Solomon Burke

Solomon Burke's age-damaged voice can make songs of regret and misery pleasurable, as albums like Nashville and Don't Give Up on Me have proven. Throw in a hint of glowing guitar and a muttering organ, and you've got sparks. So it's sort of weird that Like a Fire rarely gets beyond a smolder. Everybody got in on the act: Credited songwriters include Eric Clapton, Jesse Harris, Steve Jordan, Ben Harper ... even Keb Mo. But sometimes having too many cooks in the kitchen spoils the pudding, and perhaps that's what happened here.

When Solomon Burke sings, you can hear his smiling eyes — he's having a laugh at his
detractors. Over the past half-decade, the 68-year-old soul titan defied the odds,
re-emerging from commercial oblivion with a string of albums that showcase his genius for
ragged-voiced ballads, and for pure blarney. You can hear the latter on Like a Fire's title
track, where Burke delivers the most hackneyed rhymes — "burning in my soul"... More >