The QH Blend

Completing the Cycle: Brandy's "Full Moon" Turns 10

2012-02-01T08:12:00.004-05:00

Ever since Brandy Norwood hit the ground running in 1994 with Brandy, she stood apart. With a maturity and presence older women lacked in modern R&B, Brandy's girlish rasp charged hits like "Baby," "Almost Doesn't Count," and "Have You Ever" with experience that resonated.

That her equally successful forays into acting, both in television and film, never cheapened her commitment to her musical explorations solidified her mark as a singer first.

When Full Moon (Atlantic) appeared in February of 2002, it came at a time when Brandy needed to make a declaratory position on what her music could accomplish in a new decade. Looking backwards to this album, it’s obvious Brandy stood at a crossroads, translating her adulthood journey for the willing to partake in.

The History
In the span of time separating Brandy's multi-platinum winner Never Say Never (1998) and Full Moon, Norwood stayed occupied. The wake of Never Say Never was wide, and stretched well into 1999 with its singles. Additionally Norwood wrapped her long time television series "Moesha" to acclaim in 2001.

Major motion picture roles also beckoned in "I Still Know What You Did Last Summer" (alongside Jennifer Love-Hewitt), "Double Platinum" (alongside Diana Ross), and "Osmosis Jones" each performed well within the box office arenas.

Amid Norwood's acting scores, it was in late 2000 when the stirrings of Full Moon began to form. Brandy's greater involvement in the recording processes of her music played a large role in Full Moon's realization and appeal.

The Record
Brandy's studio stalwart Rodney Jerkins, alias Darkchild, returned with his collective to redefine and restructure Brandy's sound. The production/writing roster wouldn't stop with Darkchild however, Norwood was joined by Keith Crouch (a prominent fixture on her debut), Mike City, Jason Derlatka, Stuart Brawley, and Warryn Campbell.

Norwood herself assisted in co-penning six of the cuts that appeared on the album, a continuation of her hands-on approach from her second long player.

During Full Moon's formative years, the Darkchild collective's production style that'd been coined with Norwood progressed and became popular with other artists. Later, this became a point of contention with Norwood. Regardless, major hits with the Spice Girls ("Holler") and Michael Jackson ("You Rock My World") were indebted to a "tech-savvy" line of thought rather than their opened ended work during the late' 90's.

Darkchild's (then) new sound crystallized with his vocal muse (Brandy) on her junior affair. The stated "tech-savvy" approach, a hybrid of hip-hop, R&B, and pop wrapped in a glitchy electronic surface sheen, drove the cyclical concept of Full Moon.

Based on love's phases, the thematic stages presented employed floorfillers, lowlit balladry, and grooves that combined degrees of the two previously mentioned song extremes. Norwood's vocal blossoming on her third album; a rich, cocoa tone professing wild adaptability to any song situation didn't operate outside magnificence.

Whether imparting the intimate organics of "When You Touch Me" or "Like This," or the solemn and searching feel of "I'd Die Without You"; a duet cover of the P.M. Dawn classic with brother Ray-J, Norwood bridged authenticity and artistry. Said transformative skill stormed in the impressive "I Thought," an angry attack that shifted into a harder gear utilized Norwood's lower register.

The songs themselves acted as amazing crafts that hopscotched between mecha-R&B and plush soundscapes. The grinding experimentation of the lead-off single "What About Us?" gave harsh, unapologetic walls of distorted sound. Adventurous forays into British two-step ("All In Me"), urban exotica ("Apart"), and the "sounds like a sample" AC perfection ("It's Not Worth It") exemplified artist/producer unity honed to a killing edge. Drawing attention back to "It's Not Worth It," the longing, background voice on the song is indeed not sampled. Rather, they were featured ad-libs from the King of Pop himself, the late Michael Jackson.

At 18 tracks, the record appeared to be the victim of the "CD era" filler. The notion of giving the consumer "bang for their buck" sacrificed the inherent cohesion and flow of the album in the execution. As such, songs like "Anybody," "He Is," "Love Wouldn't Count Me Out" on the initial listen seemed decent, but unneeded additions to a plentiful recording.

A component of Full Moon is its appreciative nature over time, certain songs peeled back their layers when revisited. An example of this is "Anybody"; atypical "hush, hush romance" fodder, or a deeper romantic complexity:

I just can't be explaining to everyone, why you hurt me. That's why I want to keep us between you and me, You'd understand if you were treated like me.

"Full Moon," written and produced by Mike City, coruscated with a healthy amount of sexuality that announced Brandy Norwood as the adult woman controlling how her personal narratives reached her audiences.

The Impact
The first single lifted from Full Moon was the aggressive "What About Us?” The feminist manifesto proved to be the right choice as it sailed into Top Ten placements on both the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Chart (#7) and U.S. Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Chart (#3). The parent album appeared a month later on the U.S. Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Album Chart (#1) and the U.S. Billboard 200 Album Chart (#2). Commercially, Full Moon did not usurp Never Say Never, but wasn’t a failure by any means. The complete sales impressions in the United States rank at 1.05 million copies and awarded platinum certification to the LP.

Internationally, Full Moon opened new doors for Norwood. The United Kingdom saw her junior effort become her first U.K. Top Ten landing (#9), the British Phonographic Industry gifted Full Moon gold status. Full Moon procured gold units in Canada and Japan as well.

"Full Moon" and "He Is" were selected as follow-up singles later in 2002. The title song charted U.S. Pop (#18) and U.S. R&B (#16), and was a sizable U.S. dance hit (#2). Promotion for Full Moon halted when Norwood disclosed her pregnancy, and liaison to Robert "Big Bert" Smith, the father of her child. Smith a member of the Darkchild production outfit, was a cousin to Jerkins himself. This connection between Smith and Norwood gave Full Moon's tender sides blatant poignancy, their relationship born out of the creation of the record.

Critically, Full Moon received a warm welcome. Sal Cinquemani, of Slant Magazine, commented:

Full Moon is certainly a forward-minded album, lifting Brandy's typically schmaltzy brand of pop-R&B to a new, edgier plateau. With tracks like "I Thought" and the offbeat lead single "What About Us," an assessment of post-break-up collateral damage, Rodney Jerkins dresses up his signature bass-heavy production in gritty, oft-sadistic outfits.

Craig Seymour of Entertainment Weekly heaped praise on Norwood's voice expansion:

Her deep, warm voice now has a scratchy, evocative edge that suggests maturity and the high price that often comes with it.

While the progressive lean of Full Moon was undeniable, others did point out several supposed failures with Full Moon. All Music Guide hardnose Stephen Thomas Erlewine opined:

Brandy built her stardom on a few well-timed singles, but she never really delivered albums that fulfilled her promise as a front-woman. Full Moon, her third album, comes the closest to being a full-fledged, well-rounded album, as well as establishing a personality as a singer. That's not to say this album is as fiercely independent or adventurous as Aaliyah's last album.

"What About Us?"
Directed By: Dave Meyers

The mention of Brandy's contemporary Aaliyah, who had released her third long player Aaliyah (2001) and sadly died the same year wasn't accidental. Yet, Erlewine's thoughts of the "Aaliyah persona" being stronger than Brandy's was mildly humorous. Comparing their debuts, Age Ain't Nothing But a Number and Brandy, from the titles, to the content of the projects, Brandy relied on songs crafted to her, whereas Age stood as a production platter for its svengali R. Kelly.

Interestingly, Aaliyah, Brandy, and Monica each released their third albums between 2001-2003, Monica's After the Storm bringing up the rear. Unlike Monica, who grappled to find a sound, and Aaliyah whose records lacked quality control; Full Moon embodied both.

In all, Full Moon marked a beginning and end in Norwood's musical pathways. Norwood separated from music partner Rodney Jerkins to seek new avenues in her sound advancement, see Afrodisiac (2004), Norwood's last outing for Atlantic Records. Splitting from Robert Smith a year after their daughter’s birth, may have placed friction on her relationship with Jerkins too. Jerkins and Norwood wouldn’t work in each other's artistic spheres until 2008's Human (Epic).

The legacy of Full Moon is the portrait of Brandy Norwood finding herself as a young adult woman. Brandy's recasting of the "B-Rocka" legend helped it go from good, graduating to great. Five out of five stars.-QH

[Editor's Note: Full Moon is readily in print. For current information on Brandy, visit: 4Ever Brandy.-QH]

The QH Blend 2002-2012 Retrospective Line-Up

2012-01-15T19:35:00.006-05:00

As I am sure you all are aware of: I love retrospectives. Looking back at something after time has passed to peer at genius possibly tucked away is what this is all about.

Due to the fact that there are so many records to be discussed, I've tried to narrow down my choices this year. This particular grouping focuses on Brandy's Full Moon, Common's Electric Circus, Ace of Base's Da Capo, and Jennifer Lopez's This is Me...Then. All of these albums dropped in 2002 and are turning 10 this year in 2012.

The selection is based on my like of the long players, as well as drawing light to records that wouldn't normally receive any coverage, or may only receive basic highlighting. The retrospectives will be released sporadically during this calendar year, starting next month. At this time I'm not following a set chronological order, at least two of the four were fall/winter releases originally.

Either way, I wanted to share the "inductees" with you all, and hope this excites you as much as it does me. Thanks for reading, and watch for the first installment to pop up in early February!-QH

[Editor's Note: Art courtesy of James McGuire.-QH]

The QH Blend Gets Its First Award...& Returns the Favor

2012-01-11T15:49:00.005-05:00

Courtesy of Mr. Linn Ross, The QH Blend is proud to receive "The Liebster Blog Award," given to sites that usually fly under the radar when it comes to major recognition. See the hyperlink above or to the right "For Moanin' Outloud," Mr. Ross' website which just got the same award for himself. For me, I want to bestow this award to (at least) two sites that I know are deserving of this award. Here goes:

Diva Incarnate
A blend of wit, humor, and interesting artists, Gordon manages to juggle between satire and commentary with ease.

The Adventures of an Audio Diva
An amazing website that crosses between the mainstream and underground, Jennifer places integrity and quality at the top of her list.

It is great to get a pat on the back once in awhile, and of course I want to pay it forward. Blessings & love to all.-QH

Toni Braxton: The Records Revealed

2012-01-06T20:54:00.018-05:00

Presently, Toni Braxton couldn't be the furthest thing from unknown. Starring alongside her four sisters on WE tv's "Braxton Family Values," they've become the glamorous, but down-to-earth modern black family of the ages.

Reality television's double-edge sword cuts deeply however, because often in the hectic hustle of it, sight is lost to why the person occupying the spotlight really is at all.

For Toni Braxton, her amazing alto has made her one of the most beloved black female voices of the last 20 years. Accolades, acclaim, and healthy record sales Braxton has seen as much as the many woes that she's publicly weathered, but rarely are the rich contents of her six original long players discussed.

Launching with the soul stirrer "Love Shoulda Brought You Home" in December of 1992, Braxton has refined, redefined, and reconstructed the modern R&B sound. Many wouldn't know this, as focus solely falls on the (rightfully) popular Toni Braxton (1993) and Secrets (1996) records. They, and the four that followed are all integral to the larger creative cool Braxton owns.

Exploring the wide hallways and pleasures of Toni Braxton's sound is a necessary, but rewarding task.

Toni Braxton
Label: LaFace/Arista
Year of Release: 1993
Singles: "Love Shoulda Brought You Home," "Another Sad Love Song," "Breathe Again," "Seven Whole Days," "You Mean the World to Me," "I Belong to You," "How Many Ways"
Principal Songwriters & Producers: Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, L.A. Reid, Daryl Simmons, Tim & Ted, Bo & McArthur, Vassal Benford, Vincent Herbert, Toni Braxton
U.S. Sales Certification: Platinum (8x)
U.S. Chart Positions: U.S. R&B (#1), U.S. Pop (#1)
The QH Blend Ranking: Three and a half out of five stars

Synopsis: One of the cornerstone's of '90's R&B, Toni Braxton's self-titled record dealt primarily in amorous slow burners with good reason. Braxton's chocolate tones draped over the (now) classic run of hits that included the wispy "Breathe Again," the after midnight ache of "Seven Whole Days," and her anthem for women everywhere: "Love Shoulda Brought You Home."

A robust, almost teetering on, production showcase (see the list above) Toni Braxton did possess Braxton's first written composition in "Best Friend," her creative control increased with each subsequent album. The sound of her debut upon retrospect proved to be too small for Braxton's broader vocal peaks to call home for too long. Toni Braxton is a more innocent, but assertive touchstone for Braxton and her fans.

"Breathe Again"
Directed By: Randee St. Nicholas

Secrets
Label: LaFace/Arista
Year of Release: 1996
Singles: "Let It Flow," "You're Makin' Me High," "Un-Break My Heart," "I Don't Want To/"I Love Me Some Him," "How Could An Angel Break My Heart"
Principal Songwriters & Producers: Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, L.A. Reid, R. Kelly, David Foster, Tony Rich, Soulshock & Karlin, Keith Crouch, Diane Warren, Toni Braxton
U.S. Sales Certification: Platinum (8x)
U.S. Chart Positions: U.S. R&B (#1), U.S. Pop (#2)
The QH Blend Ranking: Five out of five stars

Synopsis: Braxton upped the ante on her second record Secrets. Stylistically the record brazenly cut through sexy, vibrant soul (You're Makin' Me High"), her established Quiet Storm drama ("Talking In His Sleep"), and open-ended pop concessions ("Un-Break My Heart"). Secrets large reach allowed pop appeal without relinquishing Braxton's hold on R&B.

To draw attention once more to "You're Makin' Me High," it pointed to a youthful spike in Braxton's sophisticated sound that gave it a classy street sensibility. Also, a specific instrument spotlighted on Secrets would permanently stamp itself into Braxton's musical vibes: acoustic guitar.

"I Love Me Some Him" boasted production by Danish R&B duo Soulshock & Karlin, known for their many hits with in the ensuing years for Whitney Houston, Monica, Solange, and Seal to name some. Arguably, they capture the spirit of Toni Braxton best, barring Mr. Edmonds, and would appear later on her fifth LP Libra (2005).

Secrets relatable nature bridges the gap between the dual sides of R&B's escapism and realism.

"You're Makin' Me High"
Directed By: Billie Woodruff

The Heat
Label: LaFace/Arista
Year of Release: 2000
Singles: "He Wasn't Man Enough For Me," "Just Be a Man About It," "Spanish Guitar," "Maybe"
Principal Songwriters & Producers: Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, Toni Braxton, Keri Lewis, Bryan Michael-Cox, Daryl Simmons, Keith Crouch, Teddy Bishop, Kevin Hicks, Jazze Phe, David Foster
U.S. Sales Certification: Platinum (2x)

U.S. Chart Positions: U.S. R&B (#1), U.S. Pop (#2)
The QH Blend Ranking: Four and a half out of five stars

Synopsis: If Secrets gave Toni Braxton her voice, then The Heat was the sound of an artist at the peak of her powers. Three years separated her second record from her third, and the host of changes in popular music were no doubt obstacles to overcome.

