i don't remember when i discovered this album that "invisible man" was from but i do know it was a short while after sharon jones & the dap-kings have gotten their big break. it was about making soul and funk that actually sounded like the real mccoy in a revival fashion. i believe timmion records we're feeling inspired of what tru thoughts and daptone was doing and released some singles first and eventually an album.
while sharon jones and the dap-kings are based out new york this band came from finland out of all places. now throwing all the prejudice out the window, cratediggers and musicnerds know that finland has their share of funky music. while previous projects in the seventies may have been aided by foreign instrumentalist, in this case it's an american singer who is living and operating in finland.
as someone who generally doesn't listen to many albums nowadays in full and in multiple hearings it says something when i say this. i've listened to this record so many times i can't count and i can easily talk about any track on it and i really don't find any weak tracks on it. ok, "my four leave clover" bugs me lyrically but it's only that one.
"invisible man" is one of the many upbeat numbers but it's also one the number that points towards the motown sound the most and it's brilliant. from the starting drums it picks up the space fast but moves in a perky bounce. i like how the vocals are arranged as willis does her own backup in call & response like the motown records. lyrically it talks about regretfulness in a former relationship and there isn't a cheerful topic but it's done in that mid 70's motown styling of juxtaposing emotions musically.
the reason i keep mention motown is while there is obvious links toward the northen soul sound and it sometimes sounds like a pastiche of soul music, some tracks that are original have arrangements that remind of known records. on the "keep reachin' up" album all of the songs we're lyrically original unlike the first unlike the first output by sharon jones & dap-kings but musically i wouldn't say so.
this one in particular is very similar to martha & the vandellas classic "heatwave" and i'm well sure that the similarities are intended and i quite like how they did it. nicole willis sings in sort of the same flow as martha reeves and the band plays "invisible man" within the same shuffle.
however nicole willis & the soul investigators do this so well that it's obviously a tribute to the song.
buy here (7digital)
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