Artist Guide

Ju Evans

April 1, 2020:

NEW ALBUM ALERT!:

Buy Ju Evans' new ALL ABOUT SOUL album from Collector's Choice.

ALL ABOUT SOUL Track List:

1
A Woman's Worth

2
Haters

3
Slide & Boogie

4
Make It Jump

5
She's Got A Crock Pot

6
Good Time Tonight

7
Family Reunion

8
Tasty Girl

9
At The Hole In The Wall

10
Beat It Up

Daddy B. Nice notes:

Evans self-published a CD called The Soul Of The Blues anchored by the unexceptional single "Ain't No Fool" in 2018. At least as--and maybe more--interesting was the tune "Everybody Cheat". And the gospel-drenched "Rest" blows them both away, similar to the way Luther Lackey used to rock out with gospel-infused arrangements when he was on his game. Evans' vocal, center front in the mix, made me a believer.

Speaking of Luther Lackey, I once asked Ecko Records CEO John Ward why he didn't sign the talented Lackey to the label--either or both as a performer and songwriter--and he gave me some reasons I won't go into here. This is relevant because Ju Evans has signed a contract with Ecko, one of the first signings John Ward has made in many years. There have been a few one-shot albums by solo artists published by Ecko, but I don't believe they were ever signed on as label artists. And even the unsinkable Ms. Jody might never have been signed if she hadn't refused to take Ward's initial "no's" for an answer. So why Ju Evans? He's talented, but certainly doesn't possess the hit-making potential of, for example, someone like solo artist Wendell B. Can you imagine Wendell with Ecko's composers creating material? So how did Laurel, Mississippi's Evans get through Ecko's notoriously difficult turnstiles?

The musicianship and production on the album is not by Ecko's Ward. Jessup Crosby plays keyboards, Justin Gray lead guitar and Evans bass. Jessup Crosby and Rodney Evans produce. Ju (short for Julius) shines on the simple, melodic, mid-tempo "Tasty Girl" and the ballad "A Woman's Worth". But many of the other tunes--"Slide And Boogie," "Haters," "She's Got A Crock Pot"--are generic. The mid-tempo "Beat It Up" achieves a nice groove. Ra'Shad The Blues Kid guests on "At The Hole In The Wall".

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From…
Daddy B. Nice's Top 10 "BREAKING" Southern Soul Singles For. . .

-------APRIL 2020-------
3. "Tasty Girl"-----Ju Evans

A John Ward (Ecko Records) discovery, Ju Evans is the latest recording artist to testify to the changing mores among young black males about "going down". "Candy-licking" no longer repulses; Ju likes "that apple pie between those thighs". From his Ecko debut, All About Soul.

Listen to Ju Evans singing "Tasty Girl" on YouTube.

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Listen to all the tracks from Ju Evans' new ALL ABOUT SOUL album on YouTube.

Buy Ju Evans' new ALL ABOUT SOUL album at Apple.

--Daddy B. Nice