Tim Miner - Son of a Preacher man

This iconic blue-eyed soul man turns out an album of soulful, funky grooves with a gospel flavor

Son of a Preacher Man

Tim Miner

indie / Artisan

10 tracks 40:22

Son of a Preacher Man. Yes, I know that title sounds familiar. Depending on how old you are you might have thought, Dusty Springfield. No, um… Aretha? Closer. Ann Margret? No, no, no! Right answer: Tim Miner! In 2001 CCM icon Tim Miner released Son of a Preacher Man, but unfortunately many of his fans never heard it due to its limited release. Well, Tim has remastered the tracks and made it available on all streaming platforms – and it’s an essential addition to your Tim Miner collection! A master of blue-eyed soul, the iconic artist turns out an album that ranges from funk to smooth soul, with vocals influenced by the likes of Al Green, Marvin Winans, and of course, Stevie Wonder – yet Tim Miner always sounds like Tim Miner, which is a very good thing.

Although the project starts off with an outstanding cover of Wonder’s “Love’s in Need of Love Today,” Son of a Preacher Man is an album of mostly originals penned by Tim himself (with the exception of “Weight of The World,” co-written with Tim Story and “We All Fall Down,” co-written with Maylee Thomas. It’s a personal, somewhat introspective serving of soul and funk, masterfully crafted with – for the most part – Miner creating all of the music and vocals. Fortunately, the artist manages to sound like a band instead of a programmer, playing absolutely in-the-pocket drums, tasty bass, funky guitar, and jazzy piano. Tim’s vocals are legendary - his soulful tenor slips effortlessly in and out of falsetto, and his phrasing combines the best of gospel and soul. The scatting on the fade of “Humbly I Pray” and the layered back-up vocals on “Prayer Changes Things” show a range of technique that few other artists are capable of.  

Interestingly, Son of a Preacher Man was recorded and received a very limited self-release for concert-attendees at merch tables in 2001. As the result of a casual conversation, Tim felt that the album deserved better exposure, so he did a remastering of the original tracks and here it is, sounding as fresh as this morning! The album starts off impressively, with Tim expertly executing one of Stevie Wonder’s signature tunes (I remember seeing Tim and Phil Keaggy in the eighties doing “Ebony and Ivory” at a concert on Long Island – Tim covering Stevie is still a treat). “Grow Up” continues the funk with a tasty, synth-heavy vibe and sassy lyrical reminder that “greater is He that is in me – or haven’t you heard?” Rich vocal phrasing and tasty Rhodes(?) keyboard work start out “Weight of the World” and lead us into the swampy funk vibe of the infectious title track. The auto-biographical “Son of a Preacher Man” talks about the weirdness of living under the religious microscope: “I’ve been high / I’ve been low – I’ve been through freaky stuff that nobody knows…” Listen for hints of an Al Green vocal groove here and there on this track.

The mood stays soulful and smooth on the next few songs, starting with “Home to Stay,” which, to me, has a bit of an Andrae Crouch influence in the arrangement – and continuing with “We All Fall Down” and the prayerful gospel ballad, “Humbly I Pray.” “Prayer Changes Things” is island/gospel/pop featuring nicely-layered vocals. “Whatever it Takes” is a powerful ballad of encouragement with a very up-front vocal telling us “I will be your heart when your heart’s too tired to beat.”  By the way, if this song hasn’t been pitched to BeBe Winans it ought to be! The album ends intimately, with Tim and his piano, singing “so I guess we’ll have to do / what we said that we would do / we must put our trust in you…” on a song simply titled “9/11”.

If you like your gospel music delivered with soulful sophistication, funk, and passion look no further than Tim Miner’s Son of a Preacher Man.

 Bert Saraco

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