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Christopher Spooner

“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

 

SoulTracks.com First Listen: Caleb Gutierrez – “Addicted”

SoulTracks.com is currently the most popular soul music website in America. And from its inception in 2003, SoulTracks has been providing updates on the greatest Classic Soul artists and introducing readers to the next generation of Soul Music singers.

We are proud that they have chosen to help introducer their readers to Detroit Latin soul stirrer Caleb Gutierrez. Check out his SoulTracks.com First Listen feature HERE.

Caleb Gutierrez photo by Marc Nader

LISTEN to “Addicted” the Solo Debut Single By Caleb Gutierrez

“Addicted”, the solo debut single by Caleb Gutierrez
Available NOW on iTunes, Spotify, CDBaby, Bandcamp and more…

Produced, Recorded & Mixed by Christopher Spooner and Nadir Omowale

Featuring:
Caleb Gutierrez: lead & background vocals
Christopher Spooner: bass, keyboards, programming
Nadir Omowale: guitar, vocals
Amy Saari: keyboards
Raphael Merriweathers, Jr. (aka Tunnel Seven): percussion
Billy Furman: flute, sax

Photography by Marc Nader

Mastered by Jim Falzone at Venus Mastering

GET IT NOW!!!

© Nadir Omowale