Despite those changes Braxton made good on staking her relevance at the start of the last decade without coming off desperate. Teaming again with friend/collaborator Babyface didn't stop Braxton from expanding her production options. Notably among the new faces were (soon-to-be husband) Mint Condition keyboardist Keri Lewis, and Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins. Even more impressive was Toni Braxton the songwriter, who had previously written only one song a piece for her past records.

Like "You're Makin' Me High" before it, the on-the-floor sharpness of "He Wasn't Man Enough For Me" reinvented Braxton a second time over. That reinvention complimented the nova white flame of the title track and the sensuous instrumental "The Art of Love." Braxton's husky tones sketched the non-album cuts like "Fairy Tale" and "You've Been Wrong," the latter sweetly interpolated Marvin Gaye and Diana Ross' gem "Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)."

Not as immediate as Secrets, The Heat increases its stock with repeated returns, staking it as one of Braxton's finest records.

"Just Be a Man About It"
Directed By: Billie Woodruff

More Than a Woman
Label: LaFace/Arista
Year of Release: 2002
Singles: "Hit the Freeway," "A Better Man"
Principal Songwriters & Producers: Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, The Neptunes, Toni Braxton, Keri Lewis, Tamar Braxton, Ivan Mathias, Andrea Martin, No I.D.
U.S. Sales Certification: Gold
U.S. Chart Positions: U.S. R&B (#5), U.S. Pop (#13)

The QH Blend Ranking: Three and half out of five stars

Synopsis: Braxton's fourth album is often tagged as her first complete "decline" in every respect. The overall narrative behind the album is larger than a simple label of failure. More Than a Woman's commercial fortunes were shortchanged due to LaFace/Arista's unwillingness to hold the record back after Braxton fell pregnant with her second son, resulting in a very public blowout between the label and singer.

Musically, the picture is even more convoluted when faced with "Give It Back" and "Me & My Boyfriend." Both ailed from attempting to ape versus reformat popular trends in black music at the time, whereas "Lies, Lies, Lies" bore an overbearing influence from (then) husband/producer Keri Lewis, hence its Mint Condition knockoff stature.

Once those three tracks are removed, the remaining whole of More Than a Woman ranks as Braxton's most consistent and ambitious recording yet: electric ambient R&B or shoe-shuffling hip-hop soul clubbers? All of that and more is heard on the No I.D. reshaping of Curtis Mayfield's "Love Happening" into "Let Me Show You the Way (Out)." No I.D.'s reputation with Chicagoan MC Common is well deserved, as he brought a killer instinct to "Let Me..." that Braxton believably nailed.

The Neptunes lended the svelte "Hit the Freeway" adding another dance groove to Braxton's boogie board. On the cool down side, Braxton's dulcet colors adorned the techno-weeper "A Better Man" and the lovey dovey "Selfish."

The centerpiece of More Than a Woman is the first and second person switching pathos of "Rock Me, Roll Me." Here Braxton is the victim and heartbreaker, selfless and narcissistic; a violin drenched coda sealed the art soul package beautifully.

Sunk by non-support from her label and quality content obstruction, More Than a Woman is Braxton's fascinating journey into her own R&B niche with only three mistakes holding back perfection.

"Hit the Freeway" w/ Loon
Directed By: Charles Infante & Dave Meyers

Libra
Label: Blackground
Year of Release: 2005
Singles: "Please," "Trippin' (That's the Way Love Works)"
Principal Songwriters & Producers: Scott Storch, Soulshock & Karlin, Keri Lewis, Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds, Rich Harrison, Bryan Michael-Cox, The Underdogs, Harvey Mason Jr.
U.S. Sales Certification: Gold

U.S. Chart Positions: U.S. R&B (#2), U.S. Pop (#4)
The QH Blend Ranking: Three stars out of five

Synopsis: With the title taken from Toni Braxton's astrological sign, Libra should have been another personal endeavor. Unfortunately the record sounded more like it tried to find a way to mold Braxton to contemporary R&B in 2005. The results often came off stifled ("Trippin') or excellent ("Please"), her lack of writing input was noticed.

Libra did lasso Soulshock & Karlin back to the fold for seconds, and "Midnite" is a definite watermark. In fact "Midnite" evidenced that they could shoulder an entire project for Toni Braxton. As it is, there are other notables and curiosities. The latter tip is fulfilled with the Rich Harrison showcase of "Take This Ring." The song seemed impotent in the wake of the across the board smash of Harrison and Amerie's "1 Thing" from the same year. Yet Braxton being a DMV native herself, where go-go hails from, handled the percussive aggression of "Take This Ring" with vocal vigor.

The acoustic solemnity of "Shadowless" pled a case for Braxton's affinity with that instrument, her voice gave warmth to the bareness of the guitar structure. Label issues continued to plague Toni Braxton, but her commercial opportunities did widen (see the stats above) and kept Braxton present into her second decade of music.

"Please"
Directed By: Chris Robinson

Pulse
Label: Atlantic
Year of Release: 2010
Singles: "Yesterday," "Hands Tied," "Make My Heart," "Woman"
Principal Songwriters & Producers: Harvey Mason Jr., Vincent Herbert, Lucas Secon, David Foster, DJ Frank E., Troy Taylor, Oak, Dapo Torimiro, D'Mile, Chuck Harmony
U.S. Sales Certification: Not yet certified
U.S. Chart Positions: U.S. R&B (#1), U.S. Pop (#9)

The QH Blend Ranking: Four and half out of five stars

Synopsis: After Libra, Braxton experienced a rash of setbacks in almost every area of her life. On her sixth album, Braxton turned on her interpretive powers to full blast pouring all of those upsets into the recording. Pulse clearly is Toni Braxton's confessional masterpiece. Ironically, her penmanship remained decreased here as much as it was on Libra, the difference being that the songs here were written for Braxton, each producer unified in connecting the (varied) dots of her classic and new sounds.

Absolution, understanding, and of course love are the hallmarks of "No Way," "Why Won't You Love Me," and "Hands Tied." "Hands Tied" specifically pulled the listener in with its sharp, stark piano keyed entry before seguing into a organic bed of shifting guitars, drums, and keyboards that symbiotically sewed into a mesmerizing delivery from Ms. Braxton.

There are lighter and "feel good" songs to discover here: the black dance-pop ferocity of "Make My Heart," the clattering "Lookin' At Me," and witty wordplay wonder of "Wardrobe." Pulse is the culmination of Toni Braxton's adaptability and awareness of her talents honed after two decades transforming and pushing her sound.

"Woman"
Directed By: Billie Woodruff

[Editor's Note: All of Toni Braxton's records are in print. For current information visit Toni Braxton Official.-QH]

Mýa's "K.I.S.S." Reinvents Modern R&B

2012-01-02T23:45:00.004-05:00

Reinvention is a rarity in popular music today, when it comes to the actual meaning of the word. There are exceptions, and Mýa Harrison is an example.

When major label interference caused the American release of her fourth album Liberation (2007) to collapse, Mýa took another route.

Japan favors R&B of any era, and Mýa took it upon herself to sign to the indie imprint Manhattan Recordings based there. Additionally, she started her own label Planet 9 to work hand-in-hand with Manhattan Recordings.

Her entrepreneurship, combined with a canny sense of artistic savvy, rendered Sugar & Spice (2008), her fifth album. Released in Japan, Mýa took her music directly to the audience she knew would receive it. Suffice to say the formula was successful enough to repeat it for her sixth album K.I.S.S.

An acronym for "Keep It Sexy & Simple," Mýa distilled and retooled the dance/R&B principles that defined hits like "It's All About Me," "Case of the Ex," and "Fallen." Co-writing and collaborating alongside producers Chuck Harmony, Jeff Miyahari, Young Yonny, Carvin & Ivan, and Daisuke "D.I" Imai allowed Mýa to create one of the best popular R&B records of the last year. It is concept execution which elevates K.I.S.S. to classic status above any of her past works.

K.I.S.S. bursts with candy coated bangers and powdery, urban balladry that's mainstream, but mature. The title track, a tarty theme of empowerment and positivity, crosses back and forth between cheek and conviction. "Before U Say Goodbye" operates in the same rhythm of "K.I.S.S.," though is keyed into higher emotional patterns.

There are funky and fresh experiments in "Alive," a bright, breezy J-Pop diamond, and the reggae-rock splash of "Rear View Mirror."

"Rear View Mirror" features long time friend Sean Paul sharing several toasts on top of Mýa's enthusiastic Janet Jackson flavored quips, the cut is spirited, genuine fun.

Mýa (further) echoes her R&B heroines on the "I Wanna Dance Somebody (Who Loves Me)"-era Whitney Houston nu-disco sheen of "Fabulous Life," the lead-off single. Retro without the copycat aftertaste, Mýa's charisma brings the aesthetic up-to-date. That modern flair undercuts the harder, street sex on "Mess Up My Hair" and the computer blue swell in "Fugitive of Love" that directly follows.

K.I.S.S. Behind the Scenes

Mýa's voice up-to-this juncture was cute and capable, but now possesses more balanced musculature on K.I.S.S. "Problem + Solution" and "Mr. Incredible" occupy reflection and sensuality without compromising either, a true mark of an accomplished vocalist. Even on the overblown adult contemporary bombast in "Love Comes, Love Goes" she is authentic, never losing sight of her goal in the vocal steering.

The original version of K.I.S.S. appeared on April 20th, 2011 physically, and digitally a week prior on the 13th. The physical sales were down from Sugar & Spice, managing #61 (Japan Billboard) and #72 (Japan Oricon) equally. On the independent and digital front it fared better at #8 (Japan Top Independent Albums & Singles Chart).

America and Canada received their first Mýa release since '03's Moodring on December 20th, 2011, albeit digital only with K.I.S.S. Removing "Runnin' Back," "Before U Say Goodbye," "Sorry," and "Alive" the U.S./Canadian edition featured a bevy of other cuts in their place: "Take Him Out" (w/ Spice), "Earthquake" (w/ Trina), "Break Your Neck," "Can I," "It's My Birthday," and "Somebody Come Get This Bitch."

The U.S./Canadian tracks divide down the middle between quality and fluff. The fluff ("Earthquake") peers backwards to the narcissism that plagued Moodring (see "Why You Gotta Look So Good?") that Mýa (seemingly) left behind on Sugar & Spice and the initial pressing of K.I.S.S.

The reworking of K.I.S.S. clearly stands as a bid to make the album more accessible to the American and Canadian markets, muddling the clarity Mýa has had since 2007.

Instead of being bound to conventional U.S. chart constrictions, Ms. Harrison broke the rules. Exclusively courting the Japanese arena allowed Mýa to receive successes in a variety of ways. Despite the unnecessary U.S. repackaging, K.I.S.S. is Mýa's declarative statement of artistic and commercial freedom from the status quo. In R&B music today, it's an uncommon occurrence. Five stars out of five (for the Japanese pressing).-QH

[Editor's Note: The U.S./Canadian digital version of K.I.S.S. is available now on iTunes. The original, physical Japanese pressing of K.I.S.S. is available for order at CDJapan. The Yen to the American dollar is comparable and where I acquired mine. For more information on Mýa, visit Mýa Mýa Official.-QH]

A Brief Holiday Hiatus

2011-12-12T07:29:00.001-05:00

Hello all. Taking a small break for the holidays, as well to direct focus on a gig I landed with Big Break Records writing the liner notes for their Thelma Jones reissue due in the New Year. Exciting right? I still can't believe it.

I've, of course, got some great new ideas for The QH Blend, and those are also in the pipe. I'll be back in January, balancing this, university, & work, lol. I have to say thanks to everyone for making this the best year the site has ever had. I hope I continue to keep you all interested. Enjoy your winter festivities, however you celebrate them. Love, Quentin.-QH

2011: The QH Blend's Year In Music

2011-11-28T07:33:00.021-05:00

Year-end retrospectives, to me, are integral to anyone working in the music critique and commentary fields. Collecting together what recordings "mattered" in the year can be a massive task, and a joyful one. I've done this several times, in print professionally, and here at The Blend. This time, I've made an attempt to make this list as varied as possible.

Many will ask why I chose to include certain long players, and exclude others, for me, as it has always been, quality is the determining factor. Each album included here is the best 2011 had to offer, and captured my attention. There were several records I wasn't able to retrieve in time for the deadline of this piece: Blondie (Panic of Girls), Common (The Dreamer/The Believer), Joe (The Good, The Bad, The Sexy), Beverley Knight (Soul U.K.), Mýa (K.I.S.S.), Meshell Ndegeocello (Weather), Seal (Soul 2), and Robin Thicke (Love After War). I'll gather the remaining 2011 releases early in 2012.

The only record that was purchased out of the 31 that did not make the list is Jennifer Lopez's Love?. Excluding "Good Hit," "What Is (LOVE?)," and "Papi," Love? wasn't up to Lopez's standards. Check out my thoughts on Love? here.

I've been creating my own music universe here since 2008, and this article is the representation of everything I stand for when it comes to my "art" as it is. I hope that sharing this with you all gives you a doorway to that world.

2011 Selection #30
Tori Amos: Night of Hunters (Deutsche Grammophon)

Depending on how the individual views Amos, another concept fueled record may elicit jeers or cheers. It is no contest to state that Tori Amos is the mistress of taking obvious subject matter, and transforming it into something beyond the normal perceptions of an average listener.

Night of Hunters is no exception, see Tori Amos' website for a detailed dissertation on the plot of this album. Not overblown like Boys for Pele (1996) or American Doll Posse (2007), it lacks the accessibility of from the choirgirl hotel (1998) or Abnormally Attracted to Sin (2009); Hunters is a classical recording presenting Amos' pianist gifts. "Carry," the first single, makes bearable the brainteasers gallivanting all over Hunters, communicating less is more.

"Carry" from Night of Hunters

2011 Selection #29
Lupe Fiasco: L.A.S.E.R.S. (Atlantic)

You're forgiven for assuming Fiasco's best work is Food & Liquor (2006). The Cool (2007) wasn't a complete sophomore slump, if aiming too highly to reach above his debut.

L.A.S.E.R.S. ("Love Always Shine Everytime Remember (2) Smile") is the weakest of the Fiasco trilogy, yet L.A.S.E.R.S. still outclasses his peers. The thinning on L.A.S.E.R.S. cannot be blamed solely on Lupe Fiasco, but his label Atlantic Records pressuring Fiasco to go mainstream. Fiasco dared to work within the system, generating some immediate Lupe Fiasco familiars: "Words I Never Said," "Till I Get There," and "All Black Everything."

