Retro-soul has been tapping into our nostalgia for a more stylish era, and capturing many ears across the globe for a good decade now, so this record by 25-year-old Texan native Leon Bridges ain't breaking any new ground. But there's a little sepia-toned sparkle in Coming Home that puts him right up there with fellow proponents like Curtis Harding, Cody Chesnutt, Mayer Hawthorne, and even more credibly aged gentlemen like Charles Bradley and Lee Fields.
There's a youthful exuberance to his delivery, but it equally feels like you could be listening to a 20-something from the 1950s, such is simplicity and ease of his arrangements and lyrics. There's a smooth, romantic, tenderness to his voice, which draws plenty from Sam Cooke and Otis Redding, but also an eagerness that gives even his slower numbers a certain verve, not unlike Amy Winehouse.
The story of the album fits right in with the whole aesthetic - Bridges was a busboy at a dive bar in Fort Worth when he met Austin Jenkins of psychedelic blues punk Austin band White Denim. They bonded over a love of vintage clothing, and Jenkins invited Bridges to record at a studio he'd knocked into shape with band member Josh Block, as a place to house their collection of vintage gear. That gear, and Block and Jenkins' ears proved the perfect additions to Bridges' talents, and the record was created, mostly live with a bunch of local session musicians.
Lilting backing vocalists, sweet horn lines, a shimmying rhythm section, elegant piano, rolling organ parts, all add up to a heady 1950s jukebox sound.
Ranging through snappy lovelorn numbers (Better Man), slow, loping observations (Brown Skin Girl), swinging ballads (Coming Home), breezy dancealongs (Smooth Sailin' is a highlight), a touching ode to his mother (Lisa Sawyer), and gospel-tinged closer River, Bridges sounds assured, and plenty heartfelt too. He may not yet have the wisdom, but he's certainly full of genuine emotion. Sure it's a path many have swayed down before him, but Bridges seems to have an effortless appeal that would indicate Coming Home is just the beginning.
