"Give Us Free," Records: Press

Music is a remedy and Dr E definitely knows all about healing with her incredible songwriting and vocal range. Elevated is a very nice introduction to her musical universe and it presents different sides of her personality and talent.

What stroke me first is the amazing quality of her voice and the way she plays with it, making it very high-pitched and reminiscent of Erykah Badu on some songs and then very deep and sensual, putting a spell on the listeners. For me, this ability to extend her vocal range so widely is very refreshing and welcome, in a time when some self-proclaimed singers can barely produce decent notes. The great variety also makes it very easy to listen to the album over and over again, as it is never monotonous. Then, something that I really appreciate about Elevated is its eclectism when it comes to the productions. We are on a journey from classic soul to jazz, blues, gospel and acoustic music, which is a way to follow the different moods and experiences Dr E went through and describes. The use of instruments is amazing and a great place is left to the actual music, which is what I love more and more. The sax, piano and guitar made me want to smile and cry and dance, and this is what music is supposed to do: touch you deep inside and allow you to relate to the emotions the artist wants to share.

Last but not least, Dr E writing skills are also remarkable and make this album one I will definitely have in heavy rotation. It is not really surprising to discover that the singer is also an author, educator and motivational speaker, as the quality of her writing and the positive message she spreads are obvious in Elevated and the album is very inspiring and uplifting. As for the vocals and productions, the themes she touches upon are quite varied and are a description of her journey through life, one many of us can relate to. She sings about love, from wanting to give herself to her special one (Your everything) to heartbreak and pain (Kicked to the curb and her interpretation of the jazz standard Here’s that rainy day), but also about being yourself and achieving your dreams (Halle Berry, Elevated, Walk this road and Good girl down) and finally about God in Giving my life to you.

If you are in need of muscial healing, I would highly recommend you get a dose of Elevated, at least once a day. It will put a smile on your face and make you feel inspired and motivated to face whatever is waiting for you.

A Marion Carminelitta London review

Welcome to the latest edition of Ray's Local Reviews. I have a real treat for all you music lovers out there. Whether you are in to Jazz/Blues/Soul or not, I'm sure this artist will blow you away. She goes by the stage name of Docta E. Richardson, real name Elaine Richardson, originally from Cleveland, OH. She contacted me a few weeks ago through Facebook and asked me to take a listen to her latest effort, a three song CD sampler entitled "Real Life".

The three songs on the CD are titled "Good Girl Down", "Elevated", and "Let Me Clear My Throat", and NO, it's not a cover of a song with the same title by DJ Kool. Docta E. has generated a very soulful yet powerful style that on "Let Me Clear My Throat", reminded me of the late great blues singer Koko Taylor in her prime. The next song "Elevated" is a slow groove about empowerment, and The Docta proves to all that she has power and finesse and mixes them perfectly. "Good Girl Down" is a slightly more uptempo song with a message. That message is you CAN'T keep a good girl down, and this girl is good. Check out her website www.giveusfreerecords.com and find out where she is playing next and go see a show. With the love of Jazz/Blues/Soul music that Northeast Ohio has developed over the years, her style and voice are welcome additions.

Fleshcoat featuring Dr. E
Coat of Flesh
("Give Us Free" Records)
By Eddie Fleisher
Published: October 10, 2007

If you believe R&B has become nothing more than a sexed-up subgenre of hip-hop, turn off the radio and buy Coat of Flesh, a collaboration between Fleshcoat, a C-Town outfit whose music has appeared on several daytime soaps, and Dr. Elaine Richardson, a Penn State professor and Cleveland native with a solid set of pipes.

Coat feeds on the positivity of Richardson. Her lyrics deal with career, love, faith, and the blues. On such tracks as "Back to Work" and "I See Heaven," she digs deeper than her mainstream counterparts -- that's for sure.

Fleshcoat's jazzy touch works perfectly with Dr. E's soulful voice.

By Stacey Federov
Collegian Staff Writer
Dr. E, Penn State prof, brings blues to Arts Fest
The stereotypical professor knows nothing about drugs, jail or prostitutes.
But Dr. E isn't a stereotypical professor. Dr. E, an applied linguistics and English professor at Penn State whose full name is Elaine Robinson, will perform her brand of soul and R&B at 2:30 p.m. Sunday on the Allen Street Stage as part of the 41st annual Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts.
She said she has been singing since she was a teenager in Cleveland when she was a part of group she formed with her friends called the Shades of Love.
She became entangled in a lifestyle of crime shortly after that, but she said willpower helped her overcome it.
"If you want to overcome certain circumstances you can, if you have your mind made up," she said.
She fronts the group Fleshcoat who released their first album, "Coat of Flesh," in September 2006, but will be performing solo at this year's Arts Festival.
"I have been trying to get into the Arts Festival [music lineup] since I've been in State College," she said. "Finally, the stars lined up, and it was my time."

Cleveland Call and Post article on Dr E by Rhonda Crowder (April 2007)

State College Magazine article on Dr. E by Dave Higgins (May 2007)

Dr. E and Fleshcoat give adults their soul
By Camille Yvette Welsch, for the CDT
In August, Atlanta hosted the first annual Soul Music Summit, an attempt to bring artists of neo-soul together to make connections, make music and make history. The summit also tried to discover artists to bolster the scant number of soul musicians in the mainstream, such as Angie Stone, Jill Scott and India.Arie. Indeed, lovers of soul have to look hard to find acts bands worthy of the soul title.
Thankfully, Fleshcoat Featuring Dr. E, a band fronted by Penn State associated professor of English and applied linguistics Elaine Richardson, has taken up the torch, paying homage to legends such as Patti Labelle and Donny Hathaway while keeping pace with newer artists.
A cross between Chaka Khan and Scott, Fleshcoat Featuring Dr. E is all about "grown folks' music," tunes for adults that's light on violence, candy-coated lyrics and overt sexuality, and heavy on slow grooves for late-night dancing and funk for long drives with the windows down.
Gifted with a voice that bends to a throaty, womanly purr or high, Erykah Badu-like top notes, Dr. E leads the band through songs that praise God, children and love.
In "Back to Work," Dr. E and her co-writer-producer, James D. Johnson, penned an anthem for the everywoman who just wants to stay home and enjoy a little more time with her man, her family, her real life. The chorus sticks in the head and encourages chair dancing and singing along. The choruses generally fall within the vocal range of the average person, making them perfect songs to sing along to. After three listens to the album, you'll have the whole thing on the brain.
"Losin' It" sounds like a lost Chaka Khan track, and "I See Heaven" returns listeners to funk with a sexy bass line and a smoky delivery by Dr. E, truly "grown folks music" as track two claims.
Fleshcoat answers what some might call a niche market of music for adults without being easy listening. For adults who still have some swing to their hips and a desire for smart, sexy tunes, here's a match. Almost every song on the album is catchy and funky with lyrics that most people can relate to, whether it is wanting to avoid work or praise God.
The name Fleshcoat, rather than being an unsavory euphemism, reflects Johnson's belief that human beings are, as Richardson described it, "spirit constrained in flesh."
A way to release that constraint, to discover your own identity, is through music. This philosophy drives the album, and hopefully, it should drive sales.

Voices of Central PA article on Dr E (November 2006)