Dame Fortune is a culmination album with an artist's evolution pushing things forward with all his strengths in tow. Check Dead Ringer for that debut spark, and look to this one for something more skilled, bigger, but just as free-spirited.
Some long-term fans might rebuff Dame Fortune, just expecting another Dead Ringer, but that was 14 years ago. It's time to let that go and allow the man to evolve. Besides, he looks good in soul anyway.
Dame Fortune isn't expressly aiming for innovation, content to riff on existing styles and spin out a sinuous braid of pleasant sounds; in short, a breezy DJ set attuned for meditative easy listening.
Dame Fortune struggles with identity. One minute we’re perusing the Philly soul idiom, the next we’re sent to outer space.
One thing is for sure, you won't be surprised by Ramble Jon Krohn's sixth album since it's made from the same ingredients, left, in a general abstraction that causes a much bigger confusion than the usual one.