Blues Music Review: Josh Charles - Love, Work & Money - CC Entertainment 2010

Blues is just one element to "Notown Music," that's how Josh Charles describes his sound. It's a mash-up of New Orleans sounds and Motown styling, and it's front and center on the debut release from Charles, his 2010 effort Love, Work & Money.

Charles is a Brooklyn native with his heart in the Crescent City; a piano player from a very young age, and an intense student of New Orleans based piano masters. Those influences surface throughout Love, Work & Money's 10 songs, all but one of which Charles wrote or co-wrote. The sole cover on the album is a version of Jimmy Cliff's classic "The Harder They Come."

The disc kicks off with "The Waiting Game," which features Charles' piano over layers of fantastic sounds, like Artie Reynolds III's bass and Steve Jabas' horn arrangements and funky keyboard rhythm. The songwriting is clever, as the song deals with exactly what it suggests, the various different ways we all are forced to wait on one thing or another throughout our day-to-day lives. It's a very solid opening number.

Charles enlisted the help of much of Dr. John's backing band for Love, Work & Money. Charles first met Dr. John at the age of 14 by telling the legend (then actually following through on the claim) that Charles could play like Jazz and Rhythm & Blues pianist James Booker.

"The Waiting Game" is followed by the record's title track. The two songs are similar in writing and instrumentation. You won't be overpowered by Charles' vocals, but that's not to say he's an inferior singer. You can certainly hear Charles' enthusiasm in his singing, and it's infectious.

The ballad, "I'm Always Here For You" follows "Love, Work & Money," featuring an opening of simply Josh Charles on vocals and piano. Other members of the band come in about a minute into the track, and John Roggie's organ really emphasizes the almost spiritual undertone of the song's lyrics. Charles does a masterful job on the piano solo, as well.

Charles' take on Jimmy Cliff's "The Harder They Come" is next. Josh Charles and company slow the tune down a bit for this funky rendition, but stick pretty close to the original. Give a call to Herman Ernest III and Bashiri Johnson on drums and percussion, respectively. These two men do a masterful job on the track.

"Pickin' Up the Pieces" keeps it moving on Love, Work & Money. At this point it's overwhelmingly clear that this isn't a quote-unquote, Blues record, but it is a wonderfully crafted album that blends elements of Blues, Soul, R&B, Funk and more. Charles' songwriting is strong, and "Pick Up the Pieces" is one of the better examples of that. It's a cool, medium-tempo track. He slows things back down for "It Ain't Easy." I can hear the Motown influences at various points on the disc, but here I would dare say there's also a bit of the Stax label in Charles' sound, as well. The horn arrangements on this track are awesome.

"The Answer" is one of three songs on Love, Work & Money that Josh Charles penned himself. Co-writer Ric Steel joined Charles in writing six of the album's tracks, however Charles wrote "The Answer," "The Waiting Game," and "Healing Time." Josh Charles smokes a brief piano solo on "The Answer," and Mike Ciro gets in on the fun on guitar. "Stars" follows, a tune that finds Charles reminiscing on an evening spent with his grandfather. Several of the songs on Love, Work & Money have a spiritual element lyrically, and this song is certainly one of them.

"Healing Time" is a new mix of a song that Charles released in 2009. The track was originally recorded as a benefit for the Preservation Resource Center of New Orleans, and gained Charles national media attention. He was featured in newspapers including USA Today, and performed the song on nationally televised programs. It's important to note that a portion of the proceeds from the sale of Love, Work & Money goes to directly benefit the Preservation Resource Center. The song is a heavily R&B influenced number with a strong bassline. Lyrically, it's a track about rebuilding, appropriate considering it was written to benefit the New Orleans organization. "...all you need is healing time to make it through. Forget the pain and the sorrow. There'll be a better tomorrow."

Love, Work & Money wraps up with the disc's longest track, "I'm Just A Man," an entertaining admission of fallability and a plea for understanding.

I mentioned that Love, Work & Money isn't a straight ahead Blues record, and it's important to step outside and listen to other musical styles whenever you can. I've been blessed in my life to love music overall (and Blues the most.) I've never been the type of person to condemn an entire genre, though. Although I don't endorse certain genres anymore, I refuse to simply turn away from them completely, because I would hate to miss something spectacular. Josh Charles and those who joined him on Love, Work & Money created a great record that blurs the line between a handful of genres, and you can certainly pick out those Blues influences. But, when you simply step back and actually listen to the overall product, you hear the sound in it's entirety and discover a very strong debut. Here's hoping Josh Charles keeps the msuic at the center of his life so future releases are equally as entertaining.

Standout Tracks: All of Them, Especially "Picking Up the Pieces," "The Waiting Game," and "It Ain't Easy"