The Holmes Brothers Albums (10)
'Feed My Soul'
Release Date 3/2/2010
Tracks 14
Label Alligator Records
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
The Holmes Brothers do what they do supremely well, taking all sorts of music and making it into gospel -- a sort of musical equivalent of alchemy. There's more of it here, plenty of their own material, but with some absolutely glorious covers. They utterly re-imagine Cheap Trick's perky "I Want You to Want Me" as a piece of '50s gospel, make country-soul from "I Can't Help It If I'm Still in Love with You" (with a great vocal from Rosanne Cash), and do delicious things to a pair of Lyle Lovett tunes. It's good to hear so many covers, actually, not because their own material is weak (anything but!), but rather because they have a special sense of style and a way to extract things from a song that you'd never imagined, as they do with the chestnut "Bad Moon Rising." With a crack band -- and a real tip of the hat goes to multi-instrumentalist Larry Campbell -- they're in top form here, and a few guests, like Levon Helm and Joan Osborne, help keep everything down-home and funky. The Holmes Brothers continue their series of small triumphs here. ~ Chris Nickson, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
The return to CD of New York's favorite sons, the Holmes Brothers, is a welcome one. Indeed, while fans know what to expect -- a killer mélange of soul, blues, gospel, and funk -- those combinations are always surprising. Sherman and Wendell Holmes and drummer/vocalist Popsy Dixon have opted to work with producer Craig Street (Cassandra Wilson, Joe Henry, Me'Shell NdegéOcello) this time out and enlist a few guests in the guise of pedal steel boss Greg Leisz, bassist David Pilch from the Bill Frisell Band, guitarist Chris Bruce, and the inimitable Patrick Warren on pump organ. The program is one of the most adventurous the band has ever attempted on record, but all of these songs become vehicles for the rootsy, sweet, and deeply emotional Holmes Brothers treatment. The covers are revelatory in scope, including easily the most moving read of Townes Van Zandt's "If I Needed You" ever committed to tape. But it doesn't stop there; they give a similar -- albeit rowdier -- treatment to Hank Williams' "I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry." In addition, the band covers Willie Nelson's classic "Opportunity to Cry" and Gillian Welch's "Everything Is Free" in a late-night fireplace version that makes the songwriter's version sound clinical. But before one gets the idea that this is the Holmes Brothers' alt.country disc, a Delta blues-styled reading of Bob Marley's "Concrete Jungle" and a smoking, roiling, bluesed-out two-step version of the Smith and Dixon R&B stalwart "Big Boss Man" should put those assumptions to rest. But it's Sherman and Wendell's songs that bring the most satisfaction. Wendell's "We Meet, We Part, We Remember" is the greatest pure soul tune recorded thus far in the 21st century. With its Impressions-styled chorus and its James Carr cadence it rips the skin off. His rollicking electric country blues number "You Won't Be Livin' Here Anymore" sounds like an urban garage version of "Big River," and the deep blue Mississippi Delta chamber song "I'm So Lonely" by Sherman closes the record on a mournful whisper that underscores the transcendent message in all Holmes Brothers outings: that no matter who they are and what their circumstances are, people share one great desire, to be loved just for who they are. Sound syrupy? Sound hopelessly out of touch with the times? Then maybe the times need to change, because music like this deserves to be played from every open window. This is the first great record of 2004. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide
'Speaking in Tongues'
Release Date 1/30/2001
Tracks 13
Label Alligator
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
The sixth album by New York's Holmes Brothers is another all-spirituals set -- though not in the traditional sense of the word. Produced by pop singer Joan Osborne (before she was a superstar, Osborne woodshedded with the Brothers and developed a fine rootsy singing style of her own), who was there in the Manhattan trenches with the band, this set goes a long, long way to capturing raw, excruciating grooves. With the a trio of singers as soulful as any group Memphis or Motown ever produced, the Holmes Brothers take it to the gut each and every time. This set opens with Ben Harper's "Homeless Child," and let's just say after the deep, grease-fire funk the vocalizing creates, Harper should never play it again. This song now belongs to the Holmes Brothers. Sherman Holmes' groove on his "Speaking in Tongues" borrows a piece of a Rick James bassline and builds an entire gospel-funk number on top of it. This might not be the song you'd hear in church, but you should -- you might actually go. With a six-voice chorus kicking the refrain through every single barrier between spirituality and carnality, weight is lent to the notion that this Jesus that Sherman sings