Words by Justin Turford
Founding member of Acid Jazz pioneers Galliano, creative man about London town, dancer, spoken word poet, producer and Sufi pupil - Constantine Weir has certainly had an interesting life so far. Back in London after a decade studying Sufism in Senegal, he has centred the Sufi sensibilities of mysticism, ritual and spirituality back into his art, his gorgeous new EP ‘Service Rendered’ on his own ITEZ imprint, a delightful collection of deep, soulful songs that ooze inner and universal love.
Not unlike the broad sweep of Black music influences that defined Galliano’s 90s’ material, Constantine channels the spirits of the teachers and the dreamers: elements of Gil Scott-Heron, Prince Far I, Curtis Mayfield and Terry Callier congregating softly in his bewitching quiet storm. Intimately sung and with some considerable talent along for the ride, the five tracks on this EP could easily be an ancestor’s call from the Afro-folk / spiritual soul jazz heyday of the deep 1970s.
With a voice welling up from the deepest of emotional wells, ‘Dried Tears’ skirts that fine line between melancholy and joy, a song about loss and love delivered so warmly that it feels like forgiveness. Reminiscent of the romantic growl of Richie Havens, Constantine breaths out his song over an overflowing of restrained melodies. Steve Wellington’s twinkling, psychey electric guitar is absolutely lovely, whilst bassist Kwame Boaten and fellow Galianoista and acclaimed percussionist Adé Egun Crispin Robinson provide the calmest of swaying rhythm sections, Yvonne Shelton’s backing vocals sweeping like a string section.. Perfect for a sunlit day, there’s a sonic and poetic similarity to the more positive moments of Nick Drake’s music.
‘Father’ is Afro-folk at its best. A combination of personal and esoteric lyrics delivered over a spacey, slow-melting groove that teeters into ‘exotica’ territory, Yvonne’s multilayered cosmic gospel voice and some subdued Hammond organ from Rory More place this delicious number in dreamland. I could easily imagine Constantine making a great record with the Los Angeles musical astronaut Carlos Niño - their musical and spiritual learnings cut from a similar cloth.
Hammond and voices take centre stage on ‘Lovely Lovely’, a beautifully arranged song that glides between soul, gospel and folk energies, Constantine’s well lived, aching voice hinting at Louis Armstrong, his lyrics sharing the profound, personal and universal in one, a song to want to join in with. Extra props to the interplay between Starface Yout’s electric piano and guitar on this tune.
With a raw, reverb-heavy production, ‘Contradictions’ harks back to the middle period of the 60s’ in sound, imagine The Impressions hanging with The Velvet Underground if you can. Retro electric soul in the vein of someone like Darondo, loosely strummed guitar jams along with bongos, keys and soulful oohs and aahs from Yvonne, with Constantine sounding more youthful than experienced, I suspect this was a demo that held that most important of musical values - vibe.
The EP wraps up with a powerful spoken word piece titled ‘Seeweyah’. A poem exploring race, poverty and power (or lack of), the title is itself wordplay on the Jamaican patois saying "See We Yah" - stemming from the interjective word "Cooyah" which is used in Jamaica to articulate surprise. Short but strong, the thoughtful words hit hard, an edge amidst the soft cloth of the rest of the record.
Released on vinyl only and sold out everywhere I think, you’ll just have to believe me when I say that ‘Service Rendered’ may well end 2025 as one of the best of the year. Nostalgic in some ways but imbued with the kind of lived wisdom and authenticity that doesn’t appear every day, these are songs for all. There are murmurs of a full album to come so keep your ears and eyes alert because as Rumi, the most celebrated of Sufi poets said “What you seek seeks you.” 9/10