Like many of our favourite singers Ed Pierce began singing in gospel choirs and was also a member of the Philadelphia Boys Choir. And as he grew older he had also performed on "The Cosby Show" and "Amen", began his studies in New York and instead of having his debut album released on a major label he decided to go the independant route and teamed up with Esome Music.
That was a wise decision because now Ed and his producer/co-writer Edwin Ramos Jr. really can come up with a whole album of self-written and produced songs without an A&R telling him to record this or that to make sure he get a hit record.
I really like The Evolution Of A Man and it's a grower, that just gets better with each listening. Ed has a really good voice (if you want to compare him he's somewhere in the intersection of Calvin Richardson, Kenny Lattimore and Christopher Williams) and the ten songs on offer are very good.
Mainly focussing on the mid-tempo and downtempo scale Ed knows how to sing a soul song. Take I Think About You for example, a slow groove that reminds me musicwise of Calvin Richardson's Vibe, or Give In To Me that's equally pleasant. On most songs Jonathan DuBose Jr. plays the guitar but his skills really shine on Did You Know? where Ed is accompanied by piano, violin and guitar only...a very touching ballad.
Take My Hand is a song that's certainly predestined to become a late night/quite storm radio's favourite with its catchy chorus.
There are also songs like Playa Games, Bad Girl or Love Slave where Ed raises the pace and gives them a modern touch. But he manage to maintain the soul and resists the temptation of doing some urban/R&B tracks that seems to block radio, TV and charts these days.
Add to this some fine midtempo jams like Lost Without Your Love or Sherry (that's maybe the only bad point about the album...the songline 'Sherry...oh, Sherry Sherry Baby' is a little too banal for my ears but it's easy to sing along) and you have a very consitent album.
All in all The Evolution Of A Man is a modern soul album without being nu soul or stealing a glance at what's flavour of the month...and that's usually the way to stand the test of time.