If Otis Redding was alive now, he’d be drooling over this CD. So come on you Soul fans, fork out for this gem. You won’t be disappointed. Honestly.

Not only does Reed have a remarkably shaped voice coping with shrieks and falsetto with equal measure, he’s got this ‘hot as hell’ band â€" The True Loves who use a tight rhythm section â€" two drummers at his disposal â€" Attis Clopton and Noah Rubin and acoustic bassist Mike Montgomery.

With them there’s Ryan Spraker guitarist / back-ups/ piano. Brass section is made up of Ben Jaffe on tenor sax, Patriq Moody on trumpet and Gabe Birnbaum on tenor / baritone sax, and eight other supporting musicians : you can imagine the overall sound. They’re a mix of James Brown meets little Richard meets Memphis Horns. Considering their age (all in their 20s) they do a stunning job backing the Boston-based blue-eyed soul boy.

Their aim, no doubt, was recreate a throwback feel across all the songs, which they’ve done with credibility, style and gusto, creating genuine authenticity that’ll, if it reaches soul aficionados, keep the spirit of the genre well and truly alive.

They storm into action on a dance groove with the infectious Stake Your Claim. Reed leads the pack with punctuated squeals while The True Loves swing with style- horn blasts and wiry guitar licks aplenty. Am I Wasting My Time is something Sam Cooke would have delivered during his early 60s heyday and It’s Easier, a smooth ballad, might have made the cut for Otis Redding’s Otis Blue album, sitting proudly alongside Change Gonna Come. For The Satisfier, Reed blows up a James Brown blast on R’n’B dancer in the Sam and Dave mould, again whipping up a measured squeal when needed. Northern Soul freaks would be happy enough to dance the night away to the sizzling Take My Love With You. Roll With You is classic Stax soul. This gentle ballad proves Reed is comfortable with dance and balladeering. He does a similar job on She Walks and penultimate (Am I Just) Fooling Myself. He returns to the dancefloor beats on the rasping adrenalin rush of I Won’t Give Up….bringing back images of The Blues Brothers on fire. He takes on James Brown at his own game to end the album: the cut and thrust of funk-fuelled (Doin’ The) Boom Boom rubber stamps a man, and only 20 something remember, who’s destined to make his mark in Soul history.

File under: Astonishing.