Liverpool Sound And Vision Rating * * * *

To have any chance of success you need more than just the good will of one person in your corner; it is a sad state of affairs when a person’s voice in the modern world is drowned out by the flippant and the scratch your head unseemly. It is arguably the way of society now that has seen fit to laud the plastic and false and ignore the positive, the heroines and heroes to whom might get overlooked. To be in a million, or even 5 or 5000, requires people to open their hearts and their ears and allow the music to flow properly and with passion.

To treat an audience with respect, whether there is 5 or 5,000 people in attendance, that is the ultimate goal of every performer, the only problem is that it doesn’t quite work out that way, the mutual door that should be open and sincere, gets lost in the sweat and panic of chasing numbers and the big buck, when all that is needed is the realisation that being an artist is primarily about being free, untethered, allowing the #5or5000 to feel every drop of energy and unrestricted fun possible.

For CeCe Teneal & Soul Kamotion it is all about the sense and seeking of a truth that comes with inbuilt authenticity, nothing false or fabricated in their journey, all that matters is the music, the audience and the release of energy, that the expression of not holding back is all consuming and across songs and emotions that have been caught live in this latest release, such as Rockstar, What I’d Do To Get Your Love Back, the extraordinary Common Ordinary Housewife, Lonely (Even When You’re Here, I Betcha Come Back and Alive, the expression is everything; exuberant without being world weary or exhausting, passionate without being demanding.

An album of genuine heat, no distractions, one in which Chris Baptiste, Terry Kimble, Lavon Rushing and of course the rich blood and vocal purity of CeCe Teneal make #5or5000 such an enjoyable, purposeful set of songs in which to revel in.

Ian D. Hall