''A Change Is Gonna Come'' is the debut album by American

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest atte ...

singer–songwriter

Leela James Aleicha Janeice Campbell (born May 22, 1973) known professionally as Leela James, is an American R&B and soul singer-songwriter. Music career James made her debut on the soundtrack to the 2000 Jamie Foxx film '' Bait'' on The Roots song "Work ...

. It was released on

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

on June 21, 2005 in the United States.

Overview

James covers Sam Cooke's " A Change Is Gonna Come" and

No Doubt No Doubt is an American rock band from Anaheim, California, formed in 1986. For most of their career, the band has consisted of vocalist Gwen Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont, bassist Tony Kanal, and drummer Adrian Young. Since the mid-1990s, the ...

's "

Don't Speak "Don't Speak" is a song by American rock band No Doubt from their third studio album, ''Tragic Kingdom'' (1995). It was released as the third single from ''Tragic Kingdom'' in the United States on April 15, 1996, by Interscope Records. Lead ...

" on the album.

Critical reception

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

editor Andy Kellman wrote that the album "retains a nostalgic tint. James has the stature of a woman who should possess a squeaky voice, but she sings with demonstrative grit. More importantly, she doesn't see her inspirations merely as artists to mimic; she sees how they learned from the past and applied it to the present. The past is built upon (if only a little), rather than simply revisited ..There's plenty of thematic range, whether there are blue lights in the basement, tears on the pillow, sweat on the dancefloor, or sun showers on the porch."

Track listing

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''A Change Is Gonna Come''. Notes * denotes co-producer Sample credits *"Good Time" contains replayed elements from "

Funky Sensation "Funky Sensation" is a song released in 1981 by American singer Gwen McCrae. The song was written by Kenton Nix who also wrote " Heartbeat" for Taana Gardner. It was produced by Nix and Henry Batts. "Funky Sensation" peaked at number 22 on the '' ...

", written by Kenton Nix, performed by

Gwen McCrae Gwen McCrae ( Mosley, December 21, 1943) is an American singer, best known for her 1975 hit " Rockin' Chair". Life and career 1960s–1970s Gwen was the youngest of five children, She began performing in local clubs as a teenager, and singing ...

. *"When You Love Somebody" contains elements of "I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know", written by

Al Kooper Al Kooper (born Alan Peter Kuperschmidt; February 5, 1944) is a retired American songwriter, record producer and musician, known for organizing Blood, Sweat & Tears, although he did not stay with the group long enough to share its popularity. ...

. *"Didn't I" embodies portions of "I Can't Fake It Anymore", written by D. Monda and T. Taylor. *"Long Time Coming" embodies portions of "The Truth", written by Dwight Grant,

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

and

Graham Nash Graham William Nash (born 2 February 1942) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, photographer, and activist. He is known for his light tenor voice and for his contributions as a member of the Hollies and the supergroups Crosby, Stills ...

Charts

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Change Is Gonna Come, A 2005 debut albums Leela James albums Albums produced by Kanye West Albums produced by Raphael Saadiq Albums produced by Wyclef Jean Warner Records albums