With the prevalence of “safe-space” non-conformist social sensitivity, the classic style of true blue heartbroken soul music could fall by the wayside in the near future, but for the time being, it is being carried by its most weathered and genuine bastion of truth – and the man with the finest nickname in all of music – The Screaming Eagle of Soul, Charles Bradley. There’s an interesting contrast between the fifty-one years of musical toiling Bradley subjected himself to and the stress averse tendencies of the hipster Millennials that embraced him so openly.
Bradley had gone 46 years running the small dancehall circuit – starting in 1965, when James Brown was king of soul – but it wasn’t until his partnership with Daptone Records and long overdue debut record No Time for Dreaming released in 2011 that Bradley finally got some proper recognition. Granted, that first record was largely promoted as the ultimate musical underdog story, where a hard working man (Bradley) soldiered through the grit and grind of low paying gigs and found himself taking the stage at Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo, and countless other festivals for the first time.
As Bradley’s fledgling public facing career progressed, Bradley’s lifetime of shortcomings were placed under the ultimate microscope in the documentary film Soul of America, which followed Bradley’s life as a soul singer as he utilized his newfound fame to improve his life and the lives of those around him. I can speak confidently when I assert that Bradley himself is one of the kindest artists making the rounds today, as he commonly fraternizes with fans at shows for extended periods of time after his sets, consistently showing deep gratitude for their support.
In a total 180 of the 50 years prior, Bradley began to produce music at an incredible pace for someone of his age – with the extended time without a record to hawk actually proving to be some sort of benefit – and released his sophomore record, Victim of Love in 2013, as Bradley began to move away from the wide-eyed 62 year old of No Time for Dreaming, and asserted his newfound maturity as a grizzled 64 year old veteran of the road and of life. Bradley’s pairing with the soul revivalists at Daptone makes for one of the most exquisite matches in all of music, and the duo have continued their profound revivalist tour on Bradley’s third studio record, Changes.
Changes sees Bradley really assert himself as a stalwart of soul music today, along with slowly solidifying his standing amongst the all time greats atop the echelons of American soul. Changes opens with an acknowledgement of Bradley’s life of trials and tribulations with “God Bless America,” half patriotic love note to the country that treated Bradley so roughly for years, and has since warmed up to the soul singer; America has gotten the best of Bradley, through thick and thin.
The sentiment continues on “Good to Be Back Home,” which features vintage Bradley (if that’s possible, considering his brief discography), as he opines the joys of being back home in America. Undoubtedly a narrative of his time spent touring extensively the past five years, and glad to return to his home a new man. Changes sees all of the familiar tones and themes found within Bradley’s lovelorn music – heartsickness in the most earnest of fashions, separation anxiety, and loneliness – but songs like “Nobody but You,” and “Ain’t Gonna Give It Up,” show a man committed to love. Whether its for a lover lost, or the love of his fellow man, Bradley’s pain extends from romantic to fraternal, all the while maintaining the soulful assertion that his love - no matter who its directed toward – will never end.
Bradley’s strength is his voice; always has, and always will be. Its equal parts Otis Redding’s timbre and James Brown’s shrieking, but for the modern age, allowing Bradley’s voice to crescendo like never before on “Crazy for Your Love,” and album closer, “Slow Love,” a track that Bradley reminisces over an old flame where their love moved at a creeping pace – “We take our time/its not that time/to sing the same old song/long as you are mine.” The goodness of Bradley’s person and his intense adulation of love and his fellow man run rampant throughout Changes, in a refreshing change of pace from the all to familiar single recipient nature of some singles and records.
While the majority of the tracks on Changes feature some of Bradley’s finest work vocally and lyrically (not to mention some of Menahan Street Band’s finest and tightest backing work to date), the two standout points are the records middle pairing, “Changes,” and “Ain’t it a Sin.” The first of the pair, “Changes,” is one of the most incognito covers of 2016 – Sturgill Simpson’s “In Bloom” being another – as Bradley covers Black Sabbath’s 1972 single. It’s the longest track on the album (5:43), but the length serves as a sort of analogue of Bradley’s career to date, as he suffered through five decades of being overlooked – “in my life, in my life, there’s gotta be a chance” – and finally gained his proper dues. The second of the two standout tracks is “Ain’t it a Sin,” continuing the theme of sea change in the twilight of Bradley’s life. It ushers in the next stage of Bradley’s life, where his sorrowful love is exchanged for the embrace of those who love Bradley so. Furthermore, the track is downright funky, as the Menahan Street Band roll hard on the horns and soul grooves, with some of the tightest hits on the record.
Changes is an indicative signifier of Bradley’s life and career as a musician – he’s experiencing the life of a beloved public figure in his sixties, as he learns about the new perspective that becomes a more permanent reality in his life. He works with a deft grace once unseen by aging soul singers, and his genuineness off stage only further extends his uniqueness. Where we’ve seen greats like Iggy Pop and Bowie put out final records around Bradley’s age, it feels like Charles Bradley is poised to put out ten more records, because the Screaming Eagle has got soul to last a lifetime and a half.