Leon Beal & The Luca Giordano Band - Live at Porretta Soul Festival

Bitrate:320K/s

Year:2023

Time:46:28 

Size:107,0 MB 

Label:GG Records 

Styles:R&B/Soul/Blues 

Art:Front 

Tracks Listing:

 1. Don't Cry No More (Live) - 3:28

 2. Hole In The Wall (Live) - 8:34

 3. None Of Us Are Free (Live) - 5:47

 4. Keep On Pushin (Live) - 4:40

 5. Glory Of Love (Live) - 6:01

 6. Cry To Me (Live) - 3:53

 7. A Change Is Gonna Come (Live) - 8:32

 8. Still Here (Live) - 5:31

Beyond being a talented musician, Luca Giordano possesses an intuitive knack for recognizing quality in blues and soul performers—both Black and white—and forging a musical rapport that shines through in both live shows and recordings. This was certainly the case with Leon Beal, a native of Jasper, Florida, who embodies the aforementioned stylistic traditions; his background includes a successful stint in gospel music—a genre that remains an integral part of his identity as a singer and band member. His artistic development was also shaped by his experience as a stage actor in *Another Saturday Night* and as a singer-emcee in a cabaret show. He is, in short, an artist who knows how to captivate an audience, exuding the natural poise of a true soul singer. In 2019, Luca Giordano and his band—augmented by a horn section led by the renowned Sax Gordon—toured Europe with Beal. The tour included a stop at the Porretta Soul Festival, a perfect setting to showcase his talents, further enhanced by the band’s superb chemistry and mastery of the soul and R&B genres. The resulting CD stands as a remarkable testament to his artistry; Beal’s vocal delivery and intensity evoke two giants of Black music: Solomon Burke and Mighty Sam McClain. The influence of the former is evident in "Hole In The Wall," where spoken-word passages—recounting details of his life, the Porretta Soul Festival, and the venue itself (Rufus Thomas Park)—are interspersed with the singing. He pays tribute to Rufus Thomas with brief vocal snippets of "Do The Funky Chicken" and "Walking The Dog," and references the Stax label and Otis Redding (briefly quoting "Mr. Pitiful"), as well as Sam & Dave (with a nod to "Hold On, I’m Comin'"). The CD consists of eight tracks that flow seamlessly; a standout is "None Of Us Are Free"—a civil rights anthem also recorded by Solomon Burke. Regarding the original track "Keep On Pushin'," the Luca Giordano Band once again deserves special mention, while the soul ballad "Glory Of Love" makes us marvel at just how talented Leon Beal is. Next come two standards: "Cry To Me" and "A Change Is Gonna Come"—another soul ballad featuring a superb performance by the entire group. The final track is another original, "Still Here," which we take as a promise that he will return—"still here"—to Italy for more concerts of this caliber. ~ Silvano Brambilla.

Live at Porretta Soul Festival