GIL SCOTT HERON Vinyl & CDs

Review: February 2020 marks the tenth anniversary of the release of Gil Scott-Heron's final studio album "I'm New Here", a set that was later brilliantly reworked by Jamie XX in 2011 ("We're New Here"). To celebrate the album's tenth birthday, XL Recordings has decided to offer up "We're New Again", a fresh "reinterpretation" of the Richard Russell produced set by contemporary jazz hero and beat-maker Maya McCraven. His vision is loose, languid, deep and jazzy, with languid jazz drumming, tight hip-hop beats, soft-touch instrumentation, liquid jazz solos and funk-fuelled basslines combining beneath Scott-Heron's gravelly spoken word vocals. It's an inspired re-invention all told and one fully in keeping with the essence of Scott-Heron's own work. In other words, it's a must-have.