10.30.2004 - Yes, yes, late again. Very late.

Anyway, my Album of the Month - Joss Stone's Mind, Body& Soul. Simply put, if ya didn't know she was a 17-year-old white chick from England, you'd swear she was a 40-something soul singer from the American South.

The album's opening track, "Right or Wrong," is sheer dynamite; and conjures up the old Stax sides of yore. Likewise, "Jet Lag," another slow torcher. The uptempo "You Had Me" slams home with its impassioned anti-drug message. Two other songs merit notice: the catchy "Don't Cha Wanna Ride" and my fave track, "Security," which offers the proverbial shoulder to lean on when times get tough.

Now, I've read some criticism tossed at Joss which almost always goes something like this: she's too young. The music's good, but she hasn't lived the life to back up the songs. Yeah, right. Look back to much of the music she recalls: Betty Wright, who's shepherding Stone through the maze of music, is a legend ... and had her first hit at the age of 17. Stevie Winwood of "Gimme Some Loving" fame ... how old was he when he broke through? Sixteen? Little Stevie Wonder, circa "Uptight" ... how old? In his teens. They were guys singing some fairly seasoned stuff there. Fact is, she has the goods. It's not my best album of the year (that honor still belongs to Juliana Hatfield's In Exile Deo), but it's damn close.