R&B singer Eli Paperboy Reed draws critical praise with new album

BLUE-EYED soul singer Eli Paperboy Reed, after being dropped by Warner Bros Records and going to work with at-risk youth on the Gospel For Teens programme in Harlem, has returned with a new independent album, 'My Way Home', which has drawn a five out of five review in Record Collector magazine. Wrote Lois Wilson, "It's a message record, a gospel record, and it captures Reed at his absolute best. Yes, it really is that good. Recorded in just four days on analogue equipment in a loft-turned-studio, it's driven by Reed's passionate part-Wilson Pickett, part-Joe Ligon-like testifying and his raw, rough-edged guitar playing. The key moment is 'Tomorrow's Not Promised', which is so beautifully crafted and delivered it could be a Sam Cooke-led Soul Stirrers original. But every track's a winner here."