Since 1969, the seasoned funk and soul performer Lee Fields has sustained a continuous career in both recording and live performance. Across that span he has issued albums through 14 different labels while receiving instrumental support from scores of musicians. His 2006 signing with Truth & Soul Records led to an initial release, The Many Moods Of..., which united him with the imprint’s house ensemble the Expressions under the direction of producer and co-founder Leon Michels. The partnership proved immediate, prompting joint tours across Europe and the United States. Issued in 2009, My World earned broad critical praise, after which Treacherous appeared in 2011 and Faithful Man followed in 2012. During this period Fields & the Expressions maintained near-constant international travel, performing before expanding festival crowds throughout Europe and filling venues across the U.S.
Following a brief pause in 2013, the group returned to the studio. A cover of J.J. Cale’s classic “Magnolia” surfaced as a single for Record Store Day in 2014 and was succeeded in early June by the eleven-track album Emma Jean. Lee Fields & the Expressions subsequently accompanied Michels and his associate Danny Akalepse to the newly established Brooklyn independent Big Crown Records. Their debut project for the label, Special Night, was conceived as a “throwback” collection filled with smooth ballads and quiet storm material. The title track preceded the full album, which arrived in November after the single’s October 2016 release.
