Terry Steele has been around some time, and had the amazing opportunity to write the number one hit "Here And Now" for the irreplaceable Luther Vandross back in the late 80s, and you will recall that Terry issued a seriously essential CD back in 1990 on SBK Records featuring the gems "Prisoner Of Love", "What Cha Tryin To Do" and a great version of Deco's "Delicious". Terry also featured on a few Hiroshima albums in the late 1990s - "The Door Is Open" from '99 being my favourite. Late in 2002 the great man released the "Day By Day" album, and it's still a CD that should be considered today. Writers and singers of the caliber of this man are timeless. Seven years on and the set could still be a brand new release! It's a relaxed and chilled affair which is designed to display all the best facets of Terry's talents. His own version of "Here And Now" is superb. His gorgeous vocals, effortless and poignant for all that he invested in the song for dear Luther, the acoustic guitar and loose beat, this is a moreish song if ever there was one. "Starting Here", another gentle song reminds me of early Babyface and Solar, and for those who like a more upbeat tune check out "So Strange". This is a great little tune, and one that may well have been criminally overlooked or ignored at the time. Please don't ignore it now! That goes to for the uptempo number "My Good" featuring rapper Hyphen Tirade. A persistent beat, turntable scratching and some deliciously 80's keys make this a very good track - yes, and that includes the clear and understandable rap (!) too. OK, it's not "Prisoner Of Love" but on it's own it stands up very well and one to ride with on a hot day! Terry Steele sounds very much like Ray Parker Jr on here...I wonder if the song had been written with Ray in mind??? Ray had been alleged to have a set recorded for Arista at this time with Raycism but...never surfaced did it?! The wonderful world of major label music...anyway, also acquaint yourself with the funky summertime vibe of "I'm Feelin' You" - a slinky and funky affair and reminiscent of what the Temptations / Serieux have done more recently. My final choices are the A Capella "Day By Day" and the GORGEOUS "Everyday". Simply lovely! Well worth a purchase - and very inexpensively at that from the link below. Let's hope we have some more music from this multi-talented artist soon.
Barry Towler
The Vibe Scribe
The Vibe Scribe
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