Johnny Burgos’ All I Wonder has dropped and the Brooklyn singer, songwriter, and producer has collaborated with producer Jeremy Page to bring his latest collection of classic soul to fruition. Burgos’ candied falsetto and warm tenor is at home with Page’s methods which are a composite of styles from the ’70s to the present. Album opener “Play For Keeps” is a mesmerizing ballad filed under The Dramatics meets A Tribe Called Quest with Burgos’ pipes bearing some semblance to El DeBarge. The past/present/future aesthetic is noticeable again with “Get Back” where a dreamy melody and a Dillaesque beat encircle Burgos’ suave promises of love. Slow dance songs do not always represent the makings of romantic relationships—the sunny “This Vibe” curses insecurity and emotional barriers with busy rhythms and a nifty bass. Burgos’ reconstruction of Neil Young’s “Old Man” follows the ways of The Isley Brothers by casting a folk-rock classic into the soul music canon. All I Wonder carries all of the pain and romantic aspirations so many have felt making Burgos’ newest album another testament to the redemptive power of a good R&B album.
