expansion, along with this, the new opening track on the album, only written last month, and here with a brand new video, and also being launched as the first single, here she is at her scintillating best, on this homage to Seventies Philly. Ebony was signed to Sony in 2002. I was brought in to produce her entire album. We did an magnificent album of generic live "real" smooth sophisticated soul music, with a huge orchestra (sixty strings, thirty brass), with a Burt Bacharach/Dionne Warwick flavour overall, and this was well before Nora Jones, Joss Stone, Corinne Bailey Rae, and most particularly Amy Winehouse, all hit with basically the same thing. The Ebony album was utterly utterly wonderful, and I was so proud of it. It took a year and a half to make, and the Sony head of A&R, Muff Winwood, oversaw it personally. "Walk Away And Never Look Back", was the first song we recorded. We introduced her to the soul scene by reactivating the old classic Okeh label, owned by Sony, and pressing up tiny limited editions of three all different singles on the Okeh label on seven inch vinyl. Everything looked wonderful and rosy, and I was already clearing a space on the wall for my Grammy award, when Sony had an upheaval and Ebony was set free. Now nearly five years later, along with brand new 2007 material, justice finally gets served, and the world gets to hear what I consider to be my finest hour musically.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Philly
• Disco
• Northern-Soul
• Sophisticated-Soul
• Diva
• Salsoul
• Girl-Groups
• Soul

[chkjns]

Fantastic job AGAIN, Ian, you are indeed an expert in your field! This is the 'sound' I ran to for refuge from hard rock 30 years ago. Had to look up 'Northern Soul' a year ago, a term not used in USA. That's when I found out Brits were escaping to this sound just like me! Funny how one shopkeeper can coin a phrase that will last for generations.

Added this to 2007 in my 111 playlists for every year since 1900. Hope people will stumble on your gems at my channel & buy the music from you!

[IanLevine]

@chkjns - PLEASE I beg of you, go look through my songs on my channel, all of which I legally own. I want you to discover what I have been trying to achieve, with a tightly knit bunch of fans who love it all. Watch Lyn Jerrard, Esjae Gennice, Tahira Jumah, Nat Augustin, Wayne Hernandez, Delroy G. Pinnock, Odette Adams, Kitty Corbin, Donna Williams, and Davinah Edwrads, and hopefully I will have won you over.

[chkjns]

@IanLevine - Ian, you silly man, you won me over with the first song I heard ! ! ! You are obviously the modern Midas of Northern Soul. I was already sucked into your channel & posting my next comment when your message came through, and now you've turned my whole playlisting system on its ear with your fantastic new vintage-sounding music.

I have rarely seen a promoter shilling a product as worthy as yours, Ian, you need to be on one of our US cable shop-at-home shows, you'll sell out ! ! !

[IanLevine]

@chkjns - Are you on facebook ??? I would like to have you as one of my friends on there, as it's clear you have wonderful taste in great music.

[jor99912]

Is this Right now? Today, Current!

Amazing, I hope some sisters in the business sees this, and maybe learn what music is!

[IanLevine]

Yes it was written and recorded last year. Track one on her album on Expansion Records.

[thebrahmabull12]

what a babe

[samuelrmason]

I love the soft harmonizing in places like 1:40,1:41 and 2:04:205, 2:35, 2:36. She has a nice warm sound that bends well with brass and strings.

[jdizzy1976]

Real good music, so different from the current hogwash being passed as RnB/soul....keep doin what you do sista!!

[hcvang]

@IanLevine well thanks to the internet, it's not a loosing battle, though, is it? not anymore...

cant really compete on the money level - they will always have more marketing dollars to ingrain shit into peoples minds instead of quality.

[cat3375]

There are some AWESOME vocalists in the UK.

[hanseatus]

Diamant girl fine voice lovely singing amazing