There’s a lot of street soul on this album, as well as a dose of lovers-rock, some neo-soul and alternative RnB - but every track has the influences of those mid-80s sounds stitched into its DNA. It’s those threads that inspired me to compile Love & Purpose. Disc One (Love) is focussed on artists who were active pre-2000, whilst Disc Two (Purpose) shines a light on newer artists who are carrying the torch for the previous generation. So the Carl McIntosh produced ‘Feel’ by Ruth Joy sits alongside the throwback boogie of Lynda Dawn, and Children Of Zeus’ modern lovers rock classic ‘Hard Work’ rubs shoulders with Omar’s evergreen ‘Ghana Emotion’. It’s important to pay homage to those that paved the way, but that needn’t be at the expense of the next wave of talent. Celebrating both of these generations of artists is essential if we want the future to be as abundant as the past.