Thanks to those demure, dusky vocals, tantalizing soul and jazz grooves and, of course, that minimalist yet mesmerizing fashion sense, we just cannot get enough of Helen Folasade Adu, AKA Sade. In the nearly 30 (!) years since her Diamond Life debut, the Nigerian-born and England-based superstar channeled the virtuosities of early influences (Al Green, Billie Holiday and Aretha Franklin, to name a few) to create a foundation of effortless, inimitable hits. It’s hard to imagine any fan of adult-contemporary pop, jazz or R&B not having some Sade within arm’s reach already, but if one wants to remedy that egregious oversight without downloading all six of her previous CDs, then The Essential Sade will certainly get the job done.

An expansion of 1994’s The Best of Sade and a re-configuration of 2011’s The Ultimate Collection, Essential is a double-disc set……(click here to read the full review at soultracks.com)