“Changes” is also a great example of the simpler production and arrangement values that shine on Bradley’s third album. To hear diehard Sabbath fans refer to Bradley’s version as better than the original in the YouTube comments section is a powerful example of Bradley’s sincerity and natural ability. A cover of a Black Sabbath song that he dedicates to his deceased mother, “Changes” displays Bradley’s incredible ability to convey emotion with his voice and his deep love for various kinds of music. Perhaps the most touching song on the album is Changes’ title track. “Ain’t It a Sin” rumbles with a funky beat carried by a rigid bass line and backing horns, while Bradley, like his idol James Brown, sings with a contagious sense of pride. Where some singers might take those same feelings and fashion a down-tempo song about exhaustion, Bradley creates an anthem of love for self.

“I tried to be a righteous man / I tried to give love all over the world / but I’m tired of being used,” he shouts. On “Ain’t It a Sin,” Bradley takes the opportunity to let loose some steam as he discloses the toll that success has taken on him. He finally has a new life and worldview to sing to us about-one that’s come to him through the fruition of a dream that he’s worked to fulfill his entire life. While Bradley’s music has never felt anything close to guarded, Changes might be his most personal album yet. Bradley’s inclusive scope, from a whole country in the album’s beginning to a single lover at its end, with personal stories and political anthems in between (“Change For The World”), is reminiscent of Marvin Gaye and his incredible dynamic artistry as a singer and writer.

The opening track, “God Bless America,” is an open letter to Bradley’s home country while the closing track, “Slow Love,” is an intimately detailed letter to a lover in a blossoming relationship. Bradley’s story is chronicled in a well-made documentary, titled Charles Bradley: Soul of America.Ĭhanges (Bradley’s third album) begins with a love letter and seemingly ends with one. His opportunity to play his music across the world has come after years of working minimum-wage jobs and playing small club shows as a James Brown impersonator. The 67-year-old singer has happily found modest success on the Daptone label since releasing his debut album, No Time For Dreaming, in 2011. Charles Bradley’s story is not one of rags to riches, but rather rags to, simply put, dreams come true.

Who wrote changes by charles bradley