Soul veteran Lee Fields will release his new album Faithful Man on March 13 via Brooklyn’s Truth & Soul Records. According to Fields, the album explores the inner workings of human relationships and was recorded using traditional analog equipment. Much like 2009’s My World, Faithful Man evokes a classic soul sound with a distinct modern twist, aided by the production help from Truth & Soul co-owners and producers Jeff Silverman and Leon Michels—known for their work with stars including Adele, Aloe Blacc, Ghostface Killah, Jay-Z and many others. In the following discussion, Fields talks about his unfaltering positive outlook on life, his approach to using new recording technology and why he chose to include a cover of the Rolling Stone’s “Moonlight Mile” on the new album.
You have a new album coming out called Faithful Man, which is your first since 2009’s critically acclaimed My World. That album was seen as somewhat of a return to a classic soul sound that rarely exists in today’s music world. Can you talk about the direction you took with the new album?
I think, actually, what we’re doing on this one is picking up where we left off with the My World album. We’re about—when I say “we” I mean myself, Lee Fields, and the Expressions—making records that we are pleased with. We don’t want to give somebody something that we’re not pleased with. So we’re very happy with this album. If you’re going to record a record and give it to the public, you should be very, very happy with what you did. The song choices cover the whole spectrum of human relation, ‘cause, really, that’s what life is all about—the relationship between one person to another. We’re into the spiritual aspect of the relationship. So we covered the full spectrum on this album of relations. Period.
Everything that we’re doing right now is in a new direction. Soul in and of itself comes from experience—the human psyche, the mental aspect of how it felt. To me, that’s what soul is. You’ve got the body and the flesh and you’ve got the spiritual self. The spiritual self is all about relationships and how you relate to other people. In this case, it’s a personal thing of how relationships are faith. How does a man get along with his girlfriend, or his mother, or a college acquaintance? It’s all about relationships. So a faithful man, that’s one situation, and that’s what this album is about. It’s a beautiful thing.
That says quite a bit about the title, Faithful Man. What’s the story behind that?
We all, females and males, at points in our lives, have to make the decision whether to do right or wrong, with regard to relationships. That’s one of the aspects of the relationship. In one of the songs we talk about the faithful man who’s been faithful, and then there’s the point when temptation sets in. But I never say he did anything. We leave it with, how they call it on TV, a cliffhanger [Laughs]. So that’s one of the aspects of the relationship. Relationships are the substance that brings us all together. So I hope people embrace that aspect of the album.
Does the album title speak to you personally or a specific time in your life, or are you writing from more of a generalized standpoint?
On this album, we had a team of various writers. On this album, as a matter of fact, I actually took a back seat. I had some input, but mainly, I thought it would be to my best interest to have these young individuals to tell their story, and I’m the storyteller. So, on this album, I’m more just a storyteller. We live in such a chaotic world—conflicts, outbursts, defamations and all kinds of crazy stuff. And we were considering what was happening at the time, and it’s still happening. With conception of this CD, I think love is the answer. I try to smooth everything to the right point so that you can get away from all that chaos, so you can escape. It’s like a short excursion without having to leave where you are. The only thing you have to bring is a smaller scale of your emotions, because that’s what we live for. We live for our emotions. I’m not saying it’s therapeutic. What I’m saying is the choice of songs that we made this time should make people feel good.
Listen man, I don’t even listen to my stuff that much. But this album, I don’t mind playing because I didn’t write a lot of the stuff. I’m listening to what other people are thinking. I think it’s wise to listen to other folks sometimes. I don’t consider myself a wise person, or a person who has the answers. But I do think it’s wise to listen to other people sometimes.
You also cover The Rolling Stones’ “Moonlight Mile” on the new record. Can you talk about why you chose that song for inclusion? Are there any other covers?
I love that “Moonlight Mile” tune. It tells a story to me, but I don’t know how other people interpret that song. A lot of people have problems interpreting that song, but I saw myself in that song. The rest of the songs on the album were written by our team.
It’s interesting to hear that you used a writing team, because that was definitely an early facet of soul music. These great singers, for example Dianna Ross, would be paired with writers and they would become the storyteller, as you said. That’s not necessarily something you see a lot of today, but it’s nice to see that you have continued that tradition in a contemporary way.
Yeah, man. Everybody writes; everybody tries. It’s a mission to make something that you’re happy with.
From a production standpoint, you use lots of analog equipment from the classic soul era, which gives the sound a very authentic, retro feel. That’s often something that’s associated with the Daptone sound, who you’ve worked with over the years. Is your intention to make the record sound like it was created in the past?
We recorded the album at Truth and Soul’s studio in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Analog is a major thing. However, you got to keep up with what’s happening to make it sound like something that should have been recorded years ago, but still sounds so fresh. We are actually making songs. We’re actually recording songs just like they were recorded in that era, but we also use technologies that enhance it, without deforming it. Technology shouldn’t be taking away from the structural layers of what it is. That’s why when people listen to it, it sounds old, but it sounds fresh at the same time. We try not to use devices to enhance the sound; we try to use these devices to make the sound clearer. We don’t need devices to alter the sound, but to make it more audible.
Sharon Jones was discovered on one of your singles in the 90s and you’ve worked with the Daptone Family on various projects over the years. Are you still closely associated with that family of musicians?
We’re still tight. I love Sharon from the bottom of my heart and I’m so happy for her success. We’re a family, man. All of us. Everything that has turned out so well. I’m so happy about it. When I see Sharon on TV and Charles Bradley it’s just another feather in my hat. I’m like a kid in a candy store. I’m not about me, I’m about everybody. I’m so selfish, I want everything like I want it to be. I’d like for Sharon, for Charles Bradley and everyone and everything just to be perfect. I want people to get along with each other. I want everyone to be happy.
