Since bursting out of the traps with his 2015 debut, Coming Home, Texas-born soul/gospel crooner Leon Bridges has drawn comparisons to some of the greats of the genre, from Sam Cooke to Otis Redding. This sophomore release cements him as one to watch. For the most part, it’s smooth, soulful and sumptuous: it’ll sell by the truck-load.

Opener ‘Bet Ain’t Worth The Hand’ is all gentle chimes and sweet strings, before Bridges’ sweet falsetto soars and swoops into earshot as he tries to let his lover down gently.
‘Bad Bad News’ is a swampy blues shuffle, driven by a slinky bass, so lowdown that you almost expect Barry White to schmooze in. “Ain’t got no name/Ain’t got no fancy education,” Bridges sings, “But I can see right through/A powdered face on a painted fool.”

The call and response vocal comes on like a New Orleans second line transported to his native Texas. This is edgy, raw and regal. The down-home soul of ‘Georgia To Texas’, with its sorrowful sax solo, and the funky shuffle of ‘If It Feels Good, Then It Must Be’ – the latter not unlike Prince at his most frivolous, albeit without the overt sexuality – are also mighty fine.

The jazz-inflected ‘Lions’ is all off-kilter rhythms, bass and finger clicks; ‘Shy’ is the kind of timeless soul smoocher that could have been part of Al Green’s back catalogue; while the gospel-tinged ‘Beyond’ sees Bridges thinking about his lady and picturing a future filled with the patter of little feet. “Do you think I’m being foolish if I don’t rush in?” he asks, getting a little ahead of himself in terms of life-planning. Given the rate at which his star continues to rise, however, planning for a stellar future is probably sensible.

Record label: Columbia
Listen to: ‘Bad Bad News’
Overall rating: 7/10