Legacy Series: Lain – Brother Soul
The ‘Legacy’ series is part of the content migration programme from earlier versions of UKGospel.com, ensuring the history and evolution of the UK Gospel music scene remains recorded and publicly accessible
About ‘Behind the Beat’
‘Behind the Beat’ was an ongoing set of stories where UK Gospel artists presented a track-by-track exposition of their projects, typically albums and EPs (as opposed to the more prevalent singles format), sharing their thinking behind creating the projects.
This approach allowed for a more complete exploration of these recordings in their entirety, without the potential distraction of focusing on the more visible – or popular – singles from the CD.
Brother Soul
2005 has been somewhat quiet in terms of huge, big-noise, sit-up-and-pay-attention album releases.
We still have about five months to go, but there really hasn’t been anything MAJOR, like we had with the buzz about Siani and Raymond & Co in 2004…
However there’s a quiet revolution in the making. And this one already has a groundswell of serious proportions.
You may not recognise the name Lain, but you more than likely would remember the group Nu Colours from the 90s, of which he was a member.
His debut album, Brother Soul, holds the distiction of being the first album to have sold out, and in record time, on UKG Shop**.
And there’s good reason for that. It is one of 2005’s best releases, as Lain puts top-drawer British Soul back on the map…
And what better way to learn more about the man and the music than to read about the album in Lain‘s own words…?
Kick back, relax and find out about one of this year’s genuine, high-quality sleeper hits.
This album will make you think, reflect and – if you’re open to it – act on the positive dictates of our faith.
Enjoy…
Yinka Awojobi
Content Development
‘Behind the Beat’: A UK Gospel.com Report
Yinka: Congratulations on an excellent album. Gotta say it’s one of 2005’s strongest by far.
I know we explore your history in detail on the UKGSpin! BioChannel* show, but I’d like to touch on a few points that we didn’t cover in the audio interview, particularly as far as the album goes.
It’s different from the usual ‘Black’ Gospel album in that it’s quite introspective, but despite that, it’s accessible and has range and depth…
LAIN: It was written over quite a long period of time. I’ve been through many experiences, and shared these with the people I’d been working with.
And I didn’t write it as a ‘black gospel’ album. I wrote it as a man of faith writing about every aspect of his life and beliefs.
Yinka: and in many ways it also has elements of the kind of uplifting message that ‘Battle‘ had.
While most people probably won’t recognise you as an artist, almost everyone remembers Wookie‘s ‘Battle‘ as this HUGE Top Ten Garage tune from 2000, but won’t realise you were the voice AND pen behind the song…
It often happens that way, that you love a song and find out years later who it was by
I was talking to a friend recently about a song I did with Nu Colours and he didn’t know that I had done the track he used to rave to!
And l imagine even fewer people realised ‘Battle’ was a Christian song in the first place…
I remember when these major labels were trying to sign the single, and about 3 weeks into their bidding one of the guys rang up in total amazement saying ‘that … tune it’s like … a gospel tune!!‘
A lot of people raved first, then listened later. I found that to be a common trend.
Anyway there’s more on that in the audio interview*, so I’ll leave it there.
Let’s do this. I give you the track name and you tell me the story behind it…
TRACK: PEACEFUL WATERS (One of my favourites)
STORY: written with a friend of mine Mike McEvoy, this song is about an ever-shrinking world of hustle and bustle, where everything is instant
Importance is placed on things that are meaningless…
TRACK: BOTTLE
STORY: When I first started visiting London I was amazed at seeing so many homeless people on the streets. It seemed to be normal to everyone walking past them
It kind of stuck out in my mind…
TRACK: IF ONLY
STORY: As a young guy you think you know it all, but hindsight is a wonderful thing. I guess you live and learn
TRACK: EVERY MORNING (Another one of my favourites)
STORY: When I wrote this it was very relevant. Today with issues like ‘Make Poverty History‘ and the G8 summit, the Iraqi war and London bombings, it’s still as relevant
To stand in front of a nation and make a promise and keep it is virtually unheard of…
TRACK: 3RD NIGHT (LOVE this one too!)
STORY: When Mike Storey played the melody to me on his piano, the story of the resurrection came to me
There was something special about the melody, and whereas Mike thought it was quite sultry, he was a little surprised by the song I came up with, but he did like what I’d done
TRACK: RAINBOW
STORY: With Rainbow I was trying to be a little more creative, more poetic with all of those metaphors
In the bible it talks about the tree planted by the water, and the vine and the branches, sowing seeds on good ground, stony ground, etc.
This is my version of events pertaining to me
TRACK: BELIEVE
STORY: This is my version of a track I did on another project I’m working on called MARSK.
TRACK: ONE MORE TRY
STORY: Any one who has had a loved one pass away will know that life is short, and so we should do and say those important things while we can, before it’s too late.
TRACK: FREE
STORY: Both myself and Gerard Saunders were working with a trainee sound engineer who seemed to constantly find trouble wherever he went.
On this occasion he had to go before the magistrates court – I just wrote from his point of view, trying to get away from his situation…
TRACK: ONLY LOVE
STORY: This was written with Jason Chue a.k.a Wookie, while I was still based over at Soul II Soul
TRACK: WHAT I’M FEELING
STORY: Dobie (Tony Campbell) is the original Soul II Soul beat master. This is the live version of our collaboration
TRACK: ANGRY
STORY: I felt quite strongly about what happened in Iraq, war first questions later
How we react in anger isn’t the same as when we take a moment to calm down and think rationally about how to respond to a given situation
TRACK: GOOD DAY
STORY: This is just a feel good track. If you tell yourself you’re gonna have a good day, you will…
TRACK: ONE MORE TRY
STORY: Anyone who has had a love one pass away will know first hand that life is very short, and so we should do and say those important things while we can, before it’s too late.
TRACK: BREAK MY HEART
STORY: Very similar theme to One More Try, but this is specifically aimed at finding love and the bravery behind putting ones self out there.
There’s a risk of heartbreak, but if nothing is said, you could lose out on the love of your life. Just sayin!!