Sweetback

the take

Sweetback’s self-titled album was such an exciting discovery as a fan and admirer of Sade!! Sweetback is a project created by Sade’s band members, Stuart Matthewman, Paul Denman, and Andrew Hale, who recorded the album after Sade’s Love Deluxe World Tour. The album features a variety of guest vocalists who bring to the album their distinctive interpretations of trip-hop, r&b, soul, and melodic undulating performances. Of the many descriptors I could use to explain why I loved this album, I would choose to highlight its completeness. Some songs shift subtly from one another, others venture more noticeably, and the album’s gravitational core remains clear and natural throughout. I revere Portishead, Massive Attack, and Thievery Corporations as exemplars of happy marriages between rhythm, melody, and soul. Sweetback is a huge part of that conversation. My only wish was that I had discovered it sooner.