Corinne Bailey Rae | The Sea

(We welcome newcomer to T.U.M.S. Mr. Aaron Johnson as a guest music contributor. Aaron’s relentless passion for the game of music as well as his penchant to write articles for a side hobby embraced the opportunity to open up our arms and allow Mr. Johnson to express himself to us and all. Welcome aboard! ~~ T & The Crew at T.U.M.S.)

Corinne Bailey Rae | The Sea
By Aaron Johnson

Four years after her debut self-titled album, Corinne Bailey Rae has released her second body of work entitled “The Sea”.  For those of you expecting the light-hearted, soulful sing-a-longs from Mrs. Bailey Rae’s first collection, such as “Put Your Records On” or “Like A Star”, you may be in for an unexpected change in tempo, mood, and the overall feeling that you take from “The Sea”. Corinne’s soulful, seamless, voice travels back and forth from colorful, reflective joy to dark, deeply moving cries for comfort and understanding.

Last year Corinne’s college sweetheart, fellow musician, and husband, Jason Rae died unexpectedly. Coming from someone who also lost a loved one tragically last year, I can speak from the heart when I say that the courage it would have taken for Corinne to pick herself up and express her pain and mourning through her song displays strength and love equally immeasurable. “The Sea” is a collection of emotionally charged, personal passages that will forever bear witness to the deepest kind of love.  Love that only reveals it’s depth through loss in the highest degree. Tracks like “Are You Here” and “The Blackest Lily” reveal the emptiness and desperate longing to reach out to her lost love.  Anyone that has experienced the death of a loved one or even the loss of a loved one through the pain of a break-up will feel connected to “The Sea”.

With the addition of a brand new band, “The Sea” proves to be on point instrumentally.  The sound is precise, clear, and full bodied. Including the timely use of brass, woodwind, and a full symphony. Remaining tracks on the eleven song c.d. include “Feels Like The First Time”, I’d Do It All Again”, “Closer”, “Love’s On Its Way”, “I Would Like To Call It Beauty” (co-written with Jason Rae’s brother), “Paris Nights/New York Mornings”, “Paper Dolls”, Diving For Hearts”, and the title track “The Sea”.

Corinne Bailey Rae has opened the door to her heart and revealed some of her most intimate thoughts with “The Sea”.  In time her wound will slowly begin to heal but through her song she will forever let the world know that there is a scar on her soul and it will never go away. That is how it is suppose to be.

Aaron Johnson
The Urban Music Scene