{"id":31641,"date":"2026-10-12T05:30:35","date_gmt":"2026-10-12T09:30:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/?p=31641"},"modified":"2026-06-06T17:21:54","modified_gmt":"2026-06-06T21:21:54","slug":"album-review-anthony-paule-soul-orchestra-what-can-we-do","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/12\/album-review-anthony-paule-soul-orchestra-what-can-we-do\/","title":{"rendered":"Album Review: Anthony Paule Soul Orchestra \u2013 What Can We Do?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Though he was born in Durban, South Africa, guitarist and band leader Anthony Paule has roots firmly planted in California. A longtime Bay Area fixture, Paule was inspired by the blues but worked in a wide variety of styles. His bluesy debut album 1995\u2019s Big Guitar<\/em> featured Jim Pugh on B-3 and scored with listeners. While that set was recorded by a trio, Paule\u2019s vision called for a larger ensemble: by the time of 2013\u2019s live set You Don\u2019t Know Nothing<\/em> (credited to Frank Bey and the Anthony Paule Band) he was leading a powerful nonet.<\/p>\n

By 2016 the band had established an identity all its own, with a new name to match. The Anthony Paule Soul Orchestra debuted with 2017\u2019s After a While<\/em>, backing Wee Willie Walker. A second album supporting Walker, Not in My Lifetime<\/em> appeared in 2021. But by the time of 2024\u2019s What Are You Waiting For?<\/em> the band had earned top billing: the release was credited to The Anthony Paule Soul Orchestra featuring Willy Jordan.<\/p>\n

In 2026 Paule is busier than ever. In addition to playing on Van Morrison\u2019s all-star blues-focused Somebody Tried to Sell Me a Bridge<\/em>, Paule returns with What Can We Do?<\/em> The second outing featuring vocalist Willy Jordan, the album has a taut, big sound from a 12-piece band that feels like the work of an even larger ensemble.<\/p>\n

Soulful in the extreme, in places What Can We Do?<\/em> has the feel of 1960s Stax releases, but with a modern sheen that gives the music a timeless vibe. A four-piece horn section and a spirited backing vocal ensemble provides a kinetic and rock-ribbed foundation for Willy Jordan\u2019s powerful soul vocalizing. On the opening track “Still Smellin\u2019 Smoke,” all of the band\u2019s assets are out front. Paule\u2019s presence is subtle, initially limited to inserting the occasional Steve Cropper-styled guitar lick. But after a rousing sax solo, he takes center stage for a sinewy (if tantalizingly brief) solo break. Clearly an adherent of the \u201cleave \u2018em wanting more\u201d school of musicianship, Paule leads the band in arrangements that always place the needs of the song up front.<\/p>\n

The album is a showcase for the versatility and skill of Paule\u2019s Soul Orchestra. The soul weeper “Too Late” is primarily a showcase of Willy Jordan\u2019s emotive singing, but it also affords the ensemble the opportunity to show off its ability to deliver strength and subtlety within the framework of a single track. The simmering “Stranger” shows yet another side of the band. The hard-charging “You Lie Like a Rug” is guaranteed to fill the dance floor (or transform a seated concert into a standing one).<\/p>\n

Paule makes a nod to his three-decade recorded history with the aptly-titled “Bigger Guitar,” an instrumental showcase that folds in the character of jump blues and swing, rockabilly, classic rock \u2018n\u2019 roll and more. Paule tears up the fretboard with skill and sass, delivering pure tone and melodic runs. Solo turns from players on barrelhouse piano, trombone and trumpet enliven it further, perhaps whetting many listeners\u2019 appetite for an entire album in such a vein.<\/p>\n

The album\u2019s title track is a delightful throwback to the tuneful Brill Building style of classic songcraft like “Up on the Roof” and “Under the Boardwalk.” The romantic “The Heart Never Says Goodbye” displays shades of Duke Ellington, applied to the pop idiom. The snaky “Secret” is equal parts timeless and modern. The ebullient “If It Ain\u2019t One Thing It\u2019s Two” swings hard. “Walkin” is a feel-good soul stirrer. “You\u2019re Nobody Till Somebody Loves You” shows that there\u2019s plenty of life left in familiar musical forms. The instrumental album closer, “Blue Mood Indica” combines a brassy Vegas character with strong blues values, serving up tasty fills from the players. Taken as a whole, What Can We Do?<\/em> answers its own question: quite a lot, including making one of the year\u2019s finest releases.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Though he was born in Durban, South Africa, guitarist and band leader Anthony Paule has roots firmly planted in California. A longtime Bay Area fixture, Paule was inspired by the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":31631,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,49,65,69],"tags":[5958],"class_list":["post-31641","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blues","category-new-release","category-review","category-soul","tag-anthony-paule","cat-9-id","cat-49-id","cat-65-id","cat-69-id","has_thumb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31641","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31641"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31641\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31642,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31641\/revisions\/31642"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/31631"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31641"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31641"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.musoscribe.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31641"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}