Lost Without You: The Best of Kent Ballads 2

Liner Note Author: Ady Croasdell.
Illustrators: Ady Croasdell; Tony Rounce; Mick Patrick.
Ace's 2015 compilation Lost Without You: The Best of Kent Ballads 2 collects highlights from the label's licensed vaults, touching upon several kinds of soul in its 24 tracks. The earliest cut here dates from 1962 and the latest from 1987, but its heart is in the back half of the '60s, when the soul ballad spliced the sophisticated style of the uptown with the grit of the South. Naturally, some of these tracks tilt toward one extreme or the other -- the earlier sides lean toward the former, favoring stately tempos and strings, while the cuts from the late '60s and early '70s are a bit thicker and funkier -- but what holds this fine collection together is the exquisite craft in the songs and the passion of the performances. This is music made for late nights, when the heart is either full or broken. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine