These are both Golden Five Star songs. Arrangements and performances cry out for your sympathetic ears. Arpeggiated string runs chime chords that mean business. The rhythm section vibrates to life as if drum and bass have hacked the computers of a top-line, ultra-secret, Swiss medical instrument manufacturer and stolen the launch codes from God’s own pacemaker.
“Obama! You’ve done what you had to do. Change the world!”
Charles Bradley had a lot on his mind when he recorded “Lucifer” in the final days of the Obama presidency. A stomach cancer diagnosis in the Fall of 2016 forced him off the road at the peak of his career. Weakened by months of chemotherapy, facing a life threatening surgery and confronting his own mortality in a moment of political upheaval and uncertainty, Bradley was filled with ideas and energy when he stepped into a Queens home recording studio and spontaneously created “Lucifer” and “Lonely as You Are.”
In contrast to the heartrending “Lonely,” “Lucifer” finds Bradley in familiar territory -- a soaring, uptempo soul jam filled with his trademark scream and joyful lyrics that combine the spiritual and physical: “When I look into your eyes and saw the great star, I knew I had a love right there. I wanna love you, love you, love you, love you.”
“Charles knew what he wanted to say and he said it quickly. He wore his heart on his sleeve. A true singer.” said James Levy, who co-wrote “Lucifer” and “Lonely as You Are” with Bradley and also co-produced the tracks.
“Lucifer” and “Lonely as You Are” (in which Bradley is backed by Seth Avett and Mike Marsh from The Avett Brothers, along with co-producers Levy and Paul Defiglia) are Bradley’s final recordings.
The Queens, NY sessions marked an improbable collaboration between Bradley and Levy who had worked most recently on projects with Julian Casablancas of The Strokes and Guy Berryman of Coldplay, Levy was recording demos for a new record when he connected with Bradley through their mutual manager. To finish the tracks, Levy enlisted Nashville producer and multi-instrumentalist Paul Defiglia, who had spent the previous five years recording and touring with the Avett Brothers and Langhorne Slim.
The Bradley recordings lead to a further collaboration between Levy and Defiglia, who recently released “Songs of Love” the first single from upcoming album Somebody. Levy this week also released a new Reputante EP in celebration of Cult Records’ 10 year anniversary.
The remarkable against-all-odds rise of Charles Bradley since the release of his 2011 debut album No Time For Dreaming has been well documented. Transcending a life in the streets, Bradley went from extreme poverty and homelessness to performing sold out shows and making national TV and festival appearances around the world, including at Coachella, Governors Ball, Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo, Glastonbury, SXSW and many more. Poull Brien's 2012 documentary -- Charles Bradley: Soul of America -- gave a glimpse into how Bradley turned pain and heartbreak into joy and love. One of the great live performers of his time, Bradley’s 2016 appearance on CBS This Morning: Saturday was nominated for a 2017 Daytime Emmy award for “Outstanding On-Camera Musical Performance in a Daytime Program.” In celebration of his amazing life and to commemorate what would have been Bradley’s 70th birthday, Daptone Records imprint Dunham Records in November 2018 released Black Velvet -- a collection of ten songs recorded during the sessions from each of his previous three albums, produced by Tom Brenneck and performed by the Menahan Street Band. Charles also appears on the “A” side of Daptones’ 100th Forty-Five - “Hey Brother” - out June 29, 2019.
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