A Change Is Gonna Come (Leela James album)

A Change Is Gonna Come
Studio album by
Leela James
ReleasedJune 21, 2005 (2005-06-21)
Studio
Length64:54
Label
Producer
Leela James chronology
A Change Is Gonna Come
(2005) 		Let's Do It Again
(2009)
Singles from A Change Is Gonna Come
  1. "Music"
    Released: 2005
  2. "My Joy"
    Released: 2006

A Change Is Gonna Come is the debut album by American soul singer–songwriter Leela James. It was released on Warner Bros. Records on June 21, 2005 in the United States.[1]

Overview

James covers Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come" and No Doubt's "Don't Speak" on the album.[2]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
Boston Globe(favourable)[4]
People(favourable)[5]
Vibe[6]

Allmusic editor Andy Kellman wrote that the album "retains a nostalgic tint. James has the stature of a woman who should possess a squeaky voice, but she sings with demonstrative grit. More importantly, she doesn't see her inspirations merely as artists to mimic; she sees how they learned from the past and applied it to the present. The past is built upon (if only a little), rather than simply revisited [...] There's plenty of thematic range, whether there are blue lights in the basement, tears on the pillow, sweat on the dancefloor, or sun showers on the porch."[7]

Track listing

Credits adapted from the liner notes of A Change Is Gonna Come.[1]

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Intro"  1:25
2."Music"
  • Leela James
  • Louis "Buster" Brown II
  • Scott "Shavoni" Parker
4:03
3."Good Time"
  • Commissioner Gordon
4:16
4."Ghetto"
  • Jean
  • Duplessis
3:50
5."Slappy" (Interlude)  0:57
6."Soul Food"
  • Saadiq
3:18
7."Rain"
  • James
  • Saadiq
4:08
8."Married" (Interlude)  1:40
9."When You Love Somebody"
  • James
  • Williams
  • Johnson
  • Commissioner Gordon
4:30
10."Mistreating Me"
  • Harris
  • Commissioner Gordon
5:13
11."Don't Speak"
  • Harris
  • Commissioner Gordon
  • James[A]
4:46
12."Bummy" (Interlude)  0:52
13."My Joy"
  • Poyser
  • Duplaix
4:57
14."It's Alright"
  • Commissioner Gordon
  • West
  • James[A]
4:03
15."Didn't I"
  • James
  • West
  • Commissioner Gordon
  • West
3:17
16."Prayer"
  • Thompson
3:57
17."I Know I've Been Changed" (Interlude)  2:05
18."A Change Is Gonna Come"Sam Cooke
  • Commissioner Gordon
  • James
3:35
19."Long Time Coming"
  • James
  • Williams
  • Commissioner Gordon
  • James[A]
4:02

Notes

  • ^[A] denotes co-producer

Sample credits[1]

  • "Good Time" contains replayed elements from "Funky Sensation", written by Kenton Nix, performed by Gwen McCrae.
  • "When You Love Somebody" contains elements of "I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know", written by Al Kooper.
  • "Didn't I" embodies portions of "I Can't Fake It Anymore", written by D. Monda and T. Taylor.
  • "Long Time Coming" embodies portions of "The Truth", written by Dwight Grant, Kanye West and Graham Nash.

Charts

Chart (2005) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[8] 43
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[9] 26
French Albums (SNEP)[10] 97
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[11] 52
US Billboard 200[12] 148
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[13] 42

References

  1. ^ a b c A Change Is Gonna Come (Media notes). Leela James . Warner Bros. Records. 2005.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  2. ^ "Leela James: A Change Is Gonna Come". secondhandsongs.com.
  3. ^ Kellman, Andy. "A Change Is Gonna Come > Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 2009-11-22.
  4. ^ Graham, Renee (July 11, 2005). "CD Report". boston.com. Boston Globe.
  5. ^ "Picks and Pans Review: Leela James". people.com.
  6. ^ Checkoway, Laura (May 2005). Leela James: A Change Is Gonna Come. Vol. 13. Vibe. p. 141.
  7. ^ "A Change Is Gonna Come > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums". Allmusic. Retrieved 2008-11-17.
  8. ^ "Ultratop.be – Leela James – A Change Is Gonna Come" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  9. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Leela James – A Change Is Gonna Come" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  10. ^ "Lescharts.com – Leela James – A Change Is Gonna Come". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  11. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Leela James – A Change Is Gonna Come". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  12. ^ "Leela James Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  13. ^ "Leela James Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 1, 2017.