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A Preacher's Son Launches a Lusty Soul Revival

Jon-Rae and the River attempts to reconcile the secular and the spiritual.
Jon-Rae and the River attempts to reconcile the secular and the spiritual.

Jon-Rae Fletcher may be Canada's finest indie-gospel-country-soul songwriter, and his backing band The River — a rotating cast of friends who occasionally include members of a gospel choir — accompanies his charismatic odes to sex, drinking, rock 'n' roll and God. Fletcher, an actual son of a preacher man, sounds heavily influenced by his background, yet somehow reconciles his secular and spiritual sides. Songs like the sizzling "Just One More" take full advantage of countless Sundays spent singing gospel, as well as a love for '60s soul music.

The lusty "Just One More" is anything but subtle, as Fletcher belts out an overt and full-throated appeal for satisfaction. His soulful outbursts could have been transplanted directly from vinyl pressed decades ago, while Anne Rust D'Eye's voice swings and dances around Fletcher, as they both cry out for "just one more."

Still, Fletcher remains the center of attention, as he gracefully breaks down the song in the midst of organs, horns and a heavenly chorus of voices. His enthusiasm is virtually unmatched — and infectious enough to trigger a soul revival on its own.

Listen to yesterday's 'Song of the Day.'

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Kathryn Yu
By day, Kathryn Yu is an Interaction Designer working for a marketing firm in New York City, toiling away at Web sites. By night, she's a freelance photographer and live-music addict. Her photography has appeared in publications like Pitchfork, Rollingstone.com, Thrillist, Gothamist, and more. She often forgets to blog at kathrynyu.com, and is also making a movie.
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