Frankie Oliver - Here I Am

Born in Brick Lane in the East End of London to Turkish-Cypriot parents, Frankie Oliver grew up on a fusion of black music and especially reggae and the likes of Bob Marley, Gregory Isaacs, Dennis Brown and Horace Andy. In his own words he tells it like it is. "That music was my life,” he says. When his mum and dad both died within the space of eighteen months of each other, he delved deeper into the music of greats such as Al Green and Muddy Waters. In his teenage years he began singing at local clubs and functions where he was spotted and quickly signed to Island Records by Trevor Wyatt, whisked off to Jamaica where he recorded his debut album, 'Looking for the Twist', and ended up working with the legendary rhythm section and production team of Sly and Robbie. As a former London taxi driver who carried his beloved Telecaster in the front of his black cab at all times, Frankie Oliver is a singer, songwriter and recording artist who has household names for friends these days like Delroy Pinnock and keyboard player Sam Bergliter (Lionel Bart’s nephew) and mixes it up with blues guitarist Steve Haworth, bass player Elroy Bailey (formerly of Black Slate), drummer Nikolaj Bjerre (Ian Siegal), trumpeter Patrick Tenyue (UB40), saxophonist Ray Carless (Adele) and violinist Stella Page (Elbow). The cast of friends that he has must have surely influenced the final product of his brand new album 'Here I Am', which has been released on Good Deeds Music. 'Here I Am' is a huge twelve-track collection of genuinely crafted soul songs encompassing his impressive song and classic vocals “I love making music. And I love my wife and family,” Frankie says. “I just want to express how I feel about them and the world, everything rolled into one. This album is my truth.” The first three tracks on this belter - the sanguine opener 'Gone are the Days', the BBC Radio 2 playlisted single 'Tell Me' and the sultry 'Man at my Window' - are stories from the heart of a man who knows the true value of things. But it's not all soul serenading. There’s suitable funk in tracks like 'I’ve Got Love’, the summery 'She’s Beautiful' and the gospel-tinged 'Down by the Riverside'. My favourite on here has to be the old school early R&B-influenced 'How Many Times' which brings out the Northern Soul fan in me every time I play it. It comes in a jewel case that includes a songsheet and lyrics and all artwork by Paul Heneger. Marvellous!

Track Listing:-

1 Gone Are the Days
2 Tell Me
3 Man at My Window
4 Cos of You
5 I've Got Love
6 My Kinda Woman
7 She's Beautiful
8 Down by the Riverside
9 Honey (I'm on Fire)
10 How Many Times
11 Love Is Overdue
12 Things That I Was Told