This week, the legendary jazz pianist and R&B star Patrice Rushen marked her 67th birthday. The often-sampled artists has a plethora of jams. However, her song "Remind Me" in particular has been the backbone of many of our favorite jams from artists such as Mary J. Blige, Faith Evans, Junior M.A.F.I.A., Heavy D and many, many more. Just in time to celebrate her solar return, jazz outfit Butcher Brown has teamed up with silky soul singer Alex Isley to offer their own take on the classic.
Rather than play fast and loose with the track, the quartet stays rather true to the song's original structure. That means the dreamy synth intro, the swinging bass line and infectious piano line are all in tact, though with a little bit of the group's own flair added into the mix. Alex, meanwhile, handles the vocals with the lovestruck abandon the lyrics call for. She sings the first verse pretty straightforward, mirroring Patrice almost exactly. When it comes time for the second verse, however, she puts her spin on them, choosing different moments to change a note here or an inflection there. The result is a take on the track rooted in spirit of the original's heyday while still giving us a modern vibe. To further cap it off, they switch the electric piano solo that take the track home with a sax, marking this one as uniquely theirs.
It's often said that you shouldn't cover a song unless you're bringing something new to it, and Butcher Brown and Alex Isley definitely do that. In fact, we're sure Patrice Rushen would be proud. Get into their revamped take on "Remind Me" when you press play. Then stick around to see the artists' initial take on the song during a live session last summer that probably sparked the idea to make this cover official.