Connor Selby has the blues in his spirit. This is something that you can hear from his first album - and it seems that it has not gone away. And this is a wonderful thing because the blues is one of those genres that I’d say you have to feel to be able to pull off properly. One can try to fake his way through the blues - but it just would not come out the same in the sound and emotion that comes with honest blues like Selby’s.
Selby released the second single off his upcoming album today. “If You’re Gonna Leave Me” takes many of the same elements that I liked off of his first album Made Up My Mind, and it seems that Selby has taken his strengths from the debut and kept up with what makes his music and sound just so damn good.
All you have to do is listen to his music to tell that Selby is an ‘old soul’ - but from one old soul to another, I think it is a great thing because there is something in the music of the past that just made it so great, so good. And Selby takes what he enjoys of the music of the past (soul and jazz and rock-n-roll, of course) and stylizes it with his own sound.
And what you hear does reflect the past - but that is, perhaps, what makes it so refreshing. Selby’s debut album had some ballads that I found to be delightful, and it looks like he has grown even stronger and better as a musician since. “If You’re Gonna Leave Me” is a ballad and is loaded with emotion. And what you hear is just a great single. Selby’s vocals took me by surprise. I enjoyed his earlier songs, and he has strengthened his vocals and it really shines through.
It is a great song with a key solo (!) and a great amount of organ throughout the track. Of course, it would not be a Connor Selby track without a guitar solo, and it is short but sweet on this track. “If You’re Gonna Leave Me” is catchy and even at over 5 minutes in length, I wish it were a longer track as it is just wonderful to listen to! Selby has the blues, and the way he tells the tale is so wonderfully done. I look forward even more to the upcoming album.
Listen to "If You're Gonna Leave Me": https://open.spotify.com/album/3yfkg9em3SCAygQPfoORh1?si=f7ZDbOraRq2qn06Heo-NnQ
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