Fiasco is only competing with himself, topping Food & Liquor may not happen. L.A.S.E.R.S. receives high marks for taking to task a hip-hop record caught in the crossfire of commercial compromise and making it art.

"All Black Everything" from L.A.S.E.R.S.

2011 Selection #28
Chris Isaak: Beyond the Sun (Wicked Game/Vanguard)*

Chris Isaak loves rock and roll: Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and the like.

Taking off in 1985, Isaak’s mournful, but erotic handsome take on the sounds surf rock, rockabilly, etc. was mesmeric. You could tell he loved making music in the vein of his vinyl heroes.

Isaak has earned enough clout in his career to record a covers project.
If a covers album is done right, it acts as a creative stopgap until new material is ready to launch, and secures the artist into his or her field. Beyond the Sun, recorded at the legendary Sun Records Studios in Memphis, Tennessee, doesn’t present Isaak in a new light. But, the lone figure to keep the rock of bygone days alive for three decades, fads notwithstanding, Beyond the Sun isn't meant to break new turf.

The pulse on Sun bears more reverence than his original long players. Recording someone else's work in the same studio they (Presley, Lewis, et al.) created in will do that to you. Hearing Isaak’s fantastic voice give and receive “the classics” brings him and his fans full circle.

Beyond the Sun will ensure that Chris Isaak becomes the next throwback hero to a young boy out there somewhere.

"Can't Help Falling in Love With You" from Beyond the Sun

2011 Selection #27
Mary J. Blige: My Life II: The Journey Continues (Act 1) (Geffen)*

Like her contemporaries Janet Jackson and Mariah Carey, Blige's R&B formulas are renowned for their potency and consistency.

Navigating, and at certain intervals precipitating trends, Blige's albums are back to front winners. The first mistake with her 10th long player is naming it after her second record, My Life (1994). My Life is an album that, as it should, stand alone in Blige's backlog. To reference it in a direct way means that whatever is making claim to that album's greatness will be judged, fairly or unfairly, against that originator.

While nothing on My Life II comes close to My Life, it is an enjoyable continuation of Blige's hybrids of classic, hip-hop, and modern soul.

Sullied by far too many guest spots, barring Nas' appearance on "Feel Inside," My Life II clues to Blige heading into bolder territories as heard on her nu-disco cover of Rufus' "Ain't Nobody." Blige would serve her art better to set the hip-hop soul aside, and focus on marrying the vintage and future R&B principles together for her veteran material to grip versus only satisfy.

"Ain't Nobody" from My Life II: The Journey Continues (Act 1)

2011 Selection #26
Chris Brown: F.A.M.E. (Jive)*

F.A.M.E. ("Forgiving All My Enemies"/"Fans Are My Everything") is a transitional assembly forecasting what Brown's next record requires to succeed, and what may hold him back.

Amidst the rabble of several unnecessary guest spots, booming, unfriendly hip-hop bluffs; there are songs to sing about on Brown's fourth long player.

Modish interpretations of dance music (hip-hop house) on "Yeah 3x," "Oh My Love," and "Say It With Me" announce a broader, Michael Jackson-esque expansion. But, Brown will always be an R&B entity first, and "Up To You" acts as proof that he hasn't forgotten that. With a little more reliance on quality versus quantity, Brown's stake to be a legend in his own right is closer to reality than he may suspect.

"Oh My Love" from F.A.M.E.

2011 Selection #25
Stevie Nicks: In Your Dreams (Reprise)

Nicks has entered that space of "legend" status that could afford her the luxury of coasting. In Your Dreams isn't jumping up and down with new things to give, but exemplifies what makes Stevie Nicks great.

Ten years after the sublime Trouble in Shangri-La, In Your Dreams presents Nicks in sturdy shape. Dave Stewart (one half of the Eurythmics) produces broad, rock-pop songs that bear obvious heart tugging lyrics, delivered via Nicks' witchy voice, intact and strong.

In Your Dreams would have benefited from trimming in spots. As it is, Nicks' new album journeys into the dramatic musical portraits as only she can paint them, a welcome return from one of rock's most beloved treasures.

"Annabel Lee" from In Your Dreams

2011 Selection #24
Jill Scott: The Light of the Sun (Warner Bros.)*

Switching to a higher key in her sexual frequencies lastly occupied on The Real Thing: Words & Sounds, Vol. 3 (2007), Scott's fourth record is a brighter, humid affair. Scott's voice stays her best asset: it gets low, it swoons, and it can holler and growl.

The music is urbane and funky, if dancing on the edge of boring, when compared to her rich voice. Only on the exciting "All Cried Out Redux" with Doug E. Fresh, featuring a ragtime flavored middle, does Scott break free. "All Cried Out Redux" poses the question of when will Scott really let go, and get into that rhythm and blues coloring box, and give herself real color to play in?

"All Cried Out Redux" featuring Doug E. Fresh from The Light of the Sun

2011 Selection #23
The Bangles: Sweetheart of the Sun (Waterfront)

Doll Revolution (2003) wrapped up The Bangles tale neatly. Yet Hoffs and the Peterson sisters reconvened for a fifth album, minus bassist Bangle Michael Steele. Steele is missed, but the remaining trio rocks on anyway.

Co-produced by the ladies, Sweetheart is a love letter to their Paisley influences. Hoffs still bewitches vocally, and "Under a Cloud" is gingery in its seduction. Not to be outdone, the Petersons give their own sugary leads on "Circles in the Sky" and "Mesmerized." Sweetheart of the Sun is no Doll Revolution, but on its own standard, it doesn't need to be.

"Under a Cloud" from Sweetheart of the Sun

2011 Selection #22
Roxette: Charm School (EMI)**

Marie Fredriksson and Per Gessle are back, and Charm School reflects their pop blend is ripe. Veering close to Crash! Boom! Bang! (1994) in its abundance of ballads, Roxette are wise to keep several fire cracker uptempos to prevent Charm School from sliding into monotony.

First single "She's Got Nothing On (But the Radio)," is cocky with its rapid beat and rubbery guitar lick. It's one of those great European pop moments that cements them as prominent tune-smiths.

Returning to Roxette's hallmark ballads, "Speak to Me," "In My Own Way," and "Sitting On Top of the World" are Roxette at their earnest best. Popping 'til they drop, Roxette show that time hasn't dulled their brightness.

"She's Got Nothing On (But the Radio)" from Charm School

2011 Selection #21
Joss Stone: LP1 (Stone'd/Surfdog)

Stone's walk to "creative freedom" continues to be a bumpy, if not dull, road. Freed from EMI, her former label, Stone's LP1 is her fifth, and first independent, outing.

Appearing in production capacity for the second time on this list, Dave Stewart paired with Stone to generate a guitar grinding blue-eyed soul appeal on LP1. The "funk" is lowered just a few decibels, giving a discernible amount of (needed) musical tension. Stone's sweet, molasses thick take on "Drive All Night" makes it a late night radio killer.

Juggling restraint and recklessness, Stone gets away with some mistakes made on LP1, and there are a few. Introducing...Joss Stone (2007) remains her best album, but LP1 has its own pull and power adding another twist in the road of Joss Stone's journey as an artist.

"Drive All Night" from LP1

2011 Selection #20
Lenny Kravitz: Black & White America (Roadrunner/Atlantic)*

Though fixable, Kravitz never completely rips from classic rock as many detractors state, normally he just puts his own imprint on them. His satin rhythm and blues garnishing of that rock is what helped him claim a form of originality to his vintage revivals.

However, it always came off as an accessory, not the rule. Bored or feeling stagnant, Kravitz decided to shake up his system with funk on Black & White America.

Up to this point, the closest Kravitz had come to courting the black sound directly was on sections of 5 (1998). On Black & White America, the Shuggie Otis throwback "Superlove" and its ilk coexist with familiar guitar-rock noisemakers in harmony. Length continues to plague Lenny Kravitz; the album overstays its welcome. Even with that variable, Black & White America is far from a poor showing, it's simply too much of good thing at times.

"Superlove" from Black & White America

2011 Selection #19
Marsha Ambrosius: Late Nights & Early Mornings (J Records)

Half of the disassembled U.K. duo Floetry, Ambrosius' first solo recording was highly anticipated, and doesn't disappoint her audience.

The runaway success of the single "Far Away," its video now infamous; is complimentary adult soul music that betrays the versatility Late Nights & Early Mornings holds.

"I Hope She Cheats On You (With a Basketball Player)" is fierce, with its bounce and bite threads on loan from existing contemporaries like Chrisette Michele and Alicia Keys respectfully.

Channeling "The Minneapolis Sound" that is trending is predictable, but compelling still on the titular cut. More impressive is her dank and dark version of "Sour Times," originally created by trip-hoppers Portishead. "Chasing Clouds," the cool and confused heart searcher will win fans with its watercolor soul peaks. Late Nights & Early Mornings' dawn/dusk vibes promises lasting success for Ms. Ambrosius.

"Chasing Clouds" from Late Nights & Early Mornings

2011 Selection #18
The Sounds of Arrows: Voyage (Geffen/Labrador)**

Hearing Daft Punk's Tron (2010), Goldfrapp's Head First (2010), and probably various eras in the Pet Shop Boys career on Voyage, the first album for Swedish duo The Sound of Arrows? Yes, and no, would be fairly accurate answers.

Oskar Gullstrand and Stefan Storm aren't pioneering the halls of electronica, and any of its neighboring genres. Voyage compels in that unlike Daft Punk's laser precision on Tron, or the aloofness of Goldfrapp's Head First, or the glam weariness of the Pet Shop Boys, it posseses youth.

Arrows debut is soaked with excitement at putting their own hand print on anything established prior. Visit with the cinematic climber "Into the Clouds," or the sunset somberness in "Conquest" and it becomes clear that Arrows are looking at this type of music at a different angle. Being a new voice can be enough, and if The Sounds of Arrows can keep their creative energy burning, their subsequent albums are sure to fascinate.

"Into the Clouds" from Voyage

2011 Selection #17
k.d. lang: Sing It Loud (Nonesuch)*

It hasn't been since lang's early, tumbleweed years that she's had a consistent session band tour and record with her. In those days that band was called "The Reclines," the new partnership present for Sing It Loud is called "The Siss Boom Bang."

Still, lang is the centerpiece for Sing It Loud, her 11th album, if you aren't counting 2002's A Wonderful World duet LP with Tony Bennett.

The lines separating lang's torch and twang have considerably blurred, but lang is no less sexy because of this. The songs "I Confess" and "Sugar Buzz" dwell within interlocked hands, lingering glances, and endless slow dances; late summer love and lust mood music.

The flickering title track shows off lang's unconquerable vocals. Sing It Loud isn’t a departure, it is executed excellently however that it doesn't have to break a sweat to seduce its listeners with its affable nature.

"Sing It Loud" from Sing It Loud

2011 Selection #16
Björk: Biophilia (Nonesuch)*

In jest, the title of Björk's eighth record could be "Bitch, I'm Björk!" to the forgetful if one considers her weight in the arena of pop music: both visually and sonically.

Biophilia is larger-than-life, in deluxe physical and iPad editions for the collector and media junkie. Just plain folks can cop the compact disc, where the music is just as epic without the previous exterior considerations.

Biophilia's main directive is a highbrow pop concept, a pseudo-scientific spiritual view of emotional states. All through the album Björk, either knowingly or unknowingly, sews in odes to her past albums: Homogenic (1997), Vespertine (2001), and Volta (2007). The three albums are referenced in various moments, but without any of the cringe-inducing laziness that can befall anyone that recycles their own material. Grand and weird, Björk continues to be the apex where modern art and pop intersect.

"Mutual Core" from Biophilia

2011 Selection #15
The Human League: Credo (Wall of Sound)**

Phillip, Susan, and Joann have remerged ten years after the cold steel of Secrets with Credo, their ninth affair.

While synth-pop and electronic fads have come, and gone, and come again, The League continued to plow and rock the genres even when it was not chic to do so. Credo finds them at the height of their creative abilities. The League’s uniformity is uncompromising, smart, and opulent, setting them apart as originators in the electronic field. That does not mean they are frightened to try new things throughout Credo either.

Credo casts the listener into the London nightlife made flesh.

"Never Let Me Go" from Credo

2011 Selection #14
Lenka: Two (Epic)

Initially, Lenka could draw comparisons to the mild mannered chanteuses Dido and Jem. Dido and Jem are known for their neutral tones, and Lenka (sometimes) occupies this space too.

Two, Lenka’s second album uncovers that she has plenty bark to back her up, when she dons her "unaffected" voice, it's a part of a larger, pop theatre production.

Two's expressive designs are set within her lyrical frames.
See "Heart Skips a Beat," "Everything At Once," and "You Will Be Mine." Musically, those mentioned pieces are knowledgeable interpretations of Motown, Broadway, and Euro-pop. Lenka's voice uses different modulations, the title track as an example steers to the retro likeability pop has hovered near the last five years. An intelligent, pleasant pop miscellany describes Two.

"Everything At Once" from Two

2011 Selection #13
Van Hunt: What Were You Hoping For? (Godless-Hotspot)

The shelving of Van Hunt's Popular in 2008 effected him immensely.

With, now his third album, What Were You Hoping For?, he disspels any neo-soul aspirations by burying his craft deep into snarling power funk and bits of muscular punk.

The rhythm and blues side of Van Hunt is used sparingly, often to sweeten the rougher edges heard here.

The fans that celebrated his epnoynmous debut in 2004, and tolerated his experiments on 2006's On the Jungle Floor will recoil at Hoping For.

If they (the fans) can see the genius in Hunt's craft, What Were You Hoping For? embraces the black-rock of Lenny Kravtiz's Circus (1995) and Terence Trent D'Arby's Vibrator (1995). Forward thinking and unapologetic, Van Hunt's What Were You Hoping For? is black music at its inventive, ear bending best.

"Watching You Go Crazy Is Driving Me Insane" from What Were You Hoping For?

2011 Selection #12
Ricky Martin: Música + Alma + Sexo (Sony)*

Is it in poor taste to completely single out Mr. Martin's sexual orientation confessional as the moment he became a true artist? Maybe, but it's hard to comment that his work before he came out, congenial as it was, was truly memorable.

His recent album Música + Alma + Sexo ("Music + Soul + Sex") is something that Martin will remembered for besides "Shake Your Bon Bon" thankfully.

A handsome force of nature, Música gives moment after moment of Martin in assured form. Regardless of the sensous slow numbers, or the pulse elevating rushes that will move feet and hips, Martin's Spanish tongue is up to the challenge. The record of 2011 that embodies liberation, sexiness, and confidence, with no chaser? I'd say yes.

"Más" from Música + Alma + Sexo

2011 Selection #11
Les Nubians: Nü Revolution (Shanachie)

Parisian sisters Hélène and Célia Faussart don't release music in a steady stream, so original music must be cherished when dropped.

