| A teenager from Dover, England, Joss Stone's 2001 appearance on a BBC talent show called Star for a Night singing the Donna Summer hit "On the Radio" brought her to the attention of Steve Greenberg, founder and CEO of SCurve Records. He signed the 14yearold to a development deal, pairing her with soul singer Betty Wright, whose "Clean up Woman" hit the Top Ten pop charts in 1975. Under Wright's mentorship, Stone's powerful voice was refined somewhat, and with Wright coproducing, they entered a Miami studio in the spring of 2003 to begin recording.
Assembling a dream team of Miami musicians, including guitarist Little Beaver, organist Timmy Thomas, and pianist Benny Latimore, the live sessions attempted to recreate the powerful feel of the 1970s Miami soul sound. The resulting album, The Soul Sessions, was released early in 2004, along with a first single, a cover of the White Stripes' "Fell in Love With a Girl" (with its titled changed to "Fell in Love With a Boy"), which included live backing by the Roots. Response to the album was strong, with Stone's singing drawing comparisons to Bonnie Bramlett, Dusty Springfield, Gladys Knight, Janis Joplin, and Aretha Franklin, which made for some pretty heady company for such a young talent. In an era dominated by high, reedy melismatic singing, Stone's grittier vocal approach to RB seemed almost drastic, and by hearkening back to a golden age of soul, she may well have reinvented it for a whole new generation. Work on a second album project, in collaboration with songwriter Desmond Child, began in 2004.
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