Vocalist, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and bandleader Marcella Simien was born in Louisiana but currently resides in Memphis, TN. She’s the frontwoman for Marcella & Her Lovers, whose debut album Got You Found came out digitally in 2020 but is getting a deserved vinyl edition, available now through Black & Wyatt Records. The daughter of noted zydeco musician Terrance Simien, Marcella augments her brand of Memphis Soul classique with stylistic touches drawn from her Creole background, judiciously applied and resulting in added depth as the focus remains tight and the delivery warm and sturdy.
Per Black & Wyatt, Got You Found is Marcella Simien’s full-length debut, though she has a considerable amount of recording and performing under her belt, spanning back to the 2004 educational album Creole for Kidz and the History of Zydeco recorded by her father’s band the Zydeco Experience when Marcella was 12 years old.
Jump forward a decade and she guested on her dad’s Dockside Sessions album, which received a 2014 GRAMMY Award as the Best Regional Roots Album of the Year. She’s also played in the groups Gumbo, Grits & Gravy, Marcella & Les Vagues, Magnolias, and alongside her father again in Krewe De Monifique. Marcella & Her Lovers was formed in 2013.
Opening with the immediately identifiable strains of accordion, Got You Found’s opener “Where You Are” wastes no time kicking into high Memphis Soul gear, rhythmically buoyant like an early ’70s Staples Singers single as Simien’s voce is rich and assertive. There’s some crisp clean guitar licks and a little horn action, but it’s the strings, bold but not slick, that really secure the song’s classic soul bona fides.
There’s a clear lack of straining in pursuit of an old-school atmosphere. As “En Chaleur” downshifts to a mid-tempo, there is a clear connection to late ’70s soul, both urbane and organic, but just as many elements that solidify it as a contemporary undertaking, particularly in how it blossoms instrumentally in the back half.
“You Ain’t Gotta Run” exudes an appealing timelessness, hitting the ear like it could’ve been a radio hit anywhere from the late ’70s to the early ’90s. It’s in the electric piano, the guitar lines, the post-Philly/Steely Dan horns and that string section, but it’s mainly in the sheer confidence of Simien at the microphone. “Got You Found” continues this state of affairs, as it’s clear that Simien favors an accessible heartiness over grit, though there is still tangible if subtle elements reaching back to Hi Records in the title track.
“I Could Never Lie to You” scales it back, at least initially, reinforcing the contempo and yet is still decidedly neo-soul in orientation. But in “Comment il se sent” the accordion comes roaring back into the mix, sticking around for the duration this time as the track launches from a zydeco foundation. And then “Eleven August” delvers something of a (tasteful) rock ‘n’ soul scenario.
“Leave My Fire” is another showcase for Simien’s vocal prowess, though there’s also a sweet bluesy guitar solo. The title of “Creole Cowboys” suggests a return to the Louisiana roots, but no, that’s reserved for the meditative finale “Indian Red.” This last swing away from the record’s classic soul baseline is handled with aplomb and helps Marcella & Her Lovers to stand apart from the neo-soul pack. Simien’s experience and the sharpness of her band elevate Got You Found above the debut album norm.
GRADED ON A CURVE:
A-
