Mayer Hawthorne “Henny & Gingerale”
Though we can understood the criticism lobbed blue-eyed soul man Mayer Hawthorne‘s way about him not really adding anything new to his exercises in vintage R&B beyond the novelty of him being this nerdy-looking, horn-rimmed-goggled white cat with the sweetest falsetto this side of Curtis Mayfield, three years in the game, we still can’t help but be left impressed with his well-crafted mimicry of those classic Motown days.
On his sophomore effort How Do You Do, Hawthorne continues to cater to those constantly whining of acts these days being unable to “make music like they used to” by…well, basically making music like they used to, and while there’s isn’t anything in the album’s thirteen cuts that promise to break out as big radio-wise as other retro-fetish cuts like Amy Winehouse’s “Rehab” or Cee-Lo’s “Fuck You” (both of which were aided by some sort of modern-esque twist), his strict fanboy imitations of yesteryear’s tender soul-pop simplicity remains a treat to the ears, as well as a mind-blowing psyche-out for album credit scanners wholly convinced that rather than concocting original recordings, Mayer just has to be digging deep in the vaults to bring some un-discovered Smokey Robinson, Temptations, and, yes, Hall & Oates tunes to the public for the first time.
Our favorite of the bunch arrives via album-closing “bonus cut” tag-on “Henny & Gingerale”, a chill disco-soul jam that seems to pay tribute to the extended edits of tunes like Marvin Gaye’s “Got To Give It Up”, with the backdrop murmurings of party-goers adding a feel-good atmosphere, large chunks of time solely given over to a rich, undeniable groove that demands your body to be moving without a blip of a break for the song’s seemingly eternal-long length, and the occasional lyrical hook thrown in–in this case, the very Earth Wind & Fire-ish male harmony-laden nod to the intoxicating pleasures of the titular alcohol concoction (“I’ve got my cup and I’m fillin’ it up/ I can’t get enough”)–to guarantee some sing-along factor while one is busy mindlessly shaking their tail feathers.
Cue this joint up for your parent-folk at the next family BBQ and bet they’ll be grooving their junk (and, in effect, embarrassing you) in no time flat.
How Do You Do drops October 11th.
“Henny & Gingerale”:
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BONUS DL: Mayer Hawthorne x Kanye West x Clipse “Maybe So, Maybe No (King Most Remix)” (alt) (via)
Here’s the crazy-good video for HDYD current single, the crazy-good “The Walk”:
