Natasha England - Somehow

  by Malcolm Carter

published: 3 / 11 / 2018

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We’ve all got to move on and leave behind things that meant something to us at certain times in our lives. As shallow as it might seem I take comfort from the fact that I was hardly the only male of any age that couldn’t get the image of Natasha singing ‘Iko Iko’ on TV way back in the early Eighties out of my head. Whenever Natasha released new music or was promoting her previous work that image always shot into mind. With the release of her new album, ‘Somehow’, that image has faded for here is Natasha’s strongest and most satisfying work to date, and, although she is once again reunited with ‘Iko Iko’ producer Tom Newman on ‘Somehow’, the music spread over these thirteen new tracks represents where Natasha currently is and it’s a world away from how we remember her in the ‘80s. There’s so much more to Natasha England’s career than most know. Natasha has been battling health issues and we wish her well for the future, but what isn’t so well known is that, although she quit the music business for a while to concentrate on other projects, she also played quite a major part behind the scenes in music. Natasha has had a fascinating life and we can only hope that one day she will write a book about her experiences; it’s sure to make for essential reading. For now though it’s Natasha’s latest album that deserves our attention. Nine of the tracks were written by Natasha; the other four songs are co-writes with various contributors. Although Natasha has straddled various genres in the past and so it’s never been easy to place her music within the confines of one category, she covers over the course of these thirteentracks more ground than she has ever done before with her music. Recent releases have seen Natasha embrace electronica and she does indeed touch upon this on ‘Somehow’ but it’s mixed with touches of jazz, the blues and even the odd trace of show tunes makes an appearance while never losing sight of her pop sensibilities. While mixing so many different styles of music into one could have resulted in a disjointed mess of an album what Natasha and Tom Newman have produced is actually not only Natasha’s strongest set of songs to date but an album that will appeal to a very wide audience. There is simply something for everyone here. While electronica is the main basis of tracks such as ‘2 of a Kind’ don’t be alienated by that fact; in the hands of Tom Newman (who co-produced along with Steve Fearnley) these songs, although featuring dark vocals from Natasha, are immediately appealing. ‘I’ll Never Let You Down’ displays that Natasha has lost none of the power or emotion in his vocals throughout the years, but the reality is that vocally she has never been on better form; these songs feature some of her best ever-vocal performances. This particular track is a funky and jazz-infused sultry offering with so many different facets it’s irresistible and demands the listener’s undivided attention. The fact that the last two mentioned songs were written by Natasha alone is proof enough that her songwriting is at a higher level than ever. ‘One More Chance’ is another jazz-hued ballad, the kind of song that you just want to lie back in a comfy chair and be surrounded by; there’s a gospel vibe going on in there too and the whole song needs to be experienced as it’s a work of beauty. If you’ve any doubts how far Natasha has developed her music since ‘Iko Iko’, lend a listen to this song and marvel at how good this underrated singer-songwriter has become. These songs are deep both lyrically and musically. ‘One Step Too Far’ is another atmospheric ballad that has its roots in electronica but incorporates so many different elements; it reinforces the feeling that this is not only Natasha’s most personal set of songs to date but also her most mature. The girl belting out ‘Iko Iko’ is now totally a distant memory. The jaunty ‘Hook Line and Sinker’ does recall some of Natasha’s early work but even that shows maturity that obviously was missing from Natasha’s 80's recordings. The title track has rightly been pulled for a single. While Natasha has always been a powerful singer on this track it’s even more apparent just how much control and power she has in her vocals. A solo write, it also underlines how Natasha has developed as a songwriter, while the second track on the album, ‘Such a Shame', another electronic ballad, just reinforces this fact. The more pop orientated songs such as ‘Lost in You’ really deserve daytime radio play; Natasha’s pop sensibilities shine through while the backing is forever throwing up unexpected sounds with every play. ‘Me to God’ is another song that needs to be listed for radio play. It would see the return of Natasha to the charts, even in these times; Natasha’s crystal clear vocals show some of the young pretenders just how it should be done. ‘Somehow’ is without a doubt the highlight of Natasha’s long career in music. There’s so much on offer here that the whole album will appeal to a much wider audience than this writer originally thought, and, although there was never any doubt that Natasha England was going places with her music that others have never touched upon, ‘Somehow’ still surprises with all it has to offer. Almost forty years after Natasha England first came into our lives she’s given us her most complete, satisfying and important set of songs in her career. We can only hope that she continues making music of this calibre.

Track Listing:-

1 Somehow
2 Such a Shame
3 Lost In You
4 Work It Out
5 Me to God
6 Sighs
7 Bad Breaks and Heartaches
8 The Brightest Light
9 2 of a Kind
10 I'll Never Let You Down
11 One More Chance
12 One Step Too Far
13 Hook Line and Sinker

Band Links:-

http://www.thenatashaengland.co.uk/
https://www.facebook.com/Natasha-England-Music-1397263093666028/

Label Links:-

http://www.platformrecords.co.uk/
https://www.facebook.com/PlatformRecordsUK
https://twitter.com/platformsongs
http://www.last.fm/label/Platform+Records+UK

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