Despite the reverence with which she is regarded, Erykah Badu hasn't come close to recapturing the heights of her debut LP. Even working with the likes of The Soulquarians and 9th Wonder - definitely the right people in the hip hop/soul world of Philly she inhabits - hasn't prevented her latter recordings from acquiring a slightly egotistical self-consciousness that impedes the sweet understatement that made Baduizm such a standout record. In short, she seems too aware of her image as the intellectual earth mother of contemporary soul music to make great records any more.

Thank f#ck for DJ Day, then. The Californian DJ and producer has created a thing of true greatness in his rework of Badu's last single 'Honey'. This is real soul music from a man who finally understands that Badu's voice occasionally needs warming up rather than simply being left to its own devices. Too many producers have tried to match the pared down simplicity of 'On and On' in their work with her when it's a sound that has long felt washed out (even if the template still sounds fresh as f#ck). All the right ingredients are in the mix here to lift a so-so tune into soul heaven: a slow, but funky beat with a nagging rhythm guitar under a syrupy keyboard refrain that's as sweet as the stuff of the title. Things then get hotter as Day drops the horns and a layered backing vocal for the chorus.

Erykah Badu needs to get DJ Day signed up for non-bootlegged production duties sharpish because her best work is clearly lying around in his head waiting to be recorded. This song is Honey indeed.

Released 23rd May 2008 (buy it here)