TBGB Pick of the Week: August 30, 2010

“Never Give Up”
Soul Tempo
From the CD Doing Our Father’s Business
http://www.soultemposingers.com/

Inspired by the smooth sounds of the Temptations and the Whispers, the sweet-singing contemporary group Soul Tempo was formed twenty-five years ago in New Haven, Connecticut. Joseph “Rev. Run” Simmons named the group and signed them to his Rev. Run label. The ensemble also appeared in the film The Preacher’s Wife with Denzel Washington and Whitney Houston.

Soul Tempo has several CDs to its credit and a mile-long list of performance opportunities, including gigs at the Apollo, Kennedy Center and Radio City Music Hall. The group just completed Doing Our Father’s Business, a CD produced by five-time Grammy nominee Chris Davis.

“Never Give Up,” a single from the CD, is a slow, thoughtful ballad about God as the penultimate father, always looking out for His children. This well-crafted song, with its smooth pop groove and lullaby swing, feels as if it should be on a film soundtrack. The Preacher’s Wife II, perhaps?