Their last project, 2003's One Step Forward, melded their odd, appealing world music flavors with conventional American R&B, in French and English. The junior effort continues with the bilingual pace that One Step Forward started, but the grooves are a bit heavier on this mahogany adventure.

Afropean thumpers ("Afrodance"), French dawn soul ("Liberte"), and jungle funk mash-ups ("Nü Soul Makossa") lie in wait for audiences. The sisters are in fantastic voice on Revolution, not showing fatigue or uncertainty. Breaking cultural barriers, Les Nubians newest long player will communicate directly to the rhythm in everyone.

"Afrodance" from Nü Revolution

2011 Selection #10
Mint Condition: 7... (Shanachie)*

The title of "the last R&B band" is honorable and ominous. On one hand, it suggests the group in question, Mint Condition, deserves to inherit the moniker. With an eye to non-bias however, Mint Condition is also the only group to be considered in 2011, and that is when the ominous factor enters the equation.

The pressure of being seen as the last living ideal of black music finesse should be stressful. 7..., as the title states, is the seventh album by Mint Condition, and it doesn't give any air to fear or sense of overt bravado. What 7... does so well is function from a hard foundation of Minneapolis R&B, then adds a plethora of musical ideas to the pot.

Somewhere between artistic freedom and comfort coasting, Mint Condition comes off as a tight knit band. They know what they want and how they want it to sound. They know they can bring the same energy from the live stage onto the record easily. 7... doesn’t surrender its class, but isn’t a prisoner to austerity.

"Mind Slicker" from 7...

2011 Selection #9
Melanie C: The Sea (Red Girl)**

Anyone who has dismissed the Spice Girls as not having any lasting mark in popular music should be eating their words well done. 17 albums (group and solo) combined, Melanie C's fifth solo return continues her own musical legacy as well as that of her former group.

The Sea is a triumph, by and large, living up to its namesake. Granted, there are small batches of songs that get away from her ("All About You," "Drown," "Get Out of Here"), but the mass of The Sea roars.

The title track, similar to the grandeur of Katie Melua's "The Flood" from last year, is an aural juggernaut. The "butterfly blood rush," as Melanie sings in "Think About It" is just that, while bombastic ballads such as "Weak" captivate. Melanie C has found her space, yet reaches for new ground ("Stupid Game"), something she should be commended for. Again, her staying power, and that of her former group, continues to reverberate in pop music without fail.

"The Sea" from The Sea

2011 Selection #8
Rahsaan Patterson: Bleuphoria (Artistry Music)

After Wines & Spirits (2007), Patterson's R&B traveling continues on the thrilling, loose terrain of Bleuphoria. Romantic and conflicted, it isn't as dark as its predecessor was; instead it's a brew of sonics stewed for savoring.

The hypnosis of "Crazy (Baby)" or the starry rendition of The Flamingo's doo-wooper "I Only Have Eyes For You" are jaw dropping.

Patterson also brings along his friends to play: Shanice, Jody Watley, Faith Evans, and Tata Vega (to name a few) all get on board Patterson's train. Trippy, Bleuphoria is a journey into the spirit of an artist attuned to expression of feeling over anything else.

"I Only Have Eyes For You" from Bleuphoria

2011 Selection #7
Sophie Ellis-Bextor: Make a Scene (EBGB)**

Soldiering past a staggering three year delay, La Bextor's fourth opus finally saw the light in 2011. Sleeker, harder, and faster than her last three albums, Make a Scene is frenzy on wax.

Bextor pulls from Róisín Murphy, ABBA, Donna Summer, and Kylie Minogue without sacrificing what makes her work distinctly her own, namely good taste. Bextor treads some new water (see "Revolution") and keeps that British tea stained wonder she's calls her voice, the star of Scene.

The momentum of Bextor's newest album will be muted by its delays, and that is unfortunate. A record this cool should have a larger audience.

"Magic" from Make a Scene

2011 Selection #6
Duran Duran: All You Need is Now (Tape Modern/S-Curve)*

The gentleman are back again, though they've never really left, so leave the comeback claptrap at the door. All You Need is Now is their first wrap around to a specific soundfield (Rio, 1982).

Worry not, there is no desperate aftertaste most groups have when they reach this point.

There are surface level winners, and other diamonds in the trenches that will be found upon exploration from the listener. A true treat for long timers and the new curious fans they've sparked interest in.

"The Man Who Stole a Leopard" featuring Kelis from All You Need is Now

2011 Selection #5
Gloria Estefan: Miss Little Havana (Crescent Moon/Verve Forecast)*

What to do when you've come to the realization you've done everything? Spanning decades, Gloria Estefan faced this query and embraced it by looking back and forward on Miss Little Havana.

Her second album of dance charged fare following the iconic gloria! (1998), Estefan's producing partnership with Neptune Pharrell Williams is savoir faire.

Flashy, fun, and free from inhibition to do anything other than party down, Havana packs a wallop with its title track, "Wepa," "Make Me Say Yes," and there is more to discover here. Estefan's accomplishments continue to mount, Havana being a welcome addition to her treasure pile.

"Heat" from Miss Little Havana

2011 Selection #4
Vanessa Carlton: Rabbits on the Run (Razor & Tie)

Vanessa Carlton's Rabbits on the Run continues building on her honeycombed pop.

Bigger than Heroes & Thieves (2007) in the way it unravels to the attentive, Carlton sets Rabbits apart by letting her voice skim softly along detachment here.

With her gossamer voice accentuating her haunting songs, Carlton lets her virtuosic piano playing lead to the emotional cores dwellings inside the songs. Carlton’s adept composing and playing skills are demonstrated on Rabbits, signifying that the naïveté of “A Thousand Miles” is light years behind her.

"London" from Rabbits on the Run

2011 Selection #3
Joy Denalane: Maureen (Nesola)**

Four years after her second album Born & Raised (2006), and first in English, German soulbird Joy Denalane has returned with Maureen. The title comes from Denalane’s middle name linking the LP to the intimate songs on the album.

Languages aside, Maureen overflows with flowery ballads, sample-led midtempo’s, and a few funk throw downs, see “Rosen” on the last tip. The only song in English is a modest, lovely version of the Heatwave chestnut “Happiness.”

Maureen communes with anyone willing to listen to her song, German and non-German speakers alike.

"Der Tag Ist Nah" from Maureen

2011 Selection #2
Will Young: Echoes (XIX/RCA/Sony)**

The first to win Britain's Pop Idol in 2002, that spawned American Idol and its brood, Will Young has worked hard to reach the artistic home run of Echoes.

Young's ear is keen for sharp, warm adult contemporary pop that dons blue-eyed soul dusted with electronic sophistication.

That said, Echoes puts Young at its focal point. His voice commands the songs, and the structures are built around Young. Tailored, but not completely streamlined, Echoes is a sexy, emotional, confident affair that will age well in the coming years.

"I Just Want a Lover" from Echoes

2011 Selection #1
Nikki Jean: Pennies In a Jar (S-Curve)

Bob Dylan. Carly Simon. Thom Bell. Jimmy Webb. Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. Lamont Dozier. Just a sampling of the talent brought together to co-write with Nikki Jean on her debut is awe inducing.

Attempts at such lofty partnerships have been tried, but never on this level has it been so successful. Jean’s producer Sam Hollander assists in keeping Jean’s vision of her music firm, not washed away in the gifts of the individuals she partnered with.

Making every retro tomb raider and pretender of the last decade irrelevant, Pennies in a Jar is a wondrous, versatile recording. Occupying country-hip-hop collisions, twinkling Philadelphia R&B, wistful pop, and street chamber music, Jean embodies the changeability of pop, without short changing the sincerity of soul. Jean’s voice makes Pennies special, springing forth in a multitude of hues.

Nikki Jean is the lady to watch in the ensuing years, as her next projects will be just as endearing as this one.-QH

"Pennies in a Jar" from Pennies in a Jar

[Editor's Note: *-Denotes that the album has an "expanded edition," or is "retailer specific" in where it can be purchased. Please see the official websites of these artists for details. **-Denotes that the album is only available as an import, and not a domestic U.S. release. Special Thanks: As stated, this article was a lot of work. I could not have accomplished it without the tireless efforts of several key people: Andrew Bird, Darren Spence, Justin Daniel, and Frank Coleman. I may select and listen to the music, and write the piece, but these guys helped make the piece beautiful with their contributions of the art & sound files. Thank you all so much. Special thanks to Tommy D for his recommendation of The Sound of Arrows.-QH]

Stepping Back & Forward with Steps

2011-11-21T21:21:00.021-05:00

I've rediscovered my love of Steps, a popular British quintet whose prominence ranged from 1997-2001. 2011 heralded a reunion for Steps after a rupture in the group ten years previously this December.

Soaring back into the British public consciousness on the back of a documentary detailing their mended fences, Steps has topped the U.K. album charts (digitally and physically) with their Ultimate Collection. The companion tour, already selling out, is making this reunion a fantastic realization for longtime fans. A new album could even be in the works.

My initial exposure to Steps was and is owed to my love and interest in the Spice Girls, another United Kingdom export, though worlds away from the pre-fab pep pop Steps favored. The Spice Girls opened my ears and eyes to the international music scenes, because of this I was able to fall under the sway of the Steps spell in the late spring of 2000.

Proceeding the pre-fabricated explosion that stole America by two years, Steps racked up the requisite silver, gold, platinum single and albums sales, and nothing less than Top 20 chart placements at their peak. Lee Latchford-Evans, Ian "H" Watkins, Lisa Scott-Lee, Claire Richards, and Faye Tozer were conceptualized by Tim Byrne, Steve Crosby, and Barry Upton, all movers and shakers within the U.K. popular music sphere.

Later, Pete Waterman, a former third of the production trio Stock-Aitken-Waterman, became involved in the songwriting and production duties for Steps. Waterman, with his S.A.W. peers defined pop music in England, Europe, Australia, and Asia from the late '80's through the early '90's. America caught the S.A.W. bug as well throughout the '80's, but not as feverishly as the previously mentioned locales. The S.A.W. stable boasted Dead or Alive, Bananarama, Rick Astley, and (importantly) Kylie Minogue. Waterman's hand in their first two records came from experience.

Steps drew their name from their dance choreography that accompanied every single and video they released, their music often was founded in varying strains of European and British dance music. However, they did have a longer reach in their singles and albums than a momentary listen would lead a casual observer to believe. What made Steps stand out was their crystal harmonies, they could sing.

Some of the Steps crafts have not aged well ("5, 6, 7, 8" anyone?), the rest retains a golden gleam of well written, sweet appeal. Hyped as the ABBA of their day wasn't a completely off nor accurate description. At their brightest, they evoked the early and latter days of ABBA on "One for Sorrow" and "After the Love Has Gone."

Their covers promptly showed that Steps weren't just ABBA copycats, their own personality pouring over classics by Bananarama ("Last Thing On My Mind"), The Bee Gees ("Tragedy"), Diana Ross ("Chain Reaction"), and the already mentioned Kylie Minogue ("Better the Devil You Know").

Like fellow Brit-popper Robbie Williams in the same time-span, Steps attempted a shot at American success. Combining elements from both Step One (1998) and Steptacular (1999), they prepped a composite U.S. edition of Step One which arrived in 2000. Williams tried the same technique with '99's The Ego Has Landed, which combed cuts from the multi-platinum successes Life Thru a Lens (1997) and I've Been Expecting You (1998).

Despite the lukewarm reception Steps received in the U.S., it was on the third LP Buzz (2000), along with their American contemporary the Backstreet Boys' Black & Blue released the same year, that Steps courted iconoclasm in their art. New Musical Express critic Peter Robinson stated in his favorable review of Buzz (NME ranked it "8/10"):

Even more so than second albums, third albums are notoriously difficult in pop. For while a second album can lodge itself in the slipstream of all the excitement that comes with a debut, third albums are there to see bands "standing on their feet" and "proving themselves," and-call the police!-"taking a more mature direction' by "writing our own material."

Buzz, the first album I ever imported, is one of the finest pop records of its time. The disco resurrection of "Stomp," touted in the liner notes as a tribute to Chic frontmen Niles Rodgers and Bernard Edwards, was unapologetic in its lush, flying groove. Songs like these are why I'm endeared to British pop music, they don't fret and fuss like Americans do over (supposedly) appearing old hat when getting into great period pieces.

Elsewhere, Buzz held one song written by each Step, all strong affairs. Claire's "Hand On Your Heart" and Lisa's "Never Get Over You" were epic and gorgeous stand-outs. Additional highlights included their world music pull, lifted from Ace of Base's The Bridge (1995), on "Paradise Lost," the raving "Learn to Love Again," and the DeBarge borrowed "Wouldn't Hurt So Bad."

Unlike the Backstreet Boys, Steps wouldn't get a chance to capitalize on Buzz, as they disbanded after their "Gold Tour." Their recent "Steps: The Reunion" documentary filled in the dots of what went wrong, and that for the most part, the former Steps tried their hands at solo careers and personality driven entertainment engagements in the interim.

"It's the Way You Make Me Feel" from Buzz

In the decade since their disbanding, much has changed in the world. Performers like Steps, as they do, tend to be appreciated when they aren't as ubiquitous. Now, their work is being crowned by former cynics. For me, a strange homecoming has taken place. I don't believe in the idea of "guilty pleasure," at least in music anyway. Every artist has their place, and the responsibility to be the best at what they do, no matter what anyone may think. Steps did that.

They spoke of a more innocent time in my life, and those of their (now) adult fans. The Steps brand of pop, often heartfelt, fun, and sometimes corny, I've discovered has its place among the other music I've found since I was 16. I am probably the only black 26-year-old Midwesterner checking for Steps to keep on truckin' in these pop barren days, but somehow it feels full circle.-QH

[Editor's Note: All of Steps discography is in print, the mass of it available via import. For more information on Steps visit: Steps Official.-QH]

The Supremes: 1970-1977

2011-11-03T20:13:00.022-04:00

SUPREME: Highest in Rank or Authority, Highest in Degree & Quality, Ultimate, Final

The truth? It's assumed The Supremes, Motown's leading act, the eternal female vocal group blueprint, ceased to exist when its defacto lead vocalist Diana Ross departed in 1969.The real truth? The Supremes relaunched in 1970 and recorded and released 10 albums. Seven as a group, and three as duet projects with fellow Motowners, The Four Tops.

Scuzzy revisionists usually tend to diminish the kaleidoscopic heights these incarnations of The Supremes scaled. To be fair, The Supremes weren't up against just historical rewriting, the times had changed in the 1970's. Competition from other up and coming black female groups, evolving tastes, and their own revolving line-up switches provided challenges.

