Gwen Guthrie classic revisited, new Dionne Warwick, new Joyce Irby/Howard Hewett duet

The immortal 1982 “It Should Have Been You” by the equally immortal Gwen Guthrie has been reworked in a pretty cool and stylish fashion. At first almost not recognizable, the tune is extremely slowed-down, has a strong horn part, very subtle and effective percussion work and ultra strong vocals from Izzy Chase. The project under the name Lasperanza is the brainchild of UK musician, producer and studio owner Rico Garofalo. A full album will be released in May. “Seeds” will include more cover versions of classic songs.

Also out in May is a new album from Dionne Warwick who recently received her much-deserved Lifetime Achievement Award at the Grammy celebrations. Her album “She’s Back” will be released on May 10th and was produced by her son Damon Elliot. The first single is a rework of one of her classic 1960s hit, “What The World Needs Now” and features a strong, soothing choir. There will be more updated versions of some of her earlier hits and also duets with Kenny Lattimore, Musiq Soulchild, and Krayzie Bone. Dionne was recently interviewed on CBS-This Sunday Morning and will start a series of shows in Las Vegas in early April.

And there is a beautiful new R&B ballad out by Joyce Irby (remember the girl group Klymaxx?) and Howard Hewett. Both recorded a duet over 30 years ago (“I’d Still Say Yes”) and have recorded a sort of sequel to the song called “Because You”.