With his exuberant soul stylings, his upbeat dance rhythms, and his velvety vocals, Leon Bridges dispenses a heart-nourishing dose of joyous soul on his appropriately titled new album Happiness Anytime. Produced by Josh Lloyd-Watson and Lydia Kitto of Jungle, Bridges’ 12-song collection — much of which was written by the trio of Lloyd-Watson, Kitto, and Bridges — establishes a steady groove just right for moving across the dance floor or for locking into the warm embrace of your lover.
Evoking the hair-raising, heart-stopping, jolting power of love, “Your Love Is Electric” flows along a highly charged circuit of bright piano chords laid over steady snare beats. Bridges’ captivating vocals grow warmer and warmer as the sparky current of love grows hotter and hotter. Spiraling slowly upward, ethereal background vocals lift the atmospheric “Take My Hand,” a soul ballad with sonic echoes of Jerry Butler and Smoky Robinson, into the stratosphere. Crunchy guitars open the Muscle Shoals-inflected soul shuffle “Tears of Joy,” with its sonic resemblance to Paul Simon, while the album’s opening track, “Light the Way,” shimmers with soaring horns, swirling synths, and pulsating Latin beats.
