Good Things

Personnel: Aloe Blacc (vocals); Leon Michels (guitar, saxophone, keyboards); Nick Movshon (guitar, drums); Luke Riverside, Thomas Brenneck (guitar); Garrett Devoe (acoustic guitar); Entcho Todorov (violin); Garo Yellin (cello); Michael Leonhart (trumpet); Aaron Johnson (trombone); Toby Pazner (piano, vibraphone); Jeff Dynamite, Homer Steinweiss (drums).Audio Mixers: Clay Holley; Jeff Dynamite.Recording information: Soul Fire Studios, Brooklyn, NY.Photographer: Dan Monick.All the promise of his debut comes true on Aloe Blacc's sophomore release, Good Things, a vintage sound meets modern problems release with a way too modest title. Right from the opening "I Need a Dollar" -- which could be passed off as unreleased Bill Withers, no problem -- the album offers grand things, providing listeners with that solid, but not polarizing, style of social commentary Withers perfected. On the following cut, positivity is pushed ("Something special happened today/I got green lights all the way") in a