of is a flesh-and-blood Jesus, inspiring devotion and reverence in the everyday world. Osborne is able to accomplish what no other producer who has worked with this band has been able to do: She leaves their sound alone. Its rough edges, knotty corners, and rough-hewn grace are all displayed without reservation or apology. This is the band's barroom sound enhanced with a trio of female voices who, if anything, make it more raucous, more slippery, and somehow nastier, even though this is sanctified music. It's body music that seeks to transcend the body. Thank God it hasn't yet. Their Memphis soul-styled reading of Sister Rosetta Tharpe's "Can't No Grave Hold My Body Down" is revelatory. Taking her already deep blues and chunking it up with Wendell's wah-wahed guitar, and with Rob Arthur doubling on rhythm loops and funky organ, the thing threatens to lift right off the ground. Only the Precious Three anchor the tune's body to its heart and keep it earthbound. And besides the Holmes originals, another definitive reading of Harper's "I Want to Be Ready," and Bob Dylan's "Man of Peace," their radical reworking of Gamble and Huff's classic disco-gospel tune "Love Train" is confounding in its essentialism. It takes the harmony of the original tune and uses it to drop the melody out; it's replaced with a different shuffling rhythm and a Curtis Mayfield-styled chorus. With the Holmes Brothers, the song becomes an anthem of a different kind. Only Wendell, Sherman, and Popsy Dixon could take secular material and redeem it without stretching the truth. If anything, they inject truth directly into the meaning of a song that merely implies it. And they do so with such openness and beauty, without judgment or musical one-upmanship, that their courteous grace is apparent everywhere. This is the finest of the Holmes Brothers' recordings to make the street. It will be too bad if critics fault them for using Osborne as a producer, when she was uniquely qualified to bring their vision to the public. She's done a fine job, and one can only hope some of her fans will take notice of the greatest soul/gospel/blues/funk group on the planet. Awesome. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
The Holmes Brothers have honed their blend of rock, blues, gospel and soul to perfection on this, their fifth release. Whether it's Popsy Dixon's stunning interpretation of Tom Waits' "Train Song," the soul stirring harmonies on the gospel standard "I Surrender All," or an original, gritty guitar workout like "Start Stoppin'," there is simply not a bad song on this album. The Holmes Brothers continue to defy all classifications, except one: damn good music. ~ Steve McMullen, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Soul Street continues the Holmes Brothers' tradition of doing tremendous covers ("You're Gonna Make Me Cry," "Down In Virginia" and "Fannie Mae"), authentic originals ("I Won't Hurt You Anymore," "Dashboard Bar") and adding gospel ("Walk in the Light") and honky tonk ("There Goes My Everything") into their blend. There's little to criticize about the Holmes Brothers; their sound, vocals and harmonies aren't laid-back or restrained, and everything they sing is done with exuberance and integrity. It may not be commercially viable, but it's musically sound. ~ Ron Wynn, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Jubilation is a revealing, wonderful collection of the Holmes Brothers' distinctive soul. The brothers tie together a seemingly disconnected array of styles -- everything from straightforward blues, R&B, and gospel to worldbeat and country -- and come up with a cohesive whole. Even when the group delves into soukous or works with a Chinese flutist, it manages to retain the pure qualities of American blues and R&B. ~ Thom Owens, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Their second release contained 11 more wonderful tunes that easily moved from surging R&B to rousing blues with an occasional venture into gospel or country. They covered "Drown in My Own Tears" and "High Heel Sneakers" and had the requisite qualities for each one down pat, as well as "Never Let Me Go, " "The Love You Save," and "I Saw the Light." But their own numbers, like "I've Been a Loser" and the title track, were even better, displaying a contemporary sensibility and a classic style and sound. ~ Ron Wynn, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
The Holmes Brothers' voices are too potent, their harmonies too smashing, and their love of vintage sounds too immense for them to be content with producer-dominated, softer urban contemporary sounds. This set included some riveting gospel tunes like "None But the Righteous" and "Up Above My Head," plus a credible (if a little lengthy) version of "When Something Is Wrong with My Baby" and the tighter, hard-hitting tunes "Please Don't Hurt Me," "Ask Me No Questions," and "The Final Round." If straight-ahead, rousing shared leads and booming harmonies interest you, the Holmes Brothers do it the way they used to throughout the South in the '60s and '70s. ~ Ron Wynn, All Music Guide
