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“That Girl” – Stevie Wonder Cover by Nadir Omowale for The Year of Living Stevie

So a couple of years ago Daryl Bean asked us to participate in his Year of Living Stevie podcast. We were one of several artists he asked to perform their own take on a couple of Stevie Wonder tunes and to talk about how Stevie has influenced their music.

Now as any real musician knows, taking on a Stevie song is always a challenge. He has an uncanny knack for writing compositions that seem simple, but are deceptively difficult. But it’s Stevie. You have to accept the challenge, and his catalog is so deep, you can’t take on one of the more well known classics. So you dig deep into the Book of Stevie, and you dig deep into yourself.

We chose one of my favorite songs that I’ve always wanted to cover that few people ever do, “That Girl”, one of the new songs he wrote for his 1982 greatest hits compilation Original Musiquarium.

We quickly learned why people don’t do this tune. It kicked our behinds from jump. Luckily we had the professor, Philip Whitfield, on hand to help us navigate the changes. Steve Caldwell and I then turned up the dirt on top of the funky, nasty groove laid down by the dynamic duo of Christopher Spooner and Lauren Johnson. And yes, if you know the original, you’ll hear that I took it upon myself to learn how to play Stevie’s harmonica solo on guitar.

This was a really fun project, and I’m so glad Daryl shared it today to celebrate the Master Blaster. Hope you enjoy! #HappyBirthdayStevieWonder

 

The Year of Living Stevie: Nadir Omowale and his Band Discuss and Perform The Music of Stevie Wonder

The Year of Living Stevie” is host Daryl Bean’s biweekly podcast about life, creativity, and the music of Stevie Wonder. In each episode, musicians explore Stevie’s influence, and the affect his music has had on them.

In this episode, musician/vocalist/songwriter/producer Nadir Omowale and his band (Steve Caldwell, guitar; Phil Whitfield, keyboards; Chris Spooner, bass; Lauren Johnson, drums) talk about political activism through music, their deep well of experience in the industry, and what made Nadir want to throw his bass at a drummer (not Lauren). Plus they perform two deep Stevie tracks, “That Girl”, from Original Musiquarium, and “Let’s Get Serious” (a hit for Jermaine Jackson, but written and produced by Stevie).

Click HERE to Listen.

SoulTracks.com: First Listen: Nadir funks it up with a message on “Blue Lights”

We’ve had an awesome response to “Blue Lights” so far, and here’s a beautiful example. SoulTracks.com the biggest soul music site on the planet, offered Nadir’s new funk single to their audience as a First Listen. Check it out:

SoulTracks.com says:  Working For the Man, J. Nadir Omowale’s 2008 polemical album dropped like a bomb into the political, military and economic upheavals taking place in that year. The urgent and powerful funk of the title track pretty much captured the feelings of every working man and woman at a time when the economy was in free fall, mainly due to the greed and incompetence of the people at the top. The rocking Detroit funk man came back in 2012 with the very good, though less overtly political The Book of Jonah, and in the year 2017, Nadir has returned.

A lot transpired – particularly in the fraught relationship between law enforcement and minority communities – between 2012 and 2017, and Nadir has something to say.

READ MORE HERE

 

NADIR OMOWALE – The Right Kind Of Crazy – BUY NOW

Nadir Omowale returns with a scathing, purple tinged, post-Hendrix funk rocker. “She might be out of her mind, but she’s The Right Kind Of Crazy”. Continue reading

Soul Addiction – February 27 at Northern Lights in Detroit

DETROIT! FEBRUARY 27!! Feed your SOUL ADDICTION at Northern Lights Lounge with Nadir Omowale and Caleb Gutierrez with special guest DJ Joe G. Join us to celebrate the release of Caleb’s new single “Addicted” produced by Nadir & Christopher Spooner. 660 W. Baltimore St. in The D at 9pm.

DETROIT! FEBRUARY 27!! Feed your SOUL ADDICTION at Northern Lights Lounge with Nadir Omowale and Caleb Gutierrez with special guest DJ Joe G. Join us to celebrate the release of Caleb's new single "Addicted" produced by Nadir & Christopher Spooner. 660 W. Baltimore St. in The D at 9pm.

LIVE RADIO PERFORMANCE: Nadir Live on WDET for Ann Delisi’s Essential Music, June 2013

In early June, Nadir and the band converged on the legendary Studio A at WDET radio in Detroit for a live recording and interview on Ann Delisi’s Essential Music. The band fired off smoking versions of “Daddy’s Cane” (from Nadir’s award-winning debut Distorted Soul 2.0) and “Go It Alone” (from 2012’s critically acclaimed disc The Book of Jonah). Click the player below to hear, share or download the performance and interview.

Players:
Nadir – vocals, guitar, interviewee
Tasha Lord – vocals
Steve Caldwell – guitar, vocals
Christopher Spooner – bass, vocals
Jeff Rebrovich – keyboards
Raphael Merriweathers, Jr. – percussion, vocals
Jason Bonaquist – drums

Ann Delisi – host
Alex Trajano – engineer
Nicole Fritz – 2nd engineer, editor

Detroit Free Press: Nadir sees life looking up

Nadir at Church_photo by Marc NaderRachel May: Nadir sees life looking up
Originally published October 4, 2012 in
The Detroit Free Press

His music is a harmonious blend of R&B, funk, jazz, hip-hop, rock and soul. On his latest album, “The Book of Jonah,” Nadir reveals a fantastic collection of songs with a positive message about everyday life.

” ‘Belly of the Whale‘ really sums up the record,” says Nadir. “It gives us the message that it may feel like the end of the world but it’s not. It’s just another day in the belly of the whale.”

“The Book of Jonah” is Nadir’s third full-length solo CD, and he’ll celebrate its release with a performance Friday at PJ’s Lager House.

“A lot of the songs are really inspired by some of the things we’ve been going through here in Detroit and Michigan,” says Nadir, whose full name is Jonah Nadir Omowale.

“It’s not as overtly political as my 2008 record when I was mad at George Bush and angry all the time. This one is a little more hopeful, and even with all of the turmoil that we and the rest of the nation — and the rest of the world, really — have been going through, I see a lot of positive signs and a lot of positive things happening.”

Click HERE to Read the Entire Article at Freep.com

© Nadir Omowale