The latter tip, it should be stated, really was only a problem for the casual observer. Five women would inherit the mantle of being a Supreme from 1970-1977, with Mary Wilson being the sole original member to navigate each line-up from 1959-1977 overall.

Each woman who came into The Supremes brought a distinct color all their own to their sonic story. In the last decade, their works have finally gotten the spotlight they so richly deserves.

A series of lavish reissues, starting with The '70's Anthology (2002) led to This Is the Story: The '70s Albums, Vol. 1–1970–1973: The Jean Terrell Years (2006), Magnificent: The Complete Studio Duets (2009), and Let Yourself Go: The '70s Albums, Vol. 2–1974–1977: The Final Sessions (2011). All revived by the reissue imprint Hip-O-Select, The '70's Supremes have been allowed to tell their story, and what a tale it is. For those, and there are still many sadly, unfamiliar with The '70's Supremes, this overview will remedy that.

Right On
Released: April 1970
Produced By: Frank Wilson
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop #25, U.S. R&B #4, U.K. # (Did Not Chart)

Singles: "Up the Ladder to the Roof," "Everybody's Got the Right to Love"

Line-Up: Jean Terrell, Mary Wilson, Cindy Birdsong

After three years of running on empty, excusing the loveliness of "Reflections," "Love Child," and "In & Out of Love," Right On was a glorious and golden return to form and equal parts rebirth. The Supremes were a unit again, and producer Frank Wilson made that a reality on record. Right On was seminal, as it was the first record without Diana Ross, heralding the arrival of Jean Terrell.

Also important was that it would be the first studio recording to restore Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong to the fold after being supplanted by session singers The Andantes on the bulk of the D.R.A.T.S. (Diana Ross & The Supremes) album output.

A pool of graceful soul and pop, Right On was luxurious. The ephemeral highs of the lead single "Up the Ladder to the Roof" immediately won over the wary. Deeper cuts such as "But I Love You More" and "The Loving Country" fulfilled further investment from the listeners. Back in business, three-part harmonies and all, Right On was a top to bottom victory for The Supremes.

"Up the Ladder to the Roof" & "Everybody's Got the Right to Love" Circa 1970

New Ways, But Love Stays
Released: October 1970
Produced By: Frank Wilson
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop #68, U.S. R&B #12, U.K. #(Did Not Chart)

Singles: "Stoned Love"

Line-Up: Jean Terrell, Mary Wilson, Cindy Birdsong

Frustratingly bold and limp, New Ways, But Love Stays was the rushed follow-up to Right On.

Frank Wilson, again, steered the good ship Supremes.

On this outing, he decided to splice in psychedelia strains into the soul-pop mix.

The three-part, segued opener of "Together We Can Make Such Sweet Music," "Stoned Love," and "It's Time to Break Down" was a wall of auditory sensations. New Ways placed more shine to the distinct sounds of Terrell, Wilson, and Birdsong. They rolled on "Together," took to the gospel cosmos on "Stoned," and occupied majesty with "It's Time to Break Down."

"Stoned Love," the biggest hit single of this decade's Supremes, was controversial in that many misread its call for "solid" or "stoned" love as a barely veiled drug reference. Performances on "Is There a Place (In His Heart For Me)," and the beaming "Shine On Me" were fantastic, partially due to these songs being written for The Supremes. Majority of New Ways was constructed out of cover material, distributing an uneven quality. For every assured turn on Simon and Garfunkel's "Bridge Over Troubled Water" their were anemic takes on The Beatles "Come Together," or The Four Tops "I Wish I Were Your Mirror."

A transitional piece, but with vocal prowess to spare, New Ways, But Love Stays was a rare misfire in the '70's Supremes discography.

"Stoned Love" Circa 1970

Touch
Released: June 1971
Produced By: Frank Wilson
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop #85, U.S. R&B #8, U.K. #40

Singles: "Nathan Jones," "Touch"

Line-Up: Jean Terrell, Mary Wilson, Cindy Birdsong

The first Supremes album to be reviewed, and favorably at that, by a then up and coming music magazine called Rolling Stone, was Touch. The last of the Frank Wilson trilogy, and the best, was a monochromatic wonder, sonically speaking. It could be said that it was the first Supremes record to have a detectable atmosphere upon listening.

The brisk "Nathan Jones," its verses and chorus sung in unison, sat next to the ringing "Love It Came To Me This Time." "Love..." revealed Terrell's unaffected, pure craft in her ability to read the feelings of the track in an astsoundingly astute fashion.

Leads from Birdsong and Wilson were also becoming more prominent, in fact the titular cut, and second single, had Wilson going toe-to-toe with Terrell. Her first commercial single release as a co-lead was spellbinding. Touch benefited from what New Ways, But Love Stays lacked: an abundance of original songs written for The Supremes. One lone cover, The 5th Dimension's "Time & Love" vibrantly tackled by The Supremes, soared.Interestingly enough, Diana Ross also recorded a version for her eponymous solo debut, which had remained vaulted until 2001.

Dark and lovely, Touch was, and is, top shelf Supremes, age of its creation notwithstanding.

"Touch" (Audio & Still Photography Only)
*Performance clips from this period are rare, none were available at this time*

Floy Joy
Released: May 1972
Produced By: Smokey Robinson
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop #54, U.S. R&B #12, U.K. # (Did Not Chart)

Singles: "Floy Joy," "Automatically Sunshine," "Your Wonderful, Sweet Sweet Love"

Line-Up: Jean Terrell, Mary Wilson, Cindy Birdsong, Lynda Laurence

Motown alumni Smokey Robinson (of The Miracles fame), took duties for The Supremes on their fourth album of the '70's. Robinson's prior production past included a bulk of material The Supremes first released to mild fanfare. This took place before their hit streaking pairing with Holland-Dozier-Holland in '63.

Robinson decided to guide The Supremes into joyful, but no less evocative, waters on Floy Joy. Girlish and playful, Floy Joy ended up as the aural equivalent of fresh cream.

By now, Terrell, Wilson, and Birdsong had adhered to one another; their interplay tighter. Snappy on the title track (the larger hit on LP), or the more low and groovy "Now the Bitter, Now the Sweet" cemented that The Supremes had established their own brand of sound separate from their previous decade.

Pictured on the album cover, and present for all promotional performances, appearances, etc. was Lynda Laurence. Birdsong's voice is unmistakably heard on Floy Joy, but her impending pregnancy meant she departed The Supremes after the Floy Joy recordings wrapped. Laurence, a Wonderlove vocalist, the legendary backing troupe for Stevie Wonder, left with Wonder's blessing to become a Supreme. Floy Joy became the last diminutively successful album The Supremes knew, as Motown's support for them began its inexorable decline.

"Your Wonderful, Sweet Sweet Love" Circa 1972

The Supremes Produced and Arranged By Jimmy Webb
Released: November 1972
Produced By: Jimmy Webb, Deke Richards (on "I Guess I'll Miss the Man")
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop #129, U.S. R&B #27, U.K. # (Did Not Chart)

Singles: "I Guess I'll Miss the Man"

Line-Up: Jean Terrell, Mary Wilson, Lynda Laurence

Jimmy Webb touched The Supremes with his silk and lavender tones, giving Produced & Arranged an adult contemporary, if staid feel. Terrell was provided with fantastic songs like "5:30 Plane," "When Can Brown Begin," "Tossin' and Turnin'," and "Beyond Myself"; dramatic designs that utilized Terrell's innate ability to constructively intuit the songs in the right emotional keys. It was obvious this type of soul-pop medium influenced Terrell's A&M solo debut, I Had to Fall In Love, which arrived in 1978.

Wilson shared the forlorn "I Keep It Hid," a solo number. Ballads were fast becoming Wilson's calling card, and she would almost exclusively handle them in the last three years of The Supremes lifespan.

Oddly, the solitary single, pulled from the play "Pippin," "I Guess I'll Miss the Man" made minimal impact. It was also the only song on the record not produced by Webb, but rather Deke Richards. Richards was a popular Motown stable producer. Produced & Arranged's notiriety increased by the fact that it was the first, and last, Supremes album to host Supreme Lynda Laurence.

The commercial failure, or abortion, due to Motown's non-support on Produced & Arranged soured Terrell and Laurence on Motown. Laurence, in optimism, persuaded her mentor, Stevie Wonder, to produce a single-only release for The Supremes entitled "Bad Weather." Popular with fans and the R&B disc jockey's in the know, the single was issued not long after Produced & Arranged had cooled. When the single stalled, it was the final curtain for Terrell and Laurence. Both asked to be released from Motown. Mary Wilson, now alone, had to reconfigure the group who would'nt have another record released for two years.

"I Guess I'll Miss the Man" Circa 1972

The Supremes
Released: May 1975
Produced By: Hal Davis, Mark Davis, Brian Holland, Clayton Ivey, Michael Lloyd, Terry Woodford, Greg Wright
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop #152, U.S. R&B #25, U.K. # (Did Not Chart)

Singles: "He's My Man," "Where Do I Go From Here?," "Early Morning Love"

Line-Up: Mary Wilson, Cindy Birdsong, Scherrie Payne

Two years of contractual struggles with Motown Records occurred before Produced & Arranged had a proper follow-up. New changes in music, R&B and pop, transpired. Vocal groups were even more en vogue, some of whom were rocking a little sound known as disco. How would The Supremes factor into all of this?

Mary Wilson returned, with Supreme favorite Cindy Birdsong back for more, and the newest, saucy member: Ms. Scherrie Payne. Without missing a beat, the eponymous sixth '70's Supremes LP glistened with a rebranding of The Supremes. Tied with Produced & Arranged for their poppiest affair, unlike the more formal restraint of that record, The Supremes courted a tactful, but youthful exuberance. Sporting a plethora of production talent (see credits above), no doubt The Supremes were going to find a niche to get in, and fit in.

A chunk 'o' funk, "He's My Man" was their first dance hit with dual leads from the dynamo Payne, and Wilson. The post-coital ode in "Early Morning Love" evenly matched the diamante of "It's All Been Said Before," which showcased amazing harmony acrobatics from all three Supremes. Many fans over the years have commented that the Birdsong, Payne, Wilson line-up came closest to the sharpness of the classic Ballard, Wilson, Ross salad days.

"Color My World Blue," another Payne knockout, seized her element of vitality superbly. Though, that "vitality" could get the best of her, and her fellow Supremes, as heard on the churchy "This Is Why I Believe in You," a fun, but erroneous cut that marred this otherwise stainless eponymous record.

The sales slump would continue from a mainstream market perspective, but The Supremes made the group relevant and visible in 1975. One market in particular showed affection to The Supremes after this recording dropped: dance music.

"Early Morning Love" Circa 1975

High Energy
Released: April 1976
Produced By: Brian and Edward Holland, Jr.
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop #42, U.S. R&B #25, U.K. # (Did Not Chart)

Singles: "I'm Gonna Let My Heart Do the Walking," "You're What's Missing in My Life"

Line-Up: Mary Wilson, Scherrie Payne, Susaye Green

"Out of adversity..." or so the saying goes. The sessions for High Energy had already begun when Birdsong said her final goodbyes to The Supremes amidst a growing turbulence within the group. Motown's lack of support, blatant by this point, was coupled with Wilson's troubled marriage to Pedro Ferrer. Ferrer would assume a managerial role of The Supremes, with catastrophic results.

Despite all of this, High Energy became a definitive recording for The Supremes. In addition, High Energy played an integral role in the return of the prodigal son (s), brothers Brian and Edward Holland, of Holland-Dozier-Holland fame.

These two men had helped make The Supremes the icons they were a decade previously. Parting with Motown over royalty disputes in 1967, then founding their own label Invictus, The Holland's returned to Motown with the bad blood washed away. The Holland's mission with High Energy conceived to update The Supremes with the posh, orchestral brush strokes of disco and modern rhythm and blues.

Joining Wilson and Payne, was Susaye Green, the final Supreme to come aboard. Ms. Green, another Wonderlove vocalist, doubled as a songwriter. Upon stepping into The Supremes, she had just scored a massive hit penning Deniece Williams' (a Wonderlove too) "Free." Later, Green co-wrote Michael Jackson's "I Can't Help It" from Off the Wall (1979). It was Green's garguantuan octave range that charged the title track with a late-night sensuality. It went on to become a club classic without a commercial single release.

Brazen and feminist, the kicker "I'm Gonna Let My Heart Do the Walking" graced the Top 40 Pop charts, the last conventional hit they would land, but what a landing. Somewhere, between the coquette and the lascivious, "Only You (Can Love Me Like You Love Me)" lived it up on record with abandon.

The remainder of High Energy fell into after hours bliss. Mary Wilson carried majority of the songs here, her angles bittersweet and husky on "Till the Boat Sails Away" and "Don't Let My Teardrops Bother You." Channeling her recent emotional upsets into "Teardrops," Wilson's poignancy enthralled.

Start to finish, High Energy's case as another stunning entry into the 70's Supremes discography is hard to argue against.

"I'm Gonna Let My Heart Do the Walking" Circa 1976

Mary, Scherrie, & Susaye
Released: October 1976
Produced By: Brian and Edward Holland, Jr.
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop # (Did Not Chart), U.S. R&B # (Did Not Chart), U.K. # (Did Not Chart)

Singles: "You're My Driving Wheel," "Let Yourself Go," "Love, I Never Knew You Could Feel So Good," "Come Into My Life"

Line-Up: Mary Wilson, Scherrie Payne, Susaye Green

At the time of its release, The Supremes had become full-on dance music stars. The indifference from the pop, and now the R&B charts, hadn't dampened their spirits to create, what was to be, another foray toward the mirrorball realm. Unfortunately, Mary, Scherrie, & Susaye, the final Supremes long player was more steam than fire. The ballads, while pretty, had become perfunctory: "You Are the Heart of Me" and "We Should Be Closer Together." Great vehicles for Wilson's shadowy, blossomed presence, they still were missing something. The uptempo's had ceased to bend trends, and saw The Supremes following them instead. "Love, I Never Knew You Could Feel So Good?" Too furious for its own good. "You're My Driving Wheel?" It orbited parody.

Thankfully, for every uneven number, there were a few clear cut classics in the batch. "Sweet Dream Machine," with its score-like arrangement looked back to the High Energy peaks, albeit it was darker than High Energy's material. The sci-fi, Donna Summer glow of "Come Into My Life," was Green's best Supremes cut. A veritable production and vocal wonder to behold. " I Don't Want to be Tied Down," a sassy tell-off, was unapologetic and abrasive, suggesting an even bolder direction for The Supremes. It was not to be.

The Supremes would finish without the "hit record" they'd been pining for. The final curtain fell on their last farewell show, June 12th, 1977, in London, England at the Drury Lane Theatre to a sold out house. Mary, Scherrie, & Susaye remains perennial query of where The Supremes could have gone, given better circumstances.

