It's not quite "Motown 3," but Michael McDonald is certainly taking his time transitioning back to making original music. "Soul Speak" features 11, well, soulful covers from his personal favorites, along with a trio of new songs that hold their own amidst their formidable surroundings. Highlights include a winning, sultry take on Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" and subtle versions of Teddy Pendergrass' "Love TKO" and Van Morrison's "Into the Mystic," while a too-lush treatment of Bob Marley's "Redemption Song" is the album's only outright miss. McDonald maintains the soulful mood on the originals, too, with the smooth and quiet "Only God Can Help Me Now," the lusher "Can't Get Over You (Getting Over Me)" and the more forceful "Enemy Within." Soul, it seems, still speaks most convincingly in McDonald's world.—Gary Graff