Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Life has never been dull where Joss Stone is concerned and that, despite many who arguably find it a national sport to knock such ability, is what matters when it comes to inspiration for any song, poem or piece of art; it is not what it seems; it is what it represents under the surface. For Joss Stone to come back after four years without a set of new songs and a fresh new album, Water For Your Soul represents hope and strength for her and her fans.

The fresh start theme that winds its way through the album is not only on the surface, it sneaks gently, with tenderness and a smooth force that whilst not entirely transfixing, does lead the listener down a route to which appreciation can be garnered. This message of strength, of feminine fortitude despite all the knocks, rides likes a white stallion, snorting wildly in the mist and the sense of tension that cannot be bridled, cannot be tamed even in the most gentle of spirits.

The 14 tracks represent a new beginning and growth, the element of nourishment of purifying water to which Ms. Stone seems to have taken solace and shelter in. The feeling of rising above abandonment and neglect being taken as a purposeful accomplishment and the emotions connected with neglect and abandonment long since departed, but always with that one eye on the past making sure they don’t resurface and once more slither and take root in the music.

Tracks such as Let Me Breathe, Underworld, the element of danger that lurks at the heart of Molly Town and Cut the Line all play with the passionate resurfacing of a woman who wowed audiences with a beautiful voice but who also had the control in which not to be a slave to the demands that come with such responsibility.

Water For Your Soul is a welcome return for Joss Stone, arguably a woman who has been through so much deserves the chance to come through it all with her head held high and see the fruits of endeavour take hold again.

Ian D. Hall