"Come Into My Life" Circa 1977

The drama and tragedy of The Supremes overshadows their musical legacy more often than not. The unique epoch of these chapters in The Supremes history appeals because of the sheer excellence and quality of the recorded product. Even with the heartache, Motown machinations, the quandary of cultural relevance, The Supremes delivered. The Supremes grew as women, and the songs reflected those changes. Whether they were straddling soulful maturity during Jean Terrell's tenure, or getting loose once Scherrie Payne touched down.

Mentioning Terrell and Payne, Mary Wilson, Cindy Birdsong, Lynda Laurence, and Susaye Green evidenced that The Supremes never wanted for talent, having the most diverse clutch of female vocalists under one nom de guerre in popular music.

The ravenous "purists," the '60's Supremes aficienados, may see the '70's Supremes as only shades to their earlier successes. Again, the truth? The '70's Supremes existed on a completely different plane, looking to birth not just hit singles, but whole albums that told stories. Dedicated to the music, they never relinquished the glamor and sophistication that were hallmarks for The Supremes, regardless of the decade. The '70's Supremes were just the next step in the evolution of an iconic institution. That's their story, and I'm sticking to it.-QH

[Editor's Note: At the time of this writing, The '70's Anthology (2002) and This Is the Story: The '70s Albums, Vol. 1–1970–1973: The Jean Terrell Years (2006) are physically out of print. The latter was a limited run edition. However, Magnificent: The Complete Studio Duets (2009), and Let Yourself Go: The '70s Albums, Vol. 2–1974–1977: The Final Sessions (2011) are still in print. All of these packages are available digitally via iTunes and Amazon. For more information on these remaster sets, visit http://www.hip-oselect.com/default.asp-QH]

Jamiroquai's "Rock Dust Light Star" One Year Later

2011-11-01T07:00:00.004-04:00

Funk and disco, R&B’s progeny, are not to be mixed according to some. In truth, these styles rub shoulders often. Those schooled enough on black music will understand the phobic lines drawn in the sand regarding these genres are man made divisions, not musical.

Jason Cheetham, or Jay Kay as he's known, led his group Jamiroquai out of the acid jazz confines of Britain by being dashing enough to mix those previously mentioned genre offshoots of R&B. In the last ten years however, there had been whispers of which elements had factored into their sound.

At the beginning, Jamiroquai was much like their acid jazz cousin The Brand New Heavies: a band. Each band member played an integral role into what shaped classics like Emergency on Planet Earth (1993) and Return of the Space Cowboy (1995). Those records were praised for their spontaneous, organic feel, heavier on jazz and funk. The creamy, dreamy disco strings were kept to just a dollop.

As Jamiroquai evolved, the group remained professional and gifted, but were relegated to elevated session player status. It reflected in Jamiroquai's sound as the group began moving toward complex, concise, elevated structures that owed more to disco than just mere funk improvisations. Granted, closer inspection leads one to see that Jamiroquai (like Earth, Wind & Fire before them), moved on the same track black music did as funk and disco slowly merged during the mid-to-late-‘70’s into a delectable gestalt. The funk didn’t vanish, it just wasn’t the only thing there. Now raucous guitar solos hung alongside glistening electronic flourishes, and those strings became front and center stars.

Released one year ago today, Rock Dust Light Star (2010), their seventh album overall and first on Mercury Records after leaving Epic Records, was met with high expectations from fans and critics. The ingenious craft that went into A Funk Odyssey (2001) and Dynamite (2005) peered at the hybrid of funk and disco, with an electronic edge that was accessorial in nature. Both projects were met with commercial success, but divided Jamiroquai’s fans. Many enjoyed the forward momentum, but the ever loving didgeridoo crew core of fans yearned for a simpler Jamiroquai.

Rock Dust Light Star sought to meet both fans in the middle. Far too late to reverse their musical evolution, Jay Kay leading another savvy pack of session players wanted to bring a more chilled groove to the proceedings. That groove would, ideally, loop the group back to the echoes of their first two records. The title track moves along pleasantly enough, and while not an immediate winner, it snatches the listener with each subsequent spin. Kay still could beguile when it came to his vocal prowess. With that voice, Kay breathed self-contemplation into “Blue Skies” (the “Corner of the Earth” of this LP) and gave finger snappin' wit to “Lifeline.”

The words are grounded, as they've been for awhile, in the fields of unrequited love or otherwise. “All Good in the Hood” figured Kay as the done-wrong lover who warns that “a little tension makes the world go round” when it comes to love being right. He then drastically shifted to the apologist crooner on “Two Completely Different Things,” wearing his Stevie Wonder influence proudly.

When the tempo began reaching for more floorfiller adrenaline, it remained mannered as heard on the lead single “White Knuckle Ride.” "White..." had the requisite “soul sista” backing vocals, the busy violin section, and that heart pounding beat. “She’s a Fast Persuader” proved to be more gratifying to the A Funk Odyssey and Dynamite crowds. Glowing and cheeky, it was a brash nod to the fine art of fellatio; its night-streaked bliss should have been an obvious single.

"Blue Skies"
Directed By: Howard Greenhalgh

Rock Dust Light Star found that Jamiroquai was comfortable enough to switch their own stylistic tempos when it suited them. The peaks of their first two records can’t be compared to Rock Dust Light Star because the fact is that they’ve become that good. Even the low key performances here are slick and accessible, in a good sense. That isn’t a bad thing, as Jamiroquai has made some of the best mainstream music around. Tastefully crafted, contemporary and retro without any of the irony, and bearing the traits to reach eventual classic status. It will be up to fans to accept that they may have started on “Planet Home,” but they’ve travelled to a galaxy of funk-disco composite ectasy far, far away and we’re just along for the ride. Five stars out of five.-QH

[Editor's Note: Rock Dust Light Star is available in all music retailers, in-store or online, that specialize in import materials. For more information on Jamirquai, visit: http://www.jamiroquai.com/-QH]

Kylie Minogue: 20 Greatest Singles '87-'10

2011-10-28T23:36:00.012-04:00

An idea born out of boredom during a slow work day took an interesting change of direction. Listing favorite Kylie Minogue songs of mine became an almost impossible task.

The sheer boundlessness of Minogue's discography: singles, album cuts, b-sides, remixes, guest spots would fill a "Top 100" countdown easily. I wasn't quite ready for such a massive undertaking yet. Instead, I decided to draw from her singles well, and narrow it to at least 20 favorites.

The timeliness of this random act couldn't have been better. Capping off the hugely successful Les Folies World Tour earlier this year stirred a feeling of appreciation. Looking back is something I always enjoy, and when it comes to the Pocket Venus of Pop, Ms. Minogue's hallowed halls are always fun to stroll down.

There were some singles I would have loved to include such as "Step Back in Time," "If You Were With Me Now," "Breathe," "Love At First Sight," "Red Blooded Woman," "In My Arms," "Better Than Today," etc. It does feel a bit endless. However, what I did pick suggests what makes Kylie Minogue an icon: an appetite of pop changeability. A quick reference note on the chart positions used. I chose to focus on two of her largest markets: England and Minogue's native Australia. While wildly popular in Asia and Europe, there was no room for every country for this exercise. I did include America for the singles that did manage to chart here.

Selection Number 20: "Never Too Late"
Release Date: October 1989 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Mike Stock, Matt Aitken, Pete Waterman
Produced By: Stock, Aitken, & Waterman
Album: Enjoy Yourself (1989)
Chart Position: #4 (U.K.), #14 (AU)

Synopsis: Flashing into existence with a sparkling synth riff, an immediate melody carries the listener up, up, up into the pop heavens with a sing-a-long chorus.

The beat is a bit more insistent on "Never Too Late," an unconscious shift in sound later to be mined fully on the following long player Rhythm of Love (1990). Purely joyful, this is accurate proof as to why Minogue's Stock-Aitken-Waterman years were pivotal in her career origin.

"Never Too Late"
Directed By: Pete Cornish

Selection Number 19: "I Should Be So Lucky"
Release Date: December 1987 (U.K., AU, U.S.A.)
Written By: Mike Stock, Matt Aitken, Pete Waterman
Produced By: Stock, Aitken, & Waterman
Album: Kylie (1987)
Chart Position: #1 (U.K.), #1 (AU), #28 (U.S.A)

Sypnosis: The lyrical signpost that trademarked the love worn laments majority of her Stock-Aitken-Waterman period material professed, "Lucky" is nothing short of brilliant. Deft, forthcoming, but vulnerable, Minogue's overall feel here is emotion wrapped in sugary hooks.

"I Should Be So Lucky"
Directed By: Chris Langman

Selection Number 18: "Giving You Up"
Release Date: March 2005 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins, Tim Powell, Lisa Cowling, Paul Woods, Nick Coler, Kylie Minogue
Produced By: Brian Higgins, Xenomania
Album: Ultimate Kylie (2005)
Chart Position: #6 (U.K.), #8 (AU)

Synopsis: A clicking mecha groove knocks in all the right places. "Giving You Up" benefits from an assured chorus and verse that interplay with the frenzied pace of the arrangement. Minogue's attitude is maneater-cum-runway model, she also drops one of her best lines: "A girl's gotta suffer for fashion. She knows what a body can do. She finds a man and she makes him her passion, I'm happy trying all the time with a boy like you."

"Giving You Up"
Directed By: Alex & Martin

Selection Number 17: "Je Ne Sais Pas Pourquoi"
Release Date: October 1988 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Mike Stock, Matt Aitken, Pete Waterman
Produced By: Stock, Aitken, & Waterman
Album: Kylie (1987)
Chart Positions: #2 (U.K.), #12 (AU)

Synopsis: Teary eyed circumspection gives "Je Ne Sais Pas Pourquoi" a "wisdom beyond its years" profundity.

Out of all of Mingoue's earliest releases, "Je Ne Sais..." has the ability to shine brightly if ever given a re-recorded studio treatment. It was evidenced when Minogue resurrected it for her initial Showgirl concert shows in 2005.

"Je Ne Sais Pas Pourquoi"
Directed By: Chris Langman

Selection Number 16: "What Kind of Fool? (Heard It All Before)"
Release Date: August 1992 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Kylie Minogue, Mike Stock, Pete Waterman
Produced By: Stock & Waterman
Album: Greatest Hits (1992)
Chart Positions: #14 (U.K.), #17 (AU)

Synopsis: One of the two new songs recorded for Minogue's wrap-up of her S.A.W. years, "Fool" is fast and fun. A tongue-in-cheek tribute to the blitzing keyboards and shuffle beats that helped her launch her singing career.

The vocal given here showed a resilience and character, one which had gained traction on Minogue's third and fourth albums from this time. That strength would be capitalized on with her later recorded output.

"What Kind of Fool? (Heard It All Before)"
Directed By: Greg Masuak

Selection Number 15: "Where Is the Feeling?"
Release Date: July 1995 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Wilf Smarties, Jayn Hanna
Produced By: Brothers in Rhythm
Album: Kylie Minogue (1994)
Chart Positions: #16 (U.K.), #31 (AU)

Synopsis: One of the two "lost" deConstruction label singles, "Feeling" was the final release from Kylie Minogue. The single edit, often termed as the "BIR Dolphin Mix," featured components from the jubilant album version, as well as its acoustic companion.

Said acoustic version saw general release on the 2003 expanded re-release of Kylie Minogue. Surreal and sensual, the spoken word verses ground the song in the throbbing throes of desire, taking the song to unimaginable places. "Where Is the Feeling?" in this incarnation is only available on its parent maxi-single, or the deConstruction centered collection Hits + (2002).

"Where Is the Feeling? (BIR Dolphin Mix)"
Directed By: Keir McFarlane

Selection Number 14: "Spinning Around"
Release Date: June 2000 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Ira Shickman, Osborne Bingham, Kara DioGuardi, Paula Abdul
Produced By: Mike Spencer
Album: Light Years (2000)
Chart Positions: #1 (U.K.), #1 (AU)

Synopsis: Returning to that pop fussiness of old? In actuality a return to a carefree state of mind is more like it. An anthem of independence and reimagination, "Spinning Around" wore a throwback urban disco sound that owed to "You've Got the Best of My Love" by The Emotions.

"Spinning Around"
Directed By: Dawn Shadforth

Selection Number 13: "2 Hearts"
Release Date: November 2007 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Kish Mauve
Produced By: Kish Mauve
Album: X (2007)
Chart Positions: #4 (U.K.), #1 (AU)

Synopsis: Her riskiest single since '97's "Some Kind of Bliss"? It's a sure bet. Hitting the ground running after her cancer diagnosis and recovery two years prior, Minogue slid into the spangly glam-rock jam. It was complete with jaunty piano bangs and enough guitar to chew on. Throughout the musical bedlam, Minogue's voice is loose and sexy.

"2 Hearts"
Directed By: Dawn Shadforth

Selection Number 12: "Slow"
Release Date: November 2003 (U.K., AU), February 2004 (U.S.A.)
Written By: Kylie Minogue, Dan Carey, Emiliana Torrini
Produced By: Dan Carey, Emiliana Torrini
Album: Body Language (2003)
Chart Positions: #1 (U.K.), #1 (AU), #91 (U.S.A.)

Synopsis: The minimalist, electronic back-drop of "Slow" still stands as one of Minogue's best singles. Slinky, its modus operandi is seduction plain and simple. The opening lyric of : "I knew you'd be here tonight, so I put my best dress on..." will send the listener into sensory overload.

"Slow"

Selection Number 11: "Chocolate"
Release Date: June 2004 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Karen Poole, Johnny Douglas
Produced By: Johnny Douglas
Album: Body Language (2003)
Chart Positions: #6 (U.K.), #14 (AU)

Synopsis: Body Language as an album possessed Minogue's most velvet like ballads since Kylie Minogue (1994). "Chocolate," with its dramatic, poetic prose against a canvas of melodic changes, reveals one of Minogue's best performances.

The middle eight draws everything in; a luxuriate center that like its real life Lindt candy counterpart smoothly melts.

"Chocolate"
Directed By: Dawn Shadforth

Selection Number 10: "Finer Feelings"
Release Date: April 1992 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Mike Stock, Pete Waterman
Produced By: Brothers in Rhythm
Album: Let's Get To It (1991)
Chart Positions: #11 (U.K.), #60 (AU)

Synopsis: "Finer Feelings" was an inhouse work from the recently broken Stock-Aitken-Waterman trio; now down to Mr. Stock and Waterman. The single version though confessed a brooding, pastel cool courtesy of Dave Seaman and Steve Anderson, known collectively as Brothers In Rhythm.

The first working project for Minogue and the Brothers was fruitful, laying the groundwork for her prolific deConstruction age. The song itself is a study in romance, tempered by patience and true love versus passion.

