Paul Carrack - I Know That Name

By now, we should not only know Paul Carrack's name, but also the person behind that soul-drenched British voice that sounds like he grew up somewhere near Memphis or Detroit...or at least on the south side of Sheffield, South Yorkshire. But despite singing on many big hits ("How Long," "Tempted," "The Living Years," "Silent Running"), though we do know that name, we don't know much about the singer. This new project could change that since its r&b sounds more genuine than most of what's been masquerading as that for years.

Usually, when maturing white guys attempt a project like this, the end result is an Aaron Neville/Phil Collins/Michael McDonald-sounding project that is more pop than not. But I Know That Name is built upon 11 truly soulful Carrack originals (and one cover), and a production that combines real and synthesized elements to produce its vintage sound. The string and horn arrangements seduce, heavy-handed snares whack away at the grooves, and B-3s skitter and swell ala Al Green's or Bobby Womack's recordings. I Know That Name also includes era-perfect background vocal arrangements, and all this supplies an authentic seventies soul backdrop to this former Top Forty vocalist's pipes that squeeze (ahem) with just the right balance of emotion and tension.

Despite minimal nods to modern production techniques, the ghosts of Stax, Motown, and Philly International wander the halls of this album. Adult Contemporary and classic r&b radio could do worse than play the leadoff track, "No Doubt About It" (picture a more engaging "Easy Lover"), or Carrack's Eagles co-write, "I Don't Want To Hear Any More" (that includes Don Henley and Timothy B. Schmit on BVs). But the sensuous strings and Carrack's smoldering vocals on "I Don't Want Your Love (I Need Your Love)" access records by Bill Withers ("Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone") and Dobie Gray ("Loving Arms"), and it can fool you into thinking it already was a hit from an earlier day.

Passion rolls through "Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City" (memorably tackled last by Whitesnake) and drives the album's "Unchain My Heart"/Ray Charles moment, "Stay Awake (I'm Coming Home)." When the faux-reggae intro of "Just 4 Tonite" suggests the album has blown out its first tire, you hear that totally believable voice smoothly Johnny Nash it out. And whoever's idea it was to get Sam & Dave's Sam Moore to duet with Carrack on his Chris Difford co-write (one of two), "Love Is Thicker Than Water," deserves a piece of the publishing or, at least, a pat on the back. "If I Didn't Love You" is pure r&b bliss, "Who Am I?" is one of the best Al Green records that he never tracked, "Eyes Of Blue"'s horn section dances with Carrack across the reggae rhythm, and both Ben E. King and The Drifters get a reverent nod over cocktails during "Am I In That Dream?" that drowns us in Burt Bacharach cool and arrangements that recasts the singer as a male Dionne Warwick or The 5th Dimension's very underrated Billy Davis, Jr. That said, nowadays, any comparisons of Paul Carrack to other vocalists no longer apply considering we already know this voice after all of his guest shots with Squeeze, Ace, and Mike + The Mechanics, plus his own parade of under-appreciated albums. With I Know That Name, he's found more than his own voice, he's found his own identity.

Tracks:
1. No Doubt About It
2. I Don't Want To Hear Any More - with Don Henley & Timothy B. Schmit
3. It Ain't Easy (To Love Somebody)
4. I Don't Want Your Love (I Need Your Love)
5. Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City
6. Stay Awake (I'm Coming Home)
7. Just 4 Tonite
8. Love Is Thicker Than Water
9. If I Didn't Love You
10. Who Am I?
11. Eyes Of Blue
12. Am I In That Dream?

