Blasko let me in on the Charles Bradley craze last year and I had a brief opportunity to see him here in Boston. “Sadly”, I was in California at the time and, while it’s rare for me to even consider it, I would have loved to have been back east to see him sing.
Bradley is a grizzled madman. You can see pain and age etched into his face. He sings with the brutal honesty of Billie Holiday, the delivery of Otis Redding, and the style of James Brown.
It’s astonishing, and a testament to the life he’s lived, that his first and only album was released in 2011, the year he turned 63. If you’re curious about what he’s gone through, check out the recent documentary Soul of America.
PaisleyTunes recommends that everyone go see Charles Bradley as soon as you have the chance.