The Blenders have long been one of our favorite a cappella groups, particularly around Christmas, when they have released 5 wonderful Christmas albums and a live Christmas DVD. Darren, Tim, Ryan and Allan take a different tack on "Songs from the Soul," a Soul cover collection, accompanied by drums, guitars, bass and keyboards. Motown is of course well represented here, with "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," Stevie Wonder's "Isn't She Lovely," the Four Tops hit "Reach Out (I'll Be There)," and Aretha Franklin's "Knew You Were Waiting for Me." Pop selections include Carole King's hit for James Taylor, "You've Got A Friend," The Gibb brother's Disco hit "How Deep is Your Love," the Grand Funk Railroad rocker "Some Kind of Wonderful," and the Elton John/Bernie Taupin classic, "Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me." Although we prefer to hear the Blenders sing a cappella, these are some of our favorite classic hits, and their butter-smooth harmonies are as sweet as ever. And the leads show what we always knew, a top-drawer quartet like the Blenders is comparable to most accompanied bands, but with four lead singers. If you like classic accompanied soul, pop and rock, you'll love "Songs from the Soul!" |