Paul Carrack - CD - I Know That Name

'I Know That Name' is yet another brilliantly soulful outing from the prolific Paul Carrack. With a musical pedigree to die for, Carrack uses all of his experience and professionalism to deliver a gloriously sumptuous work here; slick, polished and absolutely burstin' with supremely crafted songs, 'I Know That Name' is like the cream that always rises to the top. Unaffected little by those around him, not overly influenced by trends, Carrack's way is individual and home-grown but somehow he manages to still sound as cool and refreshing as that pint of cold Strongbow after a hard day at the office. Carrack's ability to fill space with controlled vocal dynamics and deeply profound vocal outpourings is once again one of the key issues here; Carrack's gently soulful voice is given twelve chances to melt your heart and make the hairs on your arms rise and oscillate - twelve great songs that cover a multitude of modernistic musical styles from balladic crooning to ballsy reggae. Carrack may not be the face you remember in a crowd but surely his voice and 'that hat' will re-awaken your senses and draw you into his amazingly vibrant yet surprisingly chilled musical world. 'I Know That Name' offers no great surprises; it's Carrack straight and honest, it's Carrack at his silky and passionate best, it's Carrack just doin' what he does and doin' it cool, givin' it easy, givin' it true!! 'I Know That Name' is Paul Carrack's fourteenth solo album and every bit as good as any of the other thirteen - there's are no slip-ups, no failings, no tailing off, no complacency, no showboating - just great melodic soft-rock from the master of all he touches. 'I Know That Name' by Paul Carrack is one for the cold dark evenings, one to warm you slowly from the inside out, one to make you feel better about yourself, one to sit back and just drink in, one to enjoy for all its honesty and soft-rockin' subtlety - another stunning work from the irrepressible and irresistible Paul Carrack - how can this not be a hit? Surely Paul Carrack's got it right again, surely 'I Know That Name' is gonna give Carrack-ites exactly what they want, and surely Carrack will pull in new friends and admirers with this excellent release.

Peter J Brown aka toxic pete (www.toxicpete.co.uk)

Paul Carrack - CD - I Know That Name

Being one of the UK’s most underrated songwriters, Paul Carrack is also a gifted one-man band in the mould of McCartney and Todd Rungren, Playing virtually everything but the horns on this latest collection, and with an expertise that could support a session-man career, besides his obvious forte as soul vocalist. His latter credentials are confirmed by his duet with Sam Moore on the southern soul belter ”Love is Thicker Than Water”, and by the respectful updating of the Bobby Bland classic “Ain’t No Love In The Heart Of The City”, which adapts elements of the 70s arrangement to a modernised, loping funk groove. Bland’s influence is also apparent on the deep-soul cut “I Don’t Want Your Love” while “No Doubt About It” leans more towards the Chicago soul style of Curtis Mayfield and Jerry Butler . “I Don’t Want to Hear Any More” and “It Ain’t Easy” sound like future standards, the latter blessed with a great pay-off line,. “It ain’t easy to love somebody – but it’s so much harder to walk away”.

4 Stars Andy Gill Independent 1st November 2008

PAUL CARRACK At The Opera House Absolute PCARDVD2(2004) Carrack offers the prospect of a happy retirement... Like the recent Boz Scaggs DVD, you can't really knock this. However, unlike Scaggs, Paul Carrack has been working solidly since the early seventies, finding almost instant success with the hit 'How Long' and subsequently contributing to Squeeze and, latterly, Mike And The Mechanics. He's also had a steady career as a solo artist. Perhaps the most revealing aspect of this DVD, a short interview with the man himself, tells us that Carrack doesn't listen much if at all to modern music and that his tunes are simple and in a 'traditional' format. That just about sums up this concert, filmed in January 2004 at Buxton Opera House. Again, like Scaggs, Carrack knows his audience and judging from those interviewed for the 'before and after' gig sequence, they are almost exclusively forty-somethings who probably wooed, cuddled, and shagged to the Carrack Canon and - like sex - can't give it up that easily. But in all of this, modern idiom seems to be ignored. Classic songwriting, balladry and emotion, yes, but a distinct lack of the cutting edge. This DVD should be snapped up by the faithful because it is a well-filmed and performed souvenir of Carrack's stage act featuring songs from current album, a few standards, and of course his best-known tunes with the Mechanics. Carrack reveals in the interview that he was influenced by The Beatles and Northern Soul; it is the latter style that is displayed here. From the smooth opener, 'Never Too Late' through to 'Where Did I Go Wrong' he is master of the soulful delivery and backed by a crack band it all sounds convincing if a little deja vu. You can't help admire, though, Carrack's honesty. He gets out and about in the regions, directs his own record label and career, and family values are the priority. These are attributes with which an ageing audience can identify. If Carrack could also offer financial advice and foreign travel, he'd clean up. *** Review by David Randall

