The Colored Section

Atlanta singer-songwriter Donnie's Colored Section debut is uneasy listening of the highest order, as the album's title--referencing an ugly manifestation of racial prejudice--suggests. Donnie has a message; actually, he has a grocery list's worth. And he scatters them throughout his Southern-fried soul songs in blunt, riveting language. In a voice plainly reminiscent of Stevie Wonder, Donnie challenges notions of inequality, and while his words are sobering, he never loses sight of the groove. The horn-infused, swaggering "Big Black Buck" is pure New Orleans funeral march, while "Beautiful Me"--a razor-sharp pronouncement of individuality--builds on an almost gospel foundation, albeit one with a percussive spine. "Our New National Anthem" has a finger-snapping Philly-soul vibe, and while a reference to the impact of 9/11 seems, at this point, a bit like declaring the sky blue, it's a rare misstep in an otherwise fluid and funky debut. --Kim Hughes