Reviewed by Richard Smith

Putting the veteran King Of Rock And Soul with the inventor of Hi Records Memphis Sound, producer Willie Mitchell was an inspired idea and though not quite up there with his wonderful album of 2002 'Don't Give Up On Me', it clearly shows that even in old age Solomon possessed a truly magnificent voice. Shortly after the completion of this project, Solomon passed away, leaving us with an album complete with an emotional end song titled "I'm Leavin'". The soul star's renowned ability to breathe fire and passion into the most banal of material is demonstrated here while the relaxed, organic grooves conceived by Mitchell perfectly suit Solomon's smooth tones and churchy testifying. This was the first time Solomon worked with Mitchell and was to be Mitchell's final piece of work before he too passed away. There are some slightly clichéd love songs here such as "It Must Be Love" and it's a shame that a couple of gospel songs couldn't have been squeezed into the set. But this is still a strong album with particular highlights "Everything About You" and "You're Not Alone".

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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