Choice Cut: Ralph Tresvant helps Mitchell Coleman take on a classic

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    When you get two great talents together, and add a classic song, sometimes magic happens. Ralph Tresvant became a star more than three decades ago as the pre-teen lead singer for New Edition, topping the charts endlessly. More recently, uber-talented bassist Mitchell Coleman, Jr. has been establishing himself as one of the modern greats at his instrument.

    When the two recently decided to team on a song together, they decided to take on a Michael Jackson classic in the form of the new remake of the Off The Wall favorite, “I Can’t Help It.” It is the new single from Coleman’s third album, Gravity.

    The song starts somewhat faithfully to the MJ original, but then veers into a smoother direction, with sax solo and Coleman’s groove-inducing bass. Tresvant takes the lead on the refrain, but leaves the musicians to handle the verses instrumentally.

    When you get two great talents together, and add a classic song, sometimes magic happens. Ralph Tresvant became a star more than three decades ago as the pre-teen lead singer for New Edition, topping the charts endlessly. More recently, uber-talented bassist Mitchell Coleman, Jr. has been establishing himself as one of the modern greats at his instrument.

    When the two recently decided to team on a song together, they decided to take on a Michael Jackson classic in the form of the new remake of the Off The Wall favorite, “I Can’t Help It.” It is the new single from Coleman’s third album, Gravity.

    The song starts somewhat faithfully to the MJ original, but then veers into a smoother direction, with sax solo and Coleman’s groove-inducing bass. Tresvant takes the lead on the refrain, but leaves the musicians to handle the verses instrumentally.

    Mitchell tells us about the song, "It was an humbling experience to work on this project with Ralph Tresvant. And to have him as a co-producer made my day. Great vocal and great production by the team of Michael B Sutton, Jason Anderson and Ralph Tresvant and myself. We didn't want take too much away from the original because of the star power of Stevie Wonder and Michael Jackson but also wanted to make sure we were true to the Smooth Jazz/Urban AC vibe"

    Ralph chimes in, "I wanted to show my jazzier side with this track. It was a pleasure working with Mitchell Coleman Jr, Jason Anderson, Michael B Sutton, Michael Norfleet. Props to the Sax player Fernando Harkless!"

    All in all, it’s an excellent new direction for an old favorite. And it is our newest SoulTracks Choice Cut. Check out “I Can’t Help It” below and tell us what you think.

    Mitchell Coleman, Jr. feat. Ralph Tresvant
    “I Can’t Help It”

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    And click below to check out Mitchell's album Gravity at Amazon.com