A Change Is Gonna Come (Leela James album)

A Change Is Gonna Come
Studio album by
Leela James
ReleasedJune 21, 2005 (2005-06-21)
Studio
Length64:54
Label
Producer
Leela James chronology
A Change Is Gonna Come
(2005) 		Let's Do It Again
(2009)
Singles from A Change Is Gonna Come
  1. "Music"
    Released: 2005
  2. "My Joy"
    Released: 2006

A Change Is Gonna Come is the debut album by American soul singer–songwriter Leela James. It was released on Warner Bros. Records on June 21, 2005 in the United States.[1]

Overview

James covers Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come" and No Doubt's "Don't Speak" on the album.[2]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[3]
New Zealand Herald[4]
Vibe[5]

Boston Globe critic Renée Graham found that A Change Is Gonna Come "has brushes of hip-hop but is very much an R&B album, and a very good one at that. Leela James has a rich, compelling voice, and her CD is propelled more by pure talent than studio wizardry."[6] People magazine found that "with the vintage R&B sounds on her debut [...] this petite woman with the big voice is a refreshing change from today's BET booty-shakers. The L.A. native has clearly learned well from the old-school masters; her husky vocals, equal parts gospel fervor and down-home grit, conjure shades of Mavis Staples, Betty Wright and Tina Turner."[7]

Allmusic editor Andy Kellman wrote that the album "retains a nostalgic tint. James has the stature of a woman who should possess a squeaky voice, but she sings with demonstrative grit. More importantly, she doesn't see her inspirations merely as artists to mimic; she sees how they learned from the past and applied it to the present. The past is built upon (if only a little), rather than simply revisited [...] There's plenty of thematic range, whether there are blue lights in the basement, tears on the pillow, sweat on the dancefloor, or sun showers on the porch."[3] Rebecca Barry from The New Zealand Herald felt that A Change is Gonna Come "does ooze the kind of old-school vibe and heartfelt delivery that makes it easy to believe her when she sings about crying into her pillow. Butt while producers [...] try to mix up her styles [...] there's little to distinguish each song from the next."[4]

Track listing

Credits adapted from the liner notes of A Change Is Gonna Come.[1]

A Change Is Gonna Come track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Intro"  1:25
2."Music"
  • Leela James
  • Louis "Buster" Brown II
  • Scott "Shavoni" Parker
4:03
3."Good Time"
  • Commissioner Gordon
4:16
4."Ghetto"
  • Jean
  • Duplessis
3:50
5."Slappy" (Interlude)  0:57
6."Soul Food"
  • Saadiq
3:18
7."Rain"
  • James
  • Saadiq
4:08
8."Married" (Interlude)  1:40
9."When You Love Somebody"
  • James
  • Williams
  • Johnson
  • Commissioner Gordon
4:30
10."Mistreating Me"
  • Harris
  • Commissioner Gordon
5:13
11."Don't Speak"
  • Harris
  • Commissioner Gordon
  • James[A]
4:46
12."Bummy" (Interlude)  0:52
13."My Joy"
  • Poyser
  • Duplaix
4:57
14."It's Alright"
  • Commissioner Gordon
  • West
  • James[A]
4:03
15."Didn't I"
  • James
  • West
  • Commissioner Gordon
  • West
3:17
16."Prayer"
  • Thompson
3:57
17."I Know I've Been Changed" (Interlude)  2:05
18."A Change Is Gonna Come"Sam Cooke
  • Commissioner Gordon
  • James
3:35
19."Long Time Coming"
  • James
  • Williams
  • Commissioner Gordon
  • James[A]
4:02

Notes

  • ^[A] denotes co-producer

Sample credits[1]

  • "Good Time" contains replayed elements from "Funky Sensation", written by Kenton Nix, performed by Gwen McCrae.
  • "When You Love Somebody" contains elements of "I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know", written by Al Kooper.
  • "Didn't I" embodies portions of "I Can't Fake It Anymore", written by D. Monda and T. Taylor.
  • "Long Time Coming" embodies portions of "The Truth", written by Dwight Grant, Kanye West and Graham Nash and performed by Beanie Sigel.

Charts

Chart (2005) Peak
position
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[8] 43
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[9] 26
French Albums (SNEP)[10] 97
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[11] 52
US Billboard 200[12] 148
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[13] 42

References

  1. ^ a b c A Change Is Gonna Come (Media notes). Leela James . Warner Bros. Records. 2005.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  2. ^ "Leela James: A Change Is Gonna Come". secondhandsongs.com.
  3. ^ a b Kellman, Andy. "A Change Is Gonna Come > Review". AllMusic. Retrieved May 28, 2025.
  4. ^ a b Barry, Rebecca (July 30, 2005). "Leela James: A Change is Gonna Come". Retrieved May 28, 2025.
  5. ^ Checkoway, Laura (May 2005). "Leela James: A Change Is Gonna Come". Vibe. Vol. 13. p. 141. Retrieved May 28, 2025.
  6. ^ Graham, Renée (July 11, 2005). "CD Report". Boston Globe. Retrieved May 28, 2025.
  7. ^ "Picks and Pans Review: Leela James". August 8, 2005. Archived from the original on April 24, 2019. Retrieved May 28, 2025.
  8. ^ "Ultratop.be – Leela James – A Change Is Gonna Come" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  9. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Leela James – A Change Is Gonna Come" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  10. ^ "Lescharts.com – Leela James – A Change Is Gonna Come". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  11. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Leela James – A Change Is Gonna Come". Hung Medien. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  12. ^ "Leela James Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  13. ^ "Leela James Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
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