Since earning critical acclaim with their 1991 self-titled debut album, the Brand New Heavies have continued to attract legions of fans who, in this day and age of homogeneous dance music, could not get enough of this groovy quartet.
Formed in London in the 1980s, the group - Jan Kincaid, Simon Bartholomew and Andrew Levy - revelled in traditional funk and soul. Their early musical years were spent in Kincaid's home, where they played their music for the joy of it.
'We're not the sort of band that would get together to have a big hit. We started playing music for the love of playing music, it wasn't a business or financial venture,' said Bartholomew in Hong Kong last week.
The group got its break when independent label Acid Jazz signed the boys on: so it was labelled early on as an acid-jazz outfit.
'As we got bigger, acid jazz got bigger, but we don't consider ourselves an acid-jazz band, we just consider ourselves the Brand New Heavies,' Bartholomew said.
While achieving consistent success with follow-up albums, the group has gone through three changes in lineup. Its first lead vocalist, Jay Ella Ruth, was replaced by N'Dea Davenport, who was signed by New York label Delicious Vinyl as a solo artist. In 1995 Davenport left to pursue her solo career, the second time the Brand New Heavies found themselves minus a lead singer.
Now the group is back on track with a new album, Shelter, and a striking new vocalist. Siedah Garrett, who started working with the group as a songwriter, is the brand newest Heavy. Garrett achieved critical acclaim after penning Michael Jackson's Man in the Mirror, and after singing with him on I Just Can't Stop Loving You. Garrett accompanied the gloved one on his Dangerous tour and, despite having worked with several prominent artists, her work with Jackson stands out as a highlight: 'Working with Michael was an experience of a lifetime, there was never a dull moment. I was fortunate to have the opportunity to travel around the world, it was very eye-opening and extremely rewarding. He is an awesome entertainer.' The lyrical influences on this prolific songwriter come from life: 'I'm influenced by what I read and observe. Take Man in the Mirror: it's about children who are hungry, those images are what I draw from, and I draw from my own life and from other people's lives.