A place in my heart
Perhaps you, like me, found yourself beguiled by a TV ad for the new Range Rover last year — the one with the dog staring out of the window of a loft apartment and a female voice singing what sounded like the opening 30 seconds of best ’60s Southern Soul ballad that never made it out of the vaults. I wasn’t alone in trying to track it down, only to discover that there was no more to it than those few lines.
They turned out to have been written by Dom James (melody) and Tommy Antonio (words) and recorded in London with the singer Emma Smith, formerly of the Puppini Sisters. It was created to order by people who do that sort of thing for a living, and that’s all of it that there was. But James noticed the interest it created, and he promised to finish it. Now he has.
Here it is, lip-synched by Emma on YouTube and available via Bandcamp as a fine slice of balm for this bizarre summer. Apart from a couple of lines of the lyric that could have stood a bit more work, it lives up to the promise of the original snippet. I can hear Gladys Knight singing it now. But the original will do just fine.
* Here’s the Bandcamp link: http://www.emmasmithmusic.bandcamp.com/
thebluemoment.com 
I had Etta James in my head. Wondered why I couldn’t remember what it was!
Kev
Don’t want to be a party pooper – I really love the song and Emma Smith’s vocal – but surely the intro is too much of a steal from Gladys Knight’s Every Beat of My Heart – to escape copyright infringement, or is this called sampling, and royalties have been paid? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXoHK1GKRuo
But surely there are a thousand doo-wop hits that begin almost exactly like that? I’d hate to see it become a copyright question. It would be like suing for the use of the chords of ‘La Bamba’.
I agree, but lawyers have a way of getting involved
Thanks for bringing this to our attention, great track
Good tip Richard. (Steve Turner)
I hear a Lesley Gore in there, too..
Blatant lift from Gladys (& Johnny Otis) of course, however, if it points just one person towards Gladys Knight, Mavis Staples, Doris Duke, Linda Jones, Mable John, Bettye Swan et al., it’s a laudable exercise.
Doesn’t a whole new generation need to discover Linda Jones?
Yeah … but by listening TO Linda Jones … not a cheap pastiche of her
The Yank musician/composer’s point of view ;
Commercial corporate , Cut & Paste , Xeroxed pastiche at its worst not worth the time or digital space wasted upon it . And definitely not worthy of our consideration
Suffice it to say … if you want the sound … go back to the original ( and PAY for it ) rather than taking the cheap ( work for hire ) way out by copying it .
Where has Emma Smith been hiding from the world? A beautiful fresh face and a powerful melodic voice like few others. For me, who needs all the show biz sexualization of Lady GA GA, Beyoncé, and many others these days when someone can sell a song like this lady can? I want to hear more!