Gregory Porter has steadily worked his way into global stardom with a string of stunning albums over the course of a decade and ‘All Rise’ is as strong and engaging as the likes of his much lauded early works ‘Water’, ‘Liquid Spirit’ and ‘be Good’. The emphatic, celebratory ‘Concorde’ soars with with an uplifting energy that is hard to deny, the bittersweet ‘Dad Gone Thing’ is an incisive observation of his relationship with his largely absent father that includes the heartbreaking line “I stood right in front of his stage, But still I was hard to see”, while the gospel handclapper ‘Revival Song’ borrows from the ‘Wade In The Water’ genre. He’s at his most tender and restrained on the gorgeous ‘If Love Is Overrated’, the summery ‘Faith In Love’ has an encompassing warmth that brings to mind Marvin Gaye, while the thumping ‘Long List Of Troubles’ shows another angle to his powerful voice. ‘Mister Holland’ (actually borrowing the names of Jools Holland and his daughter Rosie) tackles racial equality in a way that emphasises the thankful. The sumptuous ‘Everything You Touch Is Gold’ is another highlight on this faultless set. ‘Phoenix’ is another track that is drenched in optimism, he’s at his romantic best on the orchestrated gem ‘Merry Go Round’.
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Buy Deluxe CD here
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Listen (standard CD track list)
Concorde
Dad Gone Thing
Revival Song
If Love Is Overrated
Faith In Love
Merchants Of Paradise
Long List Of Troubles
Mister Holland
Modern Day Apprentice
Everything You Touch Is Gold
Phoenix
Merry Go Round
Thank You