The Mojo Review Satisfy My Soul - Carrack-UK

Seventh Solo album from the man of a Thousand guest appearances and part- Time bands. Essentially a family man amazed to Have found himself, decades on from The initial rush of Merseybeat, a survivor Of the cruel ebbs and flows of musical Fashion, this is Carrack saying, "No More rock star pretences- this is who I Am and what I have to say. "What he Has to say will, in fact, strike chords with Thousands of everyday people whose Monochrome lives take constant solace In sunlit dreams. Classic soul and pop Values deliver here a sound more Organic and less bombastic than Carrack's work with Mike & The Mechanics. Three tracks are co-written With Chris Difford, but the most Powerful is self-penned Running Out Of Time-an exquisitely British take On Bryan Adams Summer Of 69 vibe: "Beating time on cardboard boxes/In an attic cold as ice/We were Freddie And The Dreamers/With stars before our eyes." This Album is the sound of the small man coming through and doing the do with class and dignity. Colin Harper

Blue Views (Ark 21) by Jiji Johnson

Happily, no matter how seemingly lackluster or trite love songs *can* become, Paul Carrack's subtly soulful vocals - in _Blue Views_ and elsewhere - reveal unfailing honesty, warmth, and a fullness that transcend any less than appealing generic concerns. Paul Carrack may as well be appointed Professor Emeritus for SONGWRITING 101 workshops nationwide. Carrack has written for and worked with Pop notables like The Smiths, Elvis Costello, Madness, Nick Lowe, Roxy Music, Diana Ross (!), ad infinitum. His steady stream of hits in which *his* spotlight shines began with his stint in the band Ace ("How Long" [...Has This Been Going On]), and hit a running stride in his often overlooked fourth solo record _One Good Reason_(Chrysalis), which gained him Top 10 billing. Brilliant popsters Squeeze showcased Carrack's stellar vocals in yet another hit, "Tempted," and Mike & the Mechanics ("The Living Years") added more good stuff to an already monumental body of work. Carrack, back on the beat solo style, keeps the sometimes muddy tempo of _Blue Views_ afloat with clever melodies, his by now renowned brandy liqueur vocals, and an always haunting extended "blue note" tonality and way of weaving progressions that metamorphose nicely into definite "mood music." His revamping of "How Long" only reveals its modernity in slight production value shifts, and it carries with it all the emotionality as it did the first time around. "Love Will Keep Us Alive," his heartbreakingly sweet tome first penned for the Eagles, is written and stuctured so well, it leaves you unaware the band might actually have sung it a mite sweeter. These two more familiar tunes above provide a strong base for the niche Carrack's working on, groove, by groove, to get us into his own original *hits.* On that front, Carrack has a way to go yet, as they give us only all we expect comfortably, but don't seem to *dance* as well as the former two. _Blue Views_ is the lover you've had in your life for as far back as you can remember: the grooves fit, their very presence calms the soul, and you're glad, at least, that you can sit and rest a while...that they'll be here to stay. The rest comes later.
-- This review first appeared in Consumable Online, the oldest continuous collaborative music reviews publication on the Internet. Each issue consists of reviews, interviews, tour dates and more music information

The Q Review (Beautiful World)

It says much for Paul Carrack that after so many years in continuous employment, his voice still tends to be better known than his face. With Ace, Squeeze and Mike & The Mechanics, as well as in his own understated solo career, he's had little truck with fashion. Yet when it comes to comfortable, classy, suburban pop in the lightly soulful mode he is Mr Reliable. As befits such an optimistic title, chocolate-box romance of an improbably devotional kind is just about the only thing on the agenda while musically there's a touch of Motown, the odd gospel inflection and nods in the direction of Willie Mitchell and Marvin Gaye; nothing too strenuous. The one defining moment, though, comes with Perfect Love, one of those gushing piano ballads that Whitney, Mariah or Celine would crawl across a roomful of broken glass just to be acquainted with and which, against the odds, he makes sound almost credible. That takes a special kind of talent. (3 out of 5 stars)

Peter Kane