It seemed almost unfair that James Morrison returned from a four-year hiatus to a scene dominated by soulful singer/songwriter guitarists (Ed Sheeran, James Bay, Hozier) and blue-eyed soul crooners (Sam Smith, John Newman).
His sound was perfect for the moment, but he had to contend with younger upstarts who have amply filled the niche he left after 2011's The Awakening.
Morrison's fourth album, Higher Than Here, is a comforting collection of soul-folk tunes that is pleasing and enjoyable.
Much like Morrison himself, the songs are likable.
His voice still carries that gorgeous, husky grit, so full of smoky soul and yearning, most expertly executed on "Stay Like This" and "Just Like a Child." Elsewhere, he ventures into some OneRepublic/Script territory with the catchy hip-pop lead single "Demons." However, it's a pair of surprising album highlights that lift Higher Than Here to another plane.
The rousingly defiant "Right Here" is reminiscent of the best uptempo tracks on Adele's 21 and Sam Smith's debut, while the glimmering disco of "I Need You Tonight" (co-written with Mark Taylor and Paul Barry, the duo responsible for Enrique Iglesias' "Bailamos" and "Hero," as well as Cher's Auto-Tune smash "Believe") has all the trappings of a sure-fire hit.
With these uptempo jams, Morrison forges a new musical pathway for himself, which his voice can surely carry.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | DemonsJim Eliot, James Morrison, Mima Stilwell | James Morrison | Play | 03:18 | 7 MB | 21 MB |
| 2 | Stay Like ThisJames Morrison, Francis White | James Morrison | Play | 03:39 | 8 MB | 25 MB |
| 3 | Heaven to a FoolJames Ryan Ho, James Morrison, Martin Terefe | James Morrison | Play | 04:16 | 9 MB | 26 MB |
| 4 | Right HereReuben Morgan, James Morrison, Jarrad Rogers | James Morrison | Play | 03:51 | 8 MB | 26 MB |
| 5 | Reach OutMartin Brammer, Fred Cox, James Morrison | James Morrison | Play | 03:14 | 7 MB | 21 MB |
| 6 | We CanJames Morrison, Francis White | James Morrison | Play | 03:43 | 8 MB | 25 MB |
| 7 | Too Late for LullabiesSimon Aldred, James Morrison | James Morrison | Play | 04:16 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 8 | Something RightJonny Lattimer, James Morrison | James Morrison | Play | 03:50 | 8 MB | 25 MB |
| 9 | Easy LoveJames Morrison, Francis White | James Morrison | Play | 03:36 | 8 MB | 24 MB |
| 10 | I Need You TonightPaul Barry, James Morrison, Mark Taylor | James Morrison | Play | 05:02 | 11 MB | 35 MB |
| 11 | Just Like a ChildMartin Brammer, James Morrison, Steve Robson | James Morrison | Play | 03:17 | 7 MB | 16 MB |
| 12 | Higher Than HereJon Green, James Morrison | James Morrison | Play | 03:03 | 7 MB | 19 MB |
| 45 mins | 103 MB | |||||
| 45 mins | 297 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Leo Abrahams | Guitar |
| 2 | Simon Aldred | Composer, Keyboards, Piano |
| 3 | Tahirah Andrews | Vocals (Background) |
| 4 | Max Baillie | Viola |
| 5 | Drew Bang | Assistant |
| 6 | Ben Baptie | Mixing |
| 7 | Paul Barry | Composer |
| 8 | Nico Bentley | Trombone, Trumpet |
| 9 | Winston Blissett | Bass, Guitar |
| 10 | Cherelle Braithwaite | Vocals (Background) |
| 11 | Martin Brammer | Composer |
| 12 | Tim Bran | Guitar (Acoustic), Keyboards, Producer, Programming |
| 13 | Michael H. Brauer | Mixing |
| 14 | Ian Burdge | Cello |
| 15 | Alex Cowper | Art Direction, Design |
| 16 | Fred Cox | Bass, Composer, Drums, Fender Rhodes, Guitar, Guitar (Bass), Keyboards, Organ, Percussion, Piano, Producer, Programming, Strings, Synthesizer, Vocals (Background) |
| 17 | Fyfe Dangerfield | Keyboards |
| 18 | Eduardo De La Paz | Mixing |
| 19 | Frances Dewar | Violin |
| 20 | Jim Eliot | Composer, Producer |
| 21 | Lucille Finaly | Vocals (Background) |
| 22 | Richard George | Violin |
| 23 | Jon Green | Bass, Composer, Guitars, Organ, Piano, Producer, String Arrangements, String Programming, Vocals (Background) |
| 24 | Mads Hauge | Engineer, Percussion |
| 25 | Stuart Hawkes | Mastering |
| 26 | Sally Herbert | Conductor, String Arrangements |
| 27 | James Ryan Ho | Composer |
| 28 | Daniel Houghton | Trumpet |
| 29 | Roy Kerr | Producer, Programming |
| 30 | Sam Keyte | Engineer |
| 31 | Oliver Langford | Violin |
| 32 | Kristian Larsen | Assistant Engineer, Engineer |
| 33 | Jonny Lattimer | Composer, Piano |
| 34 | Malay | Bass (Electric), Drum Programming, Engineer, Wurlitzer |
| 35 | Tom Meadows | Drums, Percussion |
| 36 | Reuben Morgan | Composer |
| 37 | James Morrison | Composer, Guitar, Guitar (Electric), Primary Artist, Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 38 | Daniel Moyler | String Engineer |
| 39 | Everton Nelson | Violin |
| 40 | Adam Phillips | Guitar |
| 41 | Tom Piggott-Smith | Violin |
| 42 | Richard Pryce | Double Bass |
| 43 | Mark Rankin | Mixing |
| 44 | Juliet Roberts | Vocals (Background) |
| 45 | Rachel Robson | Viola |
| 46 | Steve Robson | Composer, Instrumentation, Producer |
| 47 | Sebastian "Seb" Rochford | Drums |
| 48 | Jarrad Rogers | Composer |
| 49 | Matt Round | Guitar (Bass) |
| 50 | Jack Ruston | Engineer |
| 51 | Glen Scott | Vocals (Background) |
| 52 | Josh Shinner | Photography |
| 53 | Shaneeka Simon | Vocals (Background) |
| 54 | Julia Singleton | Violin |
| 55 | Ash Soan | Drums |
| 56 | Mima Stilwell | Clapping, Composer |
| 57 | Ren Swan | Engineer, Mixing |
| 58 | Mark Taylor | Composer, Keyboards, Producer |
| 59 | Martin Terefe | Composer, Engineer, Guitar (Acoustic), Percussion, Piano (Upright), Synthesizer |
| 60 | Tia Terefe | Vocals (Background) |
| 61 | Phil Thornalley | Vocals (Background) |
| 62 | Israel Tomlinson | Vocals (Background) |
| 63 | Lorna Vassell | Vocals (Background) |
| 64 | Steve Vealey | Mixing Assistant |
| 65 | Bruce White | Viola |
| 66 | Eg White | Drums, Piano, Producer, Synthesizer, Vocals (Background) |
| 67 | Francis White | Composer |
| 68 | Chris Worsey | Cello |
| 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). |