The inspiration behind Closer to the People was to get Tanita Tikaram closer to her road band: to record the singer/songwriter with a touring combo with serious blues and soul roots.
Several of these players have done time with Van Morrison, a comparison that comes in handy for Closer to the People, not because her songs sound like Van's -- they don't -- but the record trades in jazz and soul influences while also spinning these familiar tropes into the realm of the personal.
Tikaram specializes in sculpted, open-ended compositions -- even when the tempo quickens her songs seem to unfold gracefully -- and that means the hushed arrangements, underpinned by acoustic bass and brushed drums, seem like reflections of the song's soul.
Such tasteful surroundings mean Closer to the People works well as a mood album -- the quiet, sophisticated veneer is sustained from beginning to end -- but the album is rewarding with closer attention, attention that reveals the details in both the arrangements and writing.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Glass Love TrainMark Cresswell, Tanita Tikaram | Tanita Tikaram | Play | 04:31 | 10 MB | 32 MB |
| 2 | Cool WatersTanita Tikaram, Martin Winning | Tanita Tikaram | Play | 04:10 | 9 MB | 25 MB |
| 3 | The Way You MoveBryan Day, Tanita Tikaram | Tanita Tikaram | Play | 02:53 | 6 MB | 19 MB |
| 4 | Closer to the PeopleTanita Tikaram | Tanita Tikaram | Play | 03:36 | 8 MB | 22 MB |
| 5 | Gris Gris TailsTanita Tikaram, Martin Winning | Tanita Tikaram | Play | 03:09 | 7 MB | 19 MB |
| 6 | The Dream of HerNatacha Hornbostel, Matt Radford, Tanita Tikaram | Tanita Tikaram | Play | 02:56 | 6 MB | 17 MB |
| 7 | Don't Turn Your Back on MeTanita Tikaram | Tanita Tikaram | Play | 03:04 | 7 MB | 18 MB |
| 8 | Food on My TableTanita Tikaram | Tanita Tikaram | Play | 04:37 | 10 MB | 28 MB |
| 9 | Night Is a BirdAngie Pollack, Matt Radford, Tanita Tikaram, Martin Winning | Tanita Tikaram | Play | 03:54 | 9 MB | 26 MB |
| 10 | My EnemyMatt Radford, Tanita Tikaram | Tanita Tikaram | Play | 02:30 | 5 MB | 12 MB |
| 35 mins | 81 MB | |||||
| 35 mins | 222 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Goetz Botzenhardt | Engineer, Mixing, Producer |
| 2 | Jessica Cox | Strings |
| 3 | Mark Cresswell | Arranger, Composer |
| 4 | Oliver Darling | Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Vocals |
| 5 | Bryan Day | Composer, Guitar (Acoustic) |
| 6 | Jonny Firth | Assistant |
| 7 | Matt Holland | Trumpet |
| 8 | Natacha Hornbostel | Composer, Vocals |
| 9 | Bobby Irwin | Drums |
| 10 | Leon Jean-Marie | Drum Programming |
| 11 | Alexander Mertsch | Design |
| 12 | Mark Morgan | Drums, Percussion |
| 13 | Angie Pollack | Accordion, Arranger, Composer, Drum Programming, Keyboards, Percussion, Piano, Producer, Programming, Vocals |
| 14 | Matt Radford | Composer, Double Bass, Vocals |
| 15 | Paul Simm | Drum Programming |
| 16 | Ralph Solmins | Drums, Percussion |
| 17 | Kurt Stallaert | Photography |
| 18 | Amy Stanford | Strings |
| 19 | Eleanor Stanford | Strings |
| 20 | Laura Stanford | Strings |
| 21 | Francesca Ter-Berg | Cello |
| 22 | Tanita Tikaram | Arranger, Composer, Guitar (Acoustic), Piano, Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 23 | Martin Winning | Clarinet, Composer, Flute, Saxophone, Vocals |
| 24 | Tim Young | Mastering |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |