Nothing like a bit of soul for the soul and, if that’s your bag then, Harding is your man. The Atlanta-based artist croons with tremulous ardour on his third solo effort If Words Were Flowers. Like Leon Bridges, Harding pickles the past and nods to the present. The title is a tribute of sorts to a phrase that his mother told him when he was a child – ”Give me my flowers while I’m still here.” You’ll hear echoes of everyone from Sly Stone to Curtis Mayfield to Gil Scott-Heron. “Music immortalizes you,” says Harding, “So if this is the last thing I’m going to say to someone, it’s going to be some hopeful shit.”
