"I cannot express enough of my undying gratitude 4 a chance 2 do my thang, the real thang, the only thang that matters: SOUL!" So wrote Angie Stone in the liner notes to her debut album, Black Diamond. It was part of her thank you to Arista Records president Clive Davis, but it stands on its own as Stone's personal creed. Whether one interprets that as a spiritual or musical mission makes little difference, as Stone herself seems to make little distinction between the two. She proved as much Friday, April 21 when she turned New York's SOB's into a Seventies-style lovefest, directing the festivities with the skill of a world-class master jammer.

Although already a veteran of the urban music scene via her early Nineties work with Vertical Hold, it was Stone's 1999 solo debut Black Diamond that firmly established her as a songwriter of craft and a singer of soulful depth. The album's first single, "No More Rain (In This Cloud)," set the tone: building on the keyboard and bass lines of Gladys Knight and the Pips' "Neither One of Us," Stone found strength in a broken heart. She used the R&B classic to construct an updated version of soul, with the hip-hop touches provided by live instruments rather than by samples and studio trickery. As a producer, Stone got top-notch help from fellow singer-songwriter D'Angelo, and his signature organ and bass lines provided unshakable anchor to Stone's messages of empowerment. It's a manifesto that Stone maintained throughout Black Diamond, and brought full-blown to the stage.

Stone entered the room from the audience as the band dug into "Angie Stone's Party," a thumping warm-up/closing tune especially written for her live performances. The young musicians and singers in her band displayed remarkable talent from the start, conveying a deep respect for R&B's soul past even as they dared to push forwards through improvisation. Without pausing, Stone & Co. launched into "Visions," a Chaka Khan-esque tale of moving onward and upward after heartbreak. Stone swayed as her voice affected subtle swoops, and she responded immediately to the audience's decidedly enthusiastic welcome, kicking the energy up a notch to match that of the dancing crowd's. Stone then led the band deep into the funked-up grooves of "Bone 2 Pic (Wit U)." She then deftly changed pace with a somber, gospel-blues reading of "Black Diamonds," a song of black pride and religious conviction, and jacked the energy back up with the sexy chaser, "Green Grass Vapors." For the blues funk of the done-me-wrong number "Coulda Been You," Stone affected a Millie Jackson/Chaka Khan/Minnie Ripperton vocals vibe while her band turned up the Isley Brothers heat with impressive guitar bravado.

Stone's idols, the Isley Brothers, Al Green and Marvin Gaye, made less subtle appearances (with her respectful but gutsy takes on "For the Love of You," "Love and Happiness" and "Trouble Man," respectively), but this night was, after all, about Angie Stone's soul. The slinky "Just a Pimp," the just-below-the-skin groove of "Love Junky" and the optimistic "Life Story," all from Black Diamond, translated exceptionally well live. Stone, a deeply spiritual person (Bible scripture is included on her CD's booklet) allowed the church in, coloring her singing with gospel inflections. She would have been hard pressed to come up with a more perfect ending for the set than the a cappella gospel short "Heaven Help," because on this night, the heavens were indeed smiling down on her.

MARIE ELSIE ST. L+GER
(April 25, 2000)