... Than anything MTV currently sends us to the neck is in this one, the first, plate from India Arie - (the best album of 2001, in addition to "The Rainbow Children" by Prince for me) "Acoustic Soul". Apart from Aries expressive voice and the excellent musicians who refine a lot of wonderful music here trumps "Acoustic Soul" on mainly by its truly "inspired" songs. "Beautiful," "Nature" or "Back to the Middle" are simplistic and simply terrific: Catchy melodies, perfectly good song (the woman has an incredibly gentle and deep voice, but also sings in higher tones and good), and first-class guitar work, which is to feel difficult to surpass ... what you can actually expect more from an album which is called "Acoustic Soul"? Three times better than the debut album of Alicia Keys, with India Arie is so often compared. Erykah Badu would be a better comparison, but this would not do justice to India Arie: It is unique.
