The Duke and the King get another top ten album nod

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Here is the original review of Long Live The Duke and The King:

This year is turning out to be a vintage one for me, album-wise. This timeless offering from Duke & The King is right up there on my list. From the opening bars of ‘Gloria’ I knew that the bar had been raised even higher than Nothing Gold Can Stay, which was one of my albums of 2009.

The crafting of the songs and the soaring harmonies put this in a league of its own. There is no genre or boxes you can tick with these guys, they are unique and carving themselves a niche in rock’n'roll folklore. From the late 60s San Francisco feel of lead single ‘Shaky’ through to the more traditional Americana sounding ‘You and I’, they arouse your senses and carry you away into your stereo. At times I almost felt that I was in their log cabin studio deep in the woods of Bearsville, New York.

This album has a much more collective feel to it than the debut, with lead vocals shared amongst the band members, much like a Duke & The King live show. This record takes you to a better place in your heart. Track four ‘Right Now’ will take you to that better place immediately, it’s a true uplifting message straight from the gospel of Reverand Loveday. The bluesy ‘Hudson River’ is just stunning and Simi Stone has the most stunning vocal delivery on ‘No Easy Way Out’.

Every one of the ten tracks on this long player is mindblowing, however just for this week ‘Children Of The Sun’ is taking me the highest places. I have been privileged and honoured to both meet and interview the band as well as catching them live on a couple of occasions. They bring their love back to the UK next month and I tell you it’s the most moving gig experience I have ever had and one you should not miss out on. I’m not sure if I can give an album 11/10 but I’m going to anyway! This is the best record I have heard in the last ten years!

Long Live The Duke and The King drops on Loose Music 27th September. The lead single ‘Shaky’ is available from Monday 20th September.