Good Thing

Audio Mixer: James Hallawell.
Liner Note Authors: Paul Lester; Paul Young.
Recording information: Berry Street Studios; Miloco Hoxton; Richmond; The Barn; The Premises London.
Photographer: James Hole.
It's been ten years since Paul Young released a solo album and it's been about twice that since he's delivered something approximating the blue-eyed soul that made his reputation back in the '80s. Those hits were steeped in the sound of their time -- synthesizers ruled the roost from the sequenced foundations to the accents piled on top -- but Good Thing is an attempt to get back to basics, back to the sweet, supple groove of Memphis. Because Good Thing was recorded not at American Sound Studios in 1968 but cut by a distinguished Englishman on a modern digital rig some 50 years later, this album hums with rosy nostalgia and immaculate taste. Happily, Young avoids obvious choices in his covers, a decision that lends some freshness to the album, a quality needed to counterbalance the buttoned-up production, which is suited for cocktail parties, not juke joints. Nevertheless, Young rides these grooves with elegance and his ever-so-slightly tattered voice lends a bit of grit, an element that helps elevate this pleasing record a notch above simple comfort. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine