Irreplaceable

by George Benson

Overview

A few decades ago, when the release of a George Benson album was an event for either jazz guitar or R&B vocal enthusiasts, his projects indeed lived up to the album title he employs here. While the new collection probably won't be an essential part of the Benson enthusiast's library, it's fun to see him trying to stay in the post-millennial urban groove hip with some of the younger generation's top songwriter/producers like Joshua Thompson (who's produced for O-Town, Aretha Franklin, and Babyface) and Joe. Those who wish he'd remember his prowess as a jazz guitarist have to content themselves with its general background capacity behind pleasant romantic vocal textures and easy grooving hip-hop shuffle grooves. Fortunately, Benson's in particularly fine voice, and most of the hooks are catchy from the get go. Conceptually, the best tunes are "Six Play" (which we soon realize is a love song to his six-string) and "Cell Phone," which postulates the idea that God and our late loved ones are accessible by wireless. There are a few stylistic deviations from the basic cool formula here, most notably the gospel-tinged "Whole Man," and the lush, gently exotic, flamenco-flavored soul tune "Strings of Love." The hope is that Benson's collaborations with the hipsters will expose his legendary talents to the kids who might otherwise shy away from the charms of an elder statesman. ~ Jonathan Widran

Product Details

Release Date:	05/05/2023
Label:	Trading Places
UPC:	5060672881029
Rank:	46244

Album Credits

Performance Credits

George Benson   Primary Artist,Guitar (Electric),Vocals
Paulinho Da Costa   Percussion,Guest Artist
Richard Bona   Vocals (Background),Guest Artist
Bobby Douglas   Keyboards
Herman Jackson   Keyboards
Rex Rideout   Keyboards
Joshua Thompson   Guitar (Acoustic),Synthesizer,Keyboards
Chyna   Vocals
Nakiea   Vocals

Technical Credits

Rex Rideout   Programming
Joshua Thompson   Programming,Audio Production,Composer
Paul Brown   Audio Engineer,Composer
Alec Head   Audio Engineer
Allan Rich   Composer
Bob Robinson   Composer
Warryn Campbell   Composer
John Fiore   Composer
George Benson   Composer
John Smith   Composer
Philip White   Composer
Stephanie Thompson   Composer
Tim Kelley   Composer
Tim Kelly   Composer
Sigmund Romberg   Composer
Oscar Hammerstein II   Composer
Quincy Patrick   Composer
Mike Clark   Composer
Harold Lilly   Composer
Thomas Klemperer   Composer
Hakim Bell   Composer
Joe "Cornbread" Thomas   Composer
Joe Thomas   Composer
Warren Wilson   Composer
Randy Beasley   Composer
William Irving   Composer
Scott Andrews   Composer
Olivia Longott   Composer