Summer 2010 Mixtape: The Ladies of U.K. Soul

This weekend I'm taking my son camping on the beach. Sure, in the heat of the summer sun, we'll be cranking standards like "Brown Eyed Girl" and "Love Shack", but after the kids are asleep in their tents, you can bet that we adults will be sipping cocktails around the fire with these ladies of British Soul filling the cool salty air.

Corinne Bailey Rae is the new face on the scene. Her debut album a few years ago offered a couple of minor hits which deserve repeat listens. I believe she can be described as a singer-songwriter, as well, and the intimacy she must feel with her works adds depth to the music, I think.

I hate to describe her as an historical artifact, because by all estimations, Sade is timeless and transcendent. These songs from the Eighties certainly are. To call her a siren, a chanteuse, or a torch singer would be to minimize her sublime appeal.