Changes
Studio album by
Charles Bradley
ReleasedApril 1, 2016 (2016-04-01)
GenreSoul
LabelDaptone Records/Dunham Records
ProducerThomas Brenneck
Charles Bradley chronology
Victim of Love
(2013)		 Changes
(2016)		 Black Velvet
(2018)

Changes is the third album released by American funk/soul singer Charles Bradley, released on April 1, 2016 on Daptone Records.[1] The title track on the album is a cover of the Black Sabbath song of the same name and was first released as a Record Store Day Black Friday single in 2013.[2]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic80/100[3]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
American Songwriter[4]
Exclaim![5]
Paste7.9/10[6]
Pitchfork7.1/10[7]
PopMatters[8]
Record Collector[9]

The album was released to positive critical reception with an aggregate score of 80 on Metacritic based on 17 reviews.[10]

Pitchfork awarded the album a score of 7.1, with music critic Jay Balfour describing the album as Bradley's "most straightforward and best to date".[7] AllMusic awarded the album a positive review, stating that "the rough-hewn power of Bradley's voice is at its most powerful, and there's a fierce sense of longing and need in this music that's almost tactile in its realism".[1]

The Observer's Kitty Empire awarded the album 3 stars, likening Bradley to Al Green,[11] while critic Steve Horowitz from PopMatters praised Bradley's vocal style, describing him as "the closest living equivalent to [James] Brown" and concluding that "Bradley sings of his aches and pleasures with such conviction that he makes one believe this is possible".[8]

The album also received praise from a number of other musical publications, including American Songwriter,[4] Record Collector[12] and Paste.[6]

Accolades

Publication Accolade Year Rank
Mojo The 50 Best Albums of 2016 2016
Paste The 50 Best Albums of 2016 2016
Rough Trade Albums of the Year 2016
Blues Critic Top 10 Retro-Soul/Soul Blues Albums Of 2016 2016

In Other Media

The opening title sequence for the first 3 seasons of Barry (TV series) uses the instrumental intro of Bradley's song Change For The World.

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."God Bless America"Menahan Street Band, Irving Berlin1:31
2."Good to Be Back Home"Menahan Street Band, Victor Axelrod, Charles Bradley, Thomas Brenneck, David Guy, Leon Michels, Homer Steinweiss3:04
3."Nobody But You"Menahan Street Band, Charles Bradley, Thomas Brenneck, David Guy, Leon Michels, Nick Movshon, Homer Steinweiss4:00
4."Ain't Gonna Give It Up"Menahan Street Band, Charles Bradley, Thomas Brenneck, David Guy, Leon Michels, Nick Movshon, Homer Steinweiss3:56
5."Changes"The Budos Band, Geezer Butler, Tony Iommi, Ozzy Osbourne, Bill Ward5:45
6."Ain't It a Sin"The Budos Band, Brian Profilio3:52
7."Things We Do For Love"Menahan Street Band, Thomas Brenneck, William Schalda Jr.3:31
8."Crazy for Your Love"Menahan Street Band, Charles Bradley, Thomas Brenneck4:21
9."You Think I Don't Know (But I Know)" (featuring The Gospel Queens)Menahan Street Band, Victor Axelrod, Thomas Brenneck, David Guy, Leon Michels3:30
10."Change For the World" (featuring The Gospel Queens)Menahan Street Band, Charles Bradley, Thomas Brenneck, Leon Michels, Nick Movshon, Homer Steinweiss3:36
11."Slow Love"Menahan Street Band, Thomas Brenneck, Paul Schalda, Will Schalda3:38
Total length:40:44

Personnel

Menahan Street Band

  • Victor Axelrod – piano/vibraphone
  • Thomas Brenneck – guitar/bass guitar/organ/percussion
  • Nick Movshon – bass guitar
  • Homer Steinweiss – drums
  • Michael Deller – organ
  • David Guy – trumpet
  • Leon Michels – saxophone/organ/flute

The Budos Band

  • Jared Tankel – baritone saxophone
  • Thomas Brenneck – electric guitar
  • John Carbonella Jr. – congas, drums
  • Mike Deller – organ
  • Daniel Foder – bass guitar
  • Andrew Greene – trumpet
  • Rob Lombardo – bongos, congas
  • Brian Profilio – drums
  • Dame Rodriguez – percussion

The Gospel Queens

  • Naomi Shelton – leading vocals
  • Cliff Driver – pianist
  • Bobbie Jean Gant – background vocals
  • Edna Johnson – background vocals
  • Gabriel Caplan – guitars
  • Fred Thomas – bass
  • Michael Post – drums

Additional Musicians

  • Raynier Jacildo – Organ on “God Bless America”
  • William Schalda Jr. – Piano, Organ & Mellotron on "Things We Do For Love"

References

  1. 1 2 3 Deming, Mark. "Album Review: Charles Bradley - Changes". AllMusic. Retrieved 2016-04-16.
  2. ↑ Blistein, Jon (8 December 2015). "Charles Bradley Preps 'Changes' LP With Powerful Black Sabbath Cover". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  3. ↑ "Changes – Charles Bradley". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved April 16, 2016.
  4. 1 2 Horowitz, Hal (2016-03-28). "Album Review: Charles Bradley: Changes". American Songwriter. Retrieved 2016-04-16.
  5. ↑ Mathurin, Yasmine (2016-03-30). "Album Review: Charles Bradley - Changes". Exclaim!. Retrieved 2016-04-16.
  6. 1 2 Danton, Eric R. (1 April 2016). "Charles Bradley: Changes Review". Paste. Retrieved 2016-04-16.
  7. 1 2 "Charles Bradley 'Changes' review". Pitchfork. 31 March 2016. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  8. 1 2 Horowitz, Steve (31 March 2016). "Album Review: Charles Bradley - Changes". PopMatters. Retrieved 2016-04-16.
  9. ↑ Kennedy, Jake. "Charles Bradley - Changes". Record Collector. Retrieved 2016-04-16.
  10. ↑ "Charles Bradley 'Changes'". Metacritic. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  11. ↑ Empire, Kitty. "Charles Bradley: Changes review – heartbreak with horns". The Observer. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  12. ↑ Kennedy, Jake. "Charles Bradley - Changes". Record Collector. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
  13. ↑ "The 50 Best Albums of 2016". Mojo. November 22, 2016. Retrieved November 22, 2016.
  14. ↑ "The 50 Best Albums of 2016". Paste. November 30, 2016. Retrieved December 1, 2016.
  15. ↑ "Albums of the Year". Rough Trade. November 14, 2016. Archived from the original on 2016-11-16. Retrieved November 15, 2016.
  16. ↑ "Best Albums 2016". www.soulbluesmusic.com. Retrieved 2018-04-11.
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