Album: Jasmine Kara, Blues Ain't Nothing But a Good Woman Gone Bad (Acid Jazz)

When Swedish-Iranian singer Jasmine Kara relocated to New York, she found her homeland of the soul – not to mention an influential advocate in music-biz legend Marshall Chess, who considered her "the real deal".

He's not wrong: on the album he executive-produced for her, Kara's powerful, piercing voice harks back to the raw blues delivery of Etta James and Koko Taylor, while the arrangements blending big, brash horns with slippery slide-guitar parts furnish the perfect settings, split between Motown/Sue-style soul stompers, and grittier R&B reflecting Chess's own history. Highlights include a reworked, uptempo cover of Little Walter's "My Babe",and "Try My Love Again" recalibrated as energetic blue-beat ska. An exhilarating debut.

DOWNLOAD THIS Fire; Ain't No More Room; Try My Love Again; In The Basement