"Finer Feelings"
Directed By: Dave Hogan

Selection Number 9: "All the Lovers"
Release Date: June 2010 (U.K., AU, U.S.A)
Written By: Jim Eliot, Mima Stilwell
Produced By: Jim Eliot, Stuart Price
Album: Aphrodite (2010)
Chart Positions: #3 (U.K.), #13 (AU), #101 (U.S.A)

Synopsis: Functioning between the space of a ballad and uptempo, "All the Lovers" sweeps into an orchestrated feel that will bring to mind a spiritual uplifting salvation. Minogue's vocal bravura is confident, but not cocky, lending a level of sincerity and emotional connection rarely seen in modern pop music.

"All the Lovers"
Directed By: Dave Meyers

Selection Number 8: "In Your Eyes"
Release Date: February 2002 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Kylie Minogue, Richard "Biff" Stannard, Julian Gallagher, Ash Howes
Produced By: Richard "Biff" Stannard, Julian Gallagher
Album: Fever (2001)
Chart Positions: #3 (U.K.), #1 (AU)

Sypnopsis: A hot blooded, mirror ball spinning groove, "In Your Eyes" takes no prisoners. Its incessant, pulse raising beat pounds hypnotically while Minogue and a host of sonic effects ride the spine of the song. Including several snatches, drop-aways, and percussion tricks, "In Your Eyes" will never wear out its welcome.

"In Your Eyes"
Directed By: Dawn Shadforth

Selection Number 7: "Got To Be Certain"
Released Date: May 1988 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Mike Stock, Matt Aitken, Pete Waterman
Produced By: Stock, Aitken, & Waterman
Album: Kylie (1987)
Chart Positions: #2(U.K.), #1 (AU)

Synopsis: Vital and youthful, "Got To Be Certain" is the veritable "Smilie Kylie" chestnut that is too lovable to deny. With its repetitious clap-a-long touches, it has a peppy glide to its step.

Minogue's voice, even in its earliest incarnation has presence, but is limited by her lack of experience at this point.

"Got To Be Certain"
Directed By: Chris Langman

Selection Number 6: "Some Kind of Bliss"
Release Date: September 1997 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Kylie Minogue, James Dean Bradfield, Sean Moore
Produced By: James Dean Bradfield, Dave Eringa
Album: Impossible Princess (1998)
Chart Positions: #22 (U.K.), #27 (AU)

Synopsis: The other lost deConstruction label single, "Bliss" remains misunderstood to the present day by fans, critics, and maybe Kylie Minogue herself. Ravishingly addictive in its collision of Tamla Motown violins and British rock accessories, Minogue's athletic vocal fuses all the elements into a beautiful whole.

The longing here is almost palpable, "Some Kind of Bliss" deserves another look. It also doubles as the perfect driving tune.

"Some Kind of Bliss"
Directed By: David Mould

Selection Number 5: "Better the Devil You Know"
Release Date: April 1990 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Mike Stock, Matt Aitken, Pete Waterman
Produced By: Stock, Aitken, & Waterman
Album: Rhythm of Love (1990)
Chart Positions: #2 (U.K.), #4 (AU)

Synopsis: La Minogue's best love song employs equal amounts of melancholy and dance music fuel.

"Better the Devil You Know" was a gesture toward a marked sophistication musically, vocally, and lyrically.

Seen as an anthem to many, "Devil" also has the ability to communicate on a genuinely sensitive level, allowing its depth to give it a broader identification outside of a dance context.

"Better the Devil You Know"
Directed By: Paul Goldman

Selection Number 4: "Can't Get You Out of My Head"
Release Date: September 2001 (U.K., AU), January 2002 (U.S.A.)
Written By: Rob Davies, Cathy Dennis
Produced By: Rob Davies, Cathy Dennis
Album: Fever (2001)
Chart Positions: #1 (U.K.), #1 (AU), #7 (U.S.A)

Synopsis: The inescapable anthem that solidified Minogue's brand of refined pop music, and reignited interest in the United States was simple and clean.

Laboring several pulses below the clubbier cuts on its parent album Fever, it also is hard enough to bob heads and move feet.

"Can't Get You Out of My Head"
Directed By: Dawn Shadforth

Selection Number 3: "What Do I Have to Do?"
Release Date: January 1991 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Mike Stock, Matt Aitken, Pete Waterman
Produced By: Stock, Aitken, & Waterman
Album: Rhythm of Love (1990)
Chart Positions: #6 (U.K.), #11 (AU)

Synopsis: By this time Minogue had grown, almost overnight, into the pop siren we'd know today. "What Do I Have to Do" is one of those diamonds in Minogue's backlog that shows if the urgent, feminity of "What..." had wider exposure Stateside, Minogue would have broken here much earlier than she did.

"What Do I Have to Do?"
Directed By: Dave Hogan

Selection Number 2: "Put Yourself in My Place"
Release Date: November 1994 (U.K., AU)
Written By: Jimmy Harry
Produced By: Jimmy Harry
Album: Kylie Minogue (1994)
Chart Positions: #11 (U.K.), #11 (AU)

Synopsis: Dreamy and full of atmosphere, Minogue's take on New York Quiet Storm reaches for resolution in love; a song for the "grown and sexy" Minogue fans as it were.

Confused and aching verses give way to a defiant chorus, making it one of the premiere ballads in her oeuvre. "Put Yourself in My Place" is as heartbreakingly real as pop music gets.

"Put Yourself in My Place"
Directed By: Keir McFarlane

Selection Number 1: "Confide in Me"
Release Date: August 1994 (U.K. & AU)
Written By: Steve Anderson, Dave Seaman
Produced By: Brothers in Rhythm
Album: Kylie Minogue (1994)
Chart Positions: #2 (U.K.) #1 (AU)

Synopsis: "Confide in Me" is a song that is a benchmark, a touchstone for reinvention. In the case of Kylie Minogue, "Confide in Me" sought to shatter any preconceived ideas about her image, and let the music speak for itself.

Clocking in at no less than six minutes, the cut is an ambitious rewrite of James Bond styled-pop. Even better, "Confide in Me" forever removed doubt that Minogue herself couldn't carry a song vocally, as she abolished weaknesses and went from strength to strength. Mysterious, intelligent, and sexy "Confide in Me" remains Minogue's finest single.-QH

"Confide in Me"
Directed By: Paul Boyd

[Editor's Note: All of Kylie Minogue's album mentioned are in print. Anything prior to 2001 may not be domestically available in the States. Anything from 1987-2000 can of course be special ordered via your local indie record store, online via Amazon or eBay, or iTunes. For current information on Kylie Minogue, visit www.kylie.com -QH]

Following: The Path of The Bangles

2011-10-20T18:44:00.014-04:00

Jangling into existence out of the Los Angeles Paisley Underground, The Bangles became the quintessential ‘80’s rock and pop girl group in 1984. This, of course, was in the wake of the The Go-Go’s impending dissolution, their predecessors, a year later in 1985.

Susanna Hoffs, (guitar), sisters Debbi (drums) and Vicki (lead guitar) Peterson, and Michael Steele (bass guitar) in hindsight could rock in a variety of classic and commercial styles. They then would wrap those styles in their warm, four-part harmonies. The Bangles vocalizing was, and is, an integral part of their appeal.

History has tended to write The Bangles off as an MTV-ready doll pack. The release of their fifth long player Sweetheart of the Sun (2011), refutes that they are an '80's relic. The path to Sweetheart has had its share of bumps, including their initial break-up in 1989, reformation in 2003, and departure of bassist Michael Steele recently. Steele’s absence on Sweetheart is not a complete detriment, as will be discussed shortly. Short on a “larger” discography, The Bangles material is one of the most solid album-by-album works by any female oriented grouping or band, as I will now detail.

All Over the Place (1984, Columbia)
Produced By: David Kahne
The official starting point for The Bangles, on a major label, was a nice compromise between the indie and the professional. Kahne’s production keeps the band’s playing up front and center, and that playing was charming and precise. Rollicking feminism emblazons “Hero Takes the Fall” and “Tell Me,” but cooler numbers like the kisses-on-the-wind fun of “Going Down to Liverpool” and “Live” offer a more playful side for listeners as well. Of course, it is their voices that blend so well with the settings and each Bangle gets a lead to shine. Sexy, literate, and brisk, All Over the Place showed itself to be a bright start to a big future.

Highlights: “Hero Takes the Fall,” “James,” “Going Down to Liverpool,” “More Than Meets the Eye”

Featured Video: "Going Down to Liverpool"

Different Light (1986, Columbia)
Produced By: David Kahne
Amazingly, whilst the obvious commercial gleam shone on Different Light, The Bangles still kept their '60's tints and shades present throughout. This is due in fact to The Bangles sharing creative space, versus relinquishing it, to their guest songwriters. Jules Shear (Cyndi Lauper) contributed "If She Knew What She Wants," and Prince (under the alias "Christopher," it was his Parade (1986) era) offered the wispy "Manic Monday." It was the Liam Sternberg cut, "Walk Like an Egyptian," that took The Bangles all over the globe though. There are other trinkets to discover, The Bangles work is just as captivating as the material written for them. "Following" captures their trademark haunting approach, Steele taking the lead on this reflective gem.

Highlights: "A Different Light," "Walk Like an Egyptian," "Return Post," "Following"

Featured Video: "Walking Down Your Street"

Everything (1988, Columbia)
Produced By: Davitt Sigerson
An apt title, collecting all the moods The Bangles brought forth in one place: spring curiosity, summer sensuality, autumnal preponderance, and winter catharsis. Sigerson turned up the pop turns even more, but The Bangles were right along with him. Their playing, with that Paisley spice built into it, didn't allow additional musicians to white out their band sound. With tension in the group boiling underneath the surface, songs such as "I'll Set You Free," "Complicated Girl," and "Crash and Burn" jump off the record with energy and emotion. Ending on a high note creatively, critically, and commercially, Everything was their last album for 14 years.

Highlights: "In Your Room," "Bell Jar," "Be With You," "Make a Play For Her Now"

Featured Video: "In Your Room"

Doll Revolution (2003, Koch Records)
Produced By: Brad Wood
A reunion too long in the making, Revolution accomplished uniting the garage and contemporary styles in rock and pop as their past albums had. This time, The Bangles handled majority of the songwriting, excluding a raring rocker written by Mr. Elvis Costello: "Tear Off Your Own Head (It's a Doll Revolution)." The input of all four women's words, their respective journeys in love and life are given lush treatments. The saucy stabs in "Nickel Romeo," the lullaby ease in "I Will Take Care of You," and the embrace of solitude in "Single By Choice" were delivered with those vibrant harmonies, still crisp and bold. Arguably, their best record since Everything.

Highlights: "Tear Off Your Own Head (It's a Doll Revolution)," "Stealing Rosemary," "Nickel Romeo," "Single By Choice"

Featured Video: "Something That You Said"

Sweetheart of the Sun (2011, Waterfront Records)
Produced By: The Bangles, Matthew Sweet
Surprising and bittwersweet, this newest entry into The Bangles discography is an even stronger homage to their Paisley Underground roots than ever before. Sadly, Michael Steele did not return to the fold, leaving Vicki and Debbi Peterson, and Susanna Hoffs to soldier on as a trio. Steele's smoky voice doesn't go unnoticed in its absence, but the remaining members pick up slack, with aplomb. Instant and memorable favorites such as "Under a Cloud," lead single "I'll Never Be Through With You," and "Circles in the Sky" will delight the faithful and the newly converted. Stepping into production duties with Matthew Sweet, The Bangles alternate between guitar crunch and melodic sweetness, the former is emphasized moreso by the conclusion of Sweetheart.-QH

Highlights: "Under a Cloud," "I'll Never Be Through With You," "Circles in the Sky," "Open My Eyes"

Featured Video: "I'll Never Be Through With You," live, Washington D.C., The 9:30 Club

[Editor's Note: For more information on The Bangles, visit http://thebangles.com/home.html-QH]

Gloria Estefan Gets Her "Miss Little Havana" On

2011-10-05T18:50:00.012-04:00

When we last left Gloria Estefan, she was getting her Spanish fly on (again), with the aromatic classique 90 Millas (2007). Comfortable in her slight laurel resting, she had spent 27 years in the glow of success, Estefan had the least to prove in any quarter.

In the type of biting environ popular music operates in currently, artists yearning for Estefan's longstanding career would be left wanting. Fickle barely describes state of mind present in our culture today. So when news began to circulate of Estefan prepping a new album, one geared toward four-on-the-floor hijinks, it raised eyebrows.

No one could argue with Estefan's dance floor clout, but she hadn't made an active recording based in dance colors since 1998's legendary gloria! Following up that iconic album would not be an easy task. Considering what passes for dance music in the United States these days, fans worried Estefan might have a bout of uncharacteristic insecurity and try to acclimate herself to those less-than sonics.

That worry was confirmed when Pharrell Williams was announced as the producer of the project. A member of the groundbreaking hip-hop outfit N*E*R*D, he doubled as an artist and producer in his own right. Williams' work in the last few years has eyed the commercial rather than the creative. That was disappointing as it hadn't always been that way, he used to be able to do both. Major production fall out's on Madonna's Hard Candy (2008) and Shakira's She Wolf (2009) didn't assist in assuaging the fear Estefan's faithful had either.

Could anyone have guessed that Estefan and Williams would find muses in one another, and the creation of Miss Little Havana would manage to be a career best for both parties?

Mirroring the aforesaid gloria! in motif and tone, Miss Little Havana positions itself to revisit and restructure Estefan's dance music foundation. Where gloria! was overflowing and sumptuous, Havana stays tight, lean, and urgent during its playing time.

Pharrell has an instinctual and shrewd knowledge of that "in the pocket" moment of a song. That pairs well with Estefan's keen knowledge of traditional Latin instrumentation. Unlike his chrome clattering works previously, Pharrell allowed Estefan to substitute her musical flora along his lines. Estefan's traditionalism, sitting next to Pharrell's modern flairs translate to Havana being the veritable "lightning in the bottle" proceeding.

The title track, a lyrical ode to the perilous, but rewarding journey of youth, is smart. Smart in that it employs elements of retro likability in its smidgen of Shannon's "Let the Music Play" cowbell, and a "breakin' beat" right out of '85. Pharrell's production, via Estefan's amendments, punctuates the various tints and shades (musically and vocally) she plays in: "I Can't Believe" (disco furor) and "Heat" (confident and sensual).

"Wepa," the lead single and current reigning U.S. dance chart hit as of this review, is a hyperactive distillation of Estefan's past spice and sting ethos. Almost too heady at its breakneck B.P.M. pace, the listener will determine their own affinity to the cut.

