Walden, Narada Michael: Thunder 2013

Narada Michael Walden has been in the music biz for an awfully long time. He played on a series of Mahavishnu Orchestra albums starting with Apocalypse, released in 1974 and put out his first solo album Garden Of Love Light in 1976. He has worked with many artists including Steve Winwood, Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin and Gladys Knight and has toured with Jeff Beck, Weather Report and Tommy Bolin. He has also won Grammy awards in 1993 (The Bodyguard soundtrack) and Producer of the Year in 1988. His credentials are certainly impressive but what about the music?

Thunder 2013 is the new album and it is a pretty decent listen all around. Walden mixes it up a fair amount delving into rock, R&B, funk, soul and jazz. There are even some proggy touches here and there most notably on the atmospheric "40 days". Here, Mathew Charles Heulitt's clean and crisp solos have an almost Gilmour-like quality. His soaring leads in the ballads "Miracle Of Fatima" and "Dragonfly" are excellent as well. Other tunes include the soul driven rocker "Shirley Mae", the bluesy soulful ballad "We Belong Together" and the heavier funk of "New York City". The album ends with the funky grooves of "Thunder/Angel Funk".

Sure this album sits squarely in the mainstream but it is an enjoyable listen nonetheless with quality musicianship and solid melodies. If you enjoy breaking away from the prog genre from time to time Thunder 2013 just might hit the spot. You might say this is music for the soul.

Track Listing:
1. Thunder (1:27)
2. Throw Your Hands Up (3:45)
3. Shake The House (3:38)
4. 40 Days (5:50)
5. Shirley Mae (2:59)
6. New York City (2:38)
7. We Belong Together (4:12)
8. Down Low (3:18)
9. Miracle Of Fatima (4:44)
10. Dragonfly (5:05)
11. Movin On (3:42)
12. Dreams Of Vinyl (3:50)
13. Don't Want To Let You Go (3:13)
14. Power (3:26)
15. Thunder/Angel Funk (3:26)

Added: October 17th 2013
Reviewer: Jon Neudorf
Score:
Related Link: Artist's Official Site
Hits: 2358
Language: english

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