Testimony: Vol. 1, Life & Relationship [602517076563]

Manufacturer Part Number (MPN): 07651

Producer

India.Arie; Phillip White; Jared Gosselin; Dru Castro; Mark Batson; Drew Ramsey; Frank Macek; Jimmy 'J-Rok' English; John Howard III; Branden Burch; Shannon Sanders; Courtney Branch "Doctah B Sirius"; Sarah Thomas; India.Arie; Shannon Sanders; Mark Batson; Phillip White; Drew Ramsey; Frank Macek; Richard Johnson Jr.; Jared Gosselin; Doctah B Serious; Dru Castro; Sam Thomas; John Howard III; Branden Burch; Courtney Branch

Engineer

India.Arie; Michael Parnin; Aaron Fessel; Greg Fuqua; Tracy Kendrick; Dru Castro; Phillip Ramos; Sam Thomas; Mark Batson; Frank Macek; Jimmy 'J-Rok' English; Branden Burch; Shannon Sanders; Robert Battaglia; Paul Pilsneniks; Tony Terrebonne; Danny Duncan; Anthony Terrebonne; Courtney Branch "Doctah B Sirius"; Andre Burch; Sarah Killion; Neal Cappellino; Bob Tucker; Michael Parnin; Aaron Fessel; Mark Batson; Greg Fuqua; Andrew Richter; Dru Castro; Tracy Kendrick; Courtney Branch; Jaycen Joshua; Phillip Ramos

Personnel: India.Arie (vocals, acoustic guitar, trumpet, piano, background vocals); India.Arie; Drew Ramsey (guitar, bass guitar, background vocals); Tony Love (guitar); Natalie Keith, Destiny Muhammad "Harpist From The Hood", Destiny Muhammad (harp); Tammy Rogers King (mandolin, fiddle); Tarika Lewis (electric violin); Tammy Rogers (fiddle); Thomas Lea, Tom Lea (viola); Alisha Bauer (cello); Mark Batson (piano, keyboards, bass guitar, drum programming); Kennth S. Crouch (piano); Mike Lawler (organ); Pierre Medor (Hammond b-3 organ); Courtney Branch "Doctah B Sirius" (Moog synthesizer, bass guitar, drums, congas, percussion, gong, chimes); Miles Mosley, Miles Mosely (double bass); Cornelius Mims (electric bass); Simon "Woodchuck" Durham, Doctah B Serius, Dre Bowman, Michael Rhodes , LaMarquis Mark Jefferson (bass guitar); Richard Johnson Jr. (drums); Charles "Akahdahmah" Jackson III (bowls, shaker, percussion, gong, wind chime); Courtney Branch (percussion); Typhanee Fitzgerald, Matthew Johnson, Chenere, Chimere Scott, Laurnea Wilkerson, Joyce Simpson, Rascal Flatts, Trina Broussard, Matthew Johnson (background vocals); Great Grandmother (vocals, spoken vocals); Branden Burch (guitar, keyboards, drums, programming, drum programming); Jimmy "J Rok" English (guitar, keyboards, programming); Moses Staimez, Jon Cleary, Eric D. Jackson, Ricky Quinones, Blue Miller, Bonnie Raitt (guitar); Keb' Mo' (acoustic guitar, dobro); Erik Rostad (violin, strings); Marisa Kuney, Alma Cielo, David Davidson (violin); Jeanie Lim (viola); John Catchings, Adrienne Woods (cello); Chris Johnson (trumpet, drum programming); Frank Macek (keyboards, drums, programming); Shannon Sanders (keyboards, background vocals); David Piltch (acoustic bass); Steve Mackey , Victor Wooten (upright bass); John III Howard (drums, programming); Trevor Larence Jr. "Trev Beats", J.D. Blair, Abe Laboriel, Jr. (drums); Ricky Lawson (cymbals); Darin James, Bryan Brock, Doctah B., William Harriet, Javier Sols, Lamar Carter (percussion); Che Pope (drum programming); Rob Wanda (scratches); Laurie Ann Fessler, Kerisha Hicks, Deronda Lewis, Ametria Dock, Cekoya Tolbert, Rachelle Ferrell (background vocals); The Nashville Strings.
Audio Mixers: Frank Macek; Branden Burch; Dave Pensado; Courtney Branch "Doctah B Sirius"; Keith Sengbusch; F. Reid Shippen; Phil Tan.
Liner Note Author: India.Arie.
Recording information: Bast Station One Studios, Los Angeles, CA; Capitol studios, Los Angeles, CA; English Audio Recording Studios, Nashville, TN; Groundstar Studio, Platinum Lab Recording, Nashville, T; India'Song Studios, Atlanta, GA; Larrabee Recording Studios, Universal City, CA; Profound Sound Recording Studios, Nashville, TN; Soundstage Studios, Nashville, TN; Studio 301, Byron Bay, Australia; The Pass, Los Angeles, CA; Vix Mix, Nashville, TN; WEstlake Studios, Los Angeles, CA; XME Studios, Atlanta, GA.
Photographers: Jimmy Bruch; Norman Jean Roy.
Unknown Contributor Role: Courtney Branch "Doctah B Sirius".
Arrangers: India.Arie; Drew Ramsey; Shannon Sanders.
India.Arie hails from Atlanta, Georgia, but her smooth neo-soul owes more to the traditions of Philly Soul and Detroit's Motown of yore than the Dirty South rap that dominated her native city in the 2000s. Still, the remarkable thing about Arie is how she deftly marries old school R&B to an urban contemporary sound (one that is greatly informed by the beats and production of hip-hop).
2006's TESTIMONY: VOL. 1 LIFE & RELATIONSHIPS, the singer-songwriter's third album, continues to perfect Arie's unique blend of styles. Smooth and accessible, yet marked by supremely well-crafted songs, TESTIMONY shifts gears effortlessly, moving from breezy tropical tunes ("Good Mourning") to Lauren Hill-styled hip-hop ("I Am Not My Hair"), hitting all points in between. With just the right balance of old school and new, acoustic and electric, and consciousness themes with party jams, TESTIMONY is an important notch in the rising career of this talented entertainer.

Entertainment Weekly (p.159) - "[She has a] gift for warmly evocative Stevie Wonder/Minnie Riperton/Tracy Chapman melodies....TESTIMONY should resonate..." -- Grade: B
Vibe (pp.139-140) - "Arie seems to be progressing with poise. And with TESTIMONY, she opts for statement-heavy optimism instead of bitterness, fixating more on sensible arrangements..."