First Listen – Bo Saris Gives Away A “Tender” Love

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    When he debuted in 2004 with his gold-selling Rely on Me, the Netherlands’ Boris “Boris” Titulaer was one of those exceptional blue-eyed soul artists who had a little something extra, even if the material he released on Sony/BMG proved more uneven than his talent. Breaking through artistically with his 2006 sophomore project, Holy Pleasure, which boasted such creative triumphs as “Within My Hands” and “Holy Pleasure,” it seemed that the season two winner of Idols was more artistic than your average television reality show competition winner. But Holy Pleasure never did the kind of business it should have, despite being Boris’s most commercial release to-date. Departing from the majors and moving to London, Boris turned toward the independent route with his self-released 2009 follow-up, Live My Life, before eventually changing his name to the much more easily identifiable Bo Saris (there is already a fairly famous electronica act named Boris, which I’m sure confused fans of the Boris of Netherlands fame trying to get their hands on Holy Pleasure).

    Already dropping three retro soul pop singles, including “She’s On Fire” and “Does He Love You Better,” and a 2012 EP, Addict, in anticipation of his 2014 Decca/Universal release, Gold, Saris is back with a new label, new name, and a new bespoke image to boot. The crowning jewel of Saris’s latest, greatest inspiration is a sweeping R&B guitar groove entitled “Tender” which Saris is inexplicably giving away as a free download on his website in exchange for your email address  (you can bypass his website and get it directly from here as well). Below are a fan-made video of the studio version you should immediately cop and a sweet acoustic performance of the song performed by Saris back in 2012 for Mahogany Sessions. Enjoy!

    By L. Michael Gipson