Pharrell does escort Estefan into 2011 with the svelte "Make Me Say Yes," a song that Madonna would have loved to have had for her Hard Candy LP. Estefan's classiness steers toward a vamp-esque masque with her intoning richly to "be a good boy." Not only is it believable, she then has her voice clipped to ride the groove just so. One would be hard pressed not to cheer Estefan on for the effortlessness in which she delivers the goods again and again as the record plays.

There are confectioneries, which place emphasis on the warm textured feel of her voice: "Say Ay" a sticky, Spanglish lip smacker, and the "it melts in your mouth, not in your hand" smoothness of "Right Away."

Stumbles are few. Her usually endearing and immediate ballad material falls prey to lack of lyrical presence on "Time is Ticking." The "Wepa" remix with Pitbull is redundant, as the song is so high energy on its own it requires no further reworking.

Last, she covers "Let's Get Loud" made famous by fellow Blend favorite Jennifer Lopez on her debut On the 6 (1999). It was written by Estefan and her longtime collaborator Pablos Flores. A possible outtake from the gloria! era, Estefan gave it to Lopez who made it a big staple for herself. Regardless, the song is just flat, and always will be, no matter who sings it.

"Wepa" music video

Miss Little Havana stands parallel to gloria!, complimenting it rather than surpassing it; a unique accomplishment. The unlikely pair of Pharrell and Estefan crafted a work that is authentically her own, but fresh and flashy enough to get those unaware of that Estefan magic curious. Four and half out of five stars.-QH

[Editor's Note: The Miss Little Havana album is a Target only exclusive, available through their stores physically. Digitally it is available on iTunes.-QH]

Hip-Hop & I: An Essay of Discovery & Reflection

2011-10-05T12:36:00.007-04:00

Ok, it's 1994, the "West End" of Dayton, Ohio. The year that Da Brat's Funkdafied and The Notorious B.I.G.'s Ready to Die were just two of many hip-hop records to dominate the airwaves.

The genre was in its powerful second decade and thoroughly mainstream by this time. Yet, all this nine-year old cared about was a Swedish pop foursome named Ace of Base, who were breaking America with a song called "The Sign."

That was a testament to my voluntary and involuntary isolationism from hip-hop, its music and subsequent culture. Yes, I was a black boy in what many considered (and still do) the "black side" of town. By default I was immersed, as anyone my age would have been, in the wake of the colonization of this musical art form. I was down with Naughty By Nature's "OPP," even though I only knew it as a chant-ready sing-along in the backseat of our Buick. I loved doing the dances with classmates. When 1995 came around, I loved singing along to Mariah Carey and Ol' Dirty Bastard on her "Fantasy" remix.

Though unlike my Dad, my younger brother, or any of my male peers, hip-hop didn't connect with me. Inside. It didn't stir my spirit or touch that place that I knew it should. Majority of the conflict dealt with what later was my emerging sexuality. Hip-hop spoke a similar sentiment that generally defined Black America's position on homosexuality: You are not of us, go away from us.

So I did.

At 16, my ear had started to create its own universe. In a place like Dayton where there is no scene, you have to make your own, and I made mine with music. My opinions toward hip-hop had slowly thawed, but not by much.

I allowed myself the luxuries of what some would call "old school." Those emcee's that were friendly enough to work with the female singers I admired also got a pass sometimes. However, nothing went further than that, my lack of interest reflected the struggle I was having with said sexuality.

The exaggerated image of masculinity in African-American society found its stage in hip-hop. Being attracted to what I (superficially) perceived as strength and sensuality was that form, and in turn that form's expression in hip-hop's institutions. Psychology aside, in 2002, the year I would come out, I nursed crushes on Joe Budden and Cam'Ron look-a-likes in my class. Infatuations with straight black boys who'd soon as spit on me than talk to me.

College arrived, and that "widening of life" atypical of the period began to take place. It was 2006, and my appetite for music was in rapid bloom. Any and everything was up for consumption: disco, alternative, neo-soul. My love affair with Quiet Storm and jazz was just a year away. Then on a random day, in a month in the previously mentioned year of 2006 I found him: Lupe Fiasco.

Instantly I was transplanted from being a slightly less awkward, more confident 21 year old, to the shy, foppish slip of a teen that lusted after my black high school crushes. All partially laced Air Force One's, sweat shorts that fell against them just perfectly, their duffel bag cluttering the basketball courts. Surely those bags contained their CD players and copies of assorted Jay-Z, OutKast, and Eminem albums.

Lupe's stoic stare captured me, as he floated in mid-air on his album cover. He was surrounded by Japanese boy culture objects, a sword, and Koran amongst the assorted melee and my curiosity heightened even more. I began to recall reading about a single he'd released called "Kick, Push."

Driven by music fueled curiosity, and hormones, I decided to check out what he offered. Little did I know that this decision would begin a romance with hip-hop that thrives to the moment of this sentence being typed.

I discovered my tastes were specific, and the jazzy beats of the Native Tongues Collective cliques such as A Tribe Called Quest and De La Soul appealed to me. The Native Tongues "queen," known as Latifah, won me over easily as well. I did enjoy some mainstream, and the creative presences of LL Cool J, Missy Elliott, Will Smith, and Salt 'N Pepa fulfilled those needs.

Legends like Eric B. & Rakim put me in trances with albums like Follow the Leader (1989) and Don't Sweat the Technique (1992). Substance and style driven gentleman like Common and Mos Def captivated me, even the swanky Southerners OutKast caught my attention (finally!). The list grew endless. I began to see and hear the poetry, the range of sound, the presence these individuals had to offer me. I saw why this genre galvanized and enthralled: it was alive!

Later, after I joined the ranks of the arts weekly The Dayton City Paper, I got to interview one of my favorite emcee's: Common. It was beyond what I ever imagined. Yet, inside me lurked that feeling of uncertainty, that this movement wasn't designed for me. I got the poetic stances, the varied musical patchworks that emphasized my mantra for music equality: quality over quantity.

The question remained that as an art form, did this represent me as a young, gay African-American male? I don't know. It is an issue looming over Black America. Its infested roots of homophobia, intolerance, violence (emotional and physical) lie within the recesses of the Janus masked black church. Hip-hop merely gives back to us what it was given and partially birthed out of.

I have seen strides though, to embrace the black GLBT community, but much work still lingers on. Maybe it is just enough to appreciate from an aesthetic distance. Possibly sharing my six favorite hip-hop recordings will assist in being one of the smaller bridges to close the gap of hate? Maybe.

Despite the difference in our sexual orientations, we're all vibing to the same universal beat hip-hop offers to us all as people of color. It may not be soon, but I'm happy to offer healing and connection. It can begin here, with hip-hop and I.

#6. De La Soul: The Grind Date (2004)

After the muted delivery of their Art Official Intelligence recordings: Mosaic Thump (2000) and Bionix (2001), The Grind Date shook off some of the excesses that plagued that period. In its place was a focus that hadn't been heard since Buhloone Mindstate (1993), but was broad enough to make them matter in a contemporary setting without betraying their roots.

Opening on "The Future" and "Verbal Clap," De La Soul made this long player required listening. Further, the ghostly staccato of "Rock.Co.Kane Flow," the percussive "Shopping Bags," and the tricked out title track evidence that The Grind Date isn't short on additional memorable material.

#5. LL Cool J: 14 Shots to the Dome (1993)

When your debut Radio (1985) is considered one of the founding bricks in the hip-hop structure, where else can you go? James Todd Smith, known as LL Cool J, has spent three decades working that question, usually with success. This recording slipped under the radar when released. It remains a misunderstood wonder waiting for reappraisal. Within the climate of "gangsta rap" and the more expressive New York sketches drawn up by A Tribe Called Quest, 14 attempted to give LL his own voice in those changing times.

Specifically on "Pink Cookies in a Plastic Bag, Getting Crushed By Buildings," his sensuality was given a cerebral sheen. It rivaled Tribe's own "Electric Relaxation" in wordplay, composition, and tone as one of the best odes to sexual analysis in hip-hop music.

#4. Common: Electric Circus (2002)

Abstract and non-objective, Electric Circus forsook the safety he gained with Like Water for Chocolate (2000). Common turned to his wandering muse on his fifth recording. Randomly awesome instrumental segues bridge between the songs that reach wide in theme lyrically and musically.

Common himself seemed to be at home divulging more than just samples and beats this time around. "Between Me, You, and Liberation" stood as a highlight due to its empathetic, candid view on homophobia and the path toward abolishing it. No one can forget the super charged "Soul Power" that played at an almost alien frequency.

#3. A Tribe Called Quest: The Love Movement (1998)

Michael Rapaport's stellar 2011 documentary Beats, Rhymes, and Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest did not tarnish nor reassess the latter two Tribe releases.

Though the name of the documentary came from one of those two records. Their fifth, and final, record The Love Movement was a future bound look into minimalism in hip-hop. Without disregard to the science-fiction romantic tilt in "Find a Way" it, (the album's lone single), only scratches the surface of what Movement contains.

#2. Digable Planets: Blowout Comb (1994)

Are you not able to let go of "Rebirth of the Slick (Cool Like Dat)?" Drop that jam and dig just a bit more into the recording that followed the Digable Planet's debut. Brilliant and taciturn, their second offering titled Blowout Comb is a rare record that can supersede the genre of its genesis.

"Black Ego" and the jaw dropping use of the '70's-'80's R&B group Tavares' cut "Bad Times" on "Dial 7 (Axioms of Creamy Spies)" are just two elements of a larger aural tapestry.

#1. Lupe Fiasco: Food & Liquor (2006)

A fluid, graceful journey through young adulthood into manhood, Lupe's Food & Liquor delves into the psyche of its emcee and gives the listener access to his pathos. Home to neo-classics such as "Kick, Push" and "Daydreamin'," the album packed more than just hit singles in its deck.

Managing to swing between sensitivity, swagger, story telling, real life tales, and almost everything in between, Fiasco's starting point is beautifully human.-QH

[Editor's Note: All recordings mentioned are readily in print, and available at various music retailer outlets.-QH]

Pat Benatar's "True Love" Blues Turns 20

2011-09-19T13:43:00.003-04:00

Impacting in 1979, Pat Benatar made her largest waves during the 1980's. Fierce and feminine in equal measure; Benatar redefined the rock and roll music model for women, while adhering to its more obviously infectious principles.

Despite the Atlas-like weight of carrying such a torch, Benatar's classically trained voice was bigger than rock music, and this was emphatically evidenced on True Love (1991), her ninth studio recording if you're including Live From Earth (1983).

The History
In 1984, Benatar released Tropico. Assistance in the creation of this legendary recording was lent by Neil "Spyder" Giraldo: lead guitarist, husband, and musical partner. Tropico's mission to widen her artistic lane was successfully broached, and gave her voice a chance to stretch its limbs. The move was triumphant, only topped by arrival of their first daughter during the same period.

Unfortunately, the mood would be doused by recurring spats with Benatar's label Chrysalis Records. A successful, if uneasy union had finally come to a head when they forced Benatar & Co. back into the studio directly after giving birth to begin work on what would become Seven the Hard Way (1985). Wide Awake in Dreamland followed in 1988. While both records were strong efforts, they also showed commercial down trends that characterized that Chrysalis' record-tour-record format had worn itself thin, and the public had become as exhausted as Benatar.

In the wake of these events, a dramatic retooling of Benatar's label court and contracts were done. These allowed Benatar a significant amount of space to recharge from a non-stop schedule of touring and recording, as well as to receive a larger retroactive percentage of royalties from her previous albums. In the period between Wide Awake in Dreamland and what would become True Love, it was Neil Giraldo who begin to nurture the seedling of a "jump blues" recording. That seed, planted with Tropico's the "Ooh Ooh Song," was finally going to bear fruit as Benatar's first offering of the 1990's.

The Record
In Benatar's 2010 memoir, In Between a Heart and a Rock Place, Benatar recalled the initial reaction in 1990 on her end to her husband's inquiry to record a blues oriented recording:

"Absolutely not. There's no way we're doing that." Spyder and I had loved the blues all our lives. It was the music we played at home, for personal enjoyment. He was convinced we would make an amazing record, but I was pretty sure that he'd lost his mind. I didn't want to be one more white chick trying to sing the blues, and Christ, who was whiter than me?"

Benatar acquiesced, thankfully, and the record slowly began to take shape. The True Love schematic split the recording into two parts: part covers, part original material. The covers encompassed work by blues legends like Hank Penny ("Bloodshot Eyes"), Albert King ("I Get Evil"), and B.B. King ("Payin' the Cost to be the Boss," "I've Got Papers On You") to name some.

With the map of True Love set down, the Benatar band long timers on board were: Neil Giraldo (guitar), Charlie Giordano (piano, organ, accordion), and Myron Grombacher (drums). Additionally, a gathering of session musician excellence was brought in to make True Love as accomplished as possible.

Originating in 1967, and still active today, The Roomful of Blues are a conglomerate of musicians (boasting, at various times, over 50 revolving members) who not only tour as their own attraction, but back other notable musicians in their respective blues genre. Their collaborations lists the likes of the already mentioned B.B. King, as well as Otis Rush, Stevie Ray Vaughn, and Eric Clapton.

The line-up present for this album was: Greg Accolo (tenor sax), Doug James (baritone sax), Rich Lataille* (alto sax), Carl Querfurth (trombone), Bob Enos (trumpet), and John Rossi (drums).

The talent did not stop there, Benatar & Co. were also joined by Lenny Castro on percussion (Diana Ross, Al Jarreau, Alien Ant Farm, Olivia Newton-John), and the late bassist, Chuck Dominaco (Natalie Cole, Manhattan Transfer, Joni Mitchell, Frank Sinatra, Barbara Streisand). All of these big name session players may have possibly invited the idea that True Love was nothing more than just a professional showcase. That was not the case at all with this long player.

All parties came together in an exuberant balance, creating ample arrangements for Pat Benatar's voice. Throughout, Benatar was obviously versatile, giving tasteful, unaffected, vivacious vocals over a wide swath of blues: swing, boogie-woogie, and jump. While this wasn't 100% "the blues" that the discerning blues purists expected, it came very close to it with enthusiasm and reverence. The "tear it up" steamy, gender reversal take on B.B. King's "Payin' the Cost to be the Boss" was nothing less than sexy and effective. With its gold plated brass boldness, to the spicy piano tinkles that peppered throughout "Payin'...” the synergy was intoxicating.

The victory scores rolled onward with an electric rendition of "I Get Evil," and the oft covered Charles Brown Christmas diamond "Please Come for Christmas" got an emotionally full read, conviction trumping schlock. The original material held its own easily. The dripping, velvet smoothness in the title track, with its thick bass pizzicato, ranks as one of the Benatar's most unsung recorded moments in her career. The “jump ‘n’ jive” blues energy on "I Feel Lucky" allowed everyone a space to show off their skills with brass and accordion mini-breaks.

Fiery ("Don't Happen No More") and forlