Nikka Costa
Pebble to a Pearl
(Stax, 2008)

Nikka Costa is not a new artist. At age 36, as sultry-looking as she is, she is clearly not an ingénue. She also isn’t riding on the coattails of her musical royalty dad (producer and arranger Don Costa), nor the top-shelf musicians who have guested on her previous two American albums and varied, scattered singles and albums released in other parts of the world. However, to those who know very little about or haven’t yet heard this tour-de-force breakthrough album, that might seem to be the story. While Costa’s previous two American releases exhibited a marked vocal prowess, some abilities as a songwriter, and a sound that mixed various soul, rock, and funk elements in a likeable way, nothing prepared me for the sheer excellence of this, her first album in three years and her first for the rejuvenated Stax Records. After Amy Winehouse became the queen of the new soul revival and Duffy joined the ranks of that exclusive court this year, I didn’t think it was possible for anyone to make an album as good as Winehouse’s second or Duffy’s debut, but I was wrong.

It’s clear that Costa knows her way around a recording studio. As a child, she was privy to the insular and old-school world of recording sessions by the likes of legends such as Quincy Jones, Sly Stone, and others. After all these years, she has finally taken what she has learned, not so much to use the technology at hand as creating a musical environment that best suits her vast talents. She is credited as co-producer along with her husband, Justin Mitchell Stanley. Stanley has been with a couple of Australian rock bands, producer for the Vines, Jason Falkner, and others, appeared on albums by Amos Lee and Beck, and worked on Costa’s previous albums. The two have come up with a sound that would make Mark Ronson jealous in the way they weave a vintage R&B studio feel with a raucous modern kick.

There are several keys to the overall success of this album. First and foremost, it’s obvious that much of the music was cut live with organic musical instrumentation and subtle musical and vocal arrangements. There is also very little reliance on synths, drum machines, syrupy strings, or a mastering process that cranks up the volume to 10. There is a prominent use of keyboards. Hammond B3’s, Wurlitzers, mellotron, clav, moog, and good ol’ fashioned piano dominate the album, giving these funk and R&B tracks both a striking, melodic richness and a crisp yet soulful drum and bass that have a real thick groove.

Pebble to a Pearl opens up nicely with the slightly Aretha Franklin-sounding “Stuck to You”, which sets the tone with an old-school R&B groove and the prominence of keyboards. The next track, “Can’t Please Everybody”, is where it’s clear that this is not just a good album, but a truly special one. A real performance was captured here, with the song building from a Mavis Staples-styled slow soul/gospel vibe to a stone-cold funk rave-up complete with brassy horns. The title track is a clear homage to Stevie Wonder’s “Boogie on Reggae Woman”, yet has a fresh, funk feel. The warm organ glows on “Cry Baby”, with its pinch of Prince and slice of Sly. There is also a little Rick James freakiness present on “Keep Wanting More.” “Keep Pushin’” is filled with crunchy funk grooves and recalls Wonder’s “Higher Ground.” Costa moves to a slow dance on “Love to Love You Less” and Stevie Wonder’s “Sir Duke” is obviously an influence on “Without Love”, although given the easy-going pop soul sound, she has obviously spent considerable time listening to old Roberta Flack and Donny Hathaway albums.

The real surprise of the album is “Damn I Said It First”, which has an Al Green vocal feel, but musically sounds like an outtake from Bob Marley and the Wailers’ Exodus. All of the influences, however, are merely reference points. Costa has her own sound, never resorts to vocal overreaching that is sometimes the case with the also very talented, young soul diva Joss Stone. What makes this such a feel-good musical story is how Costa has patiently built a career, and all these years removed from her youthful beginnings, finds her sound while making one of the better albums of the year.

Listen: Various Tracks [at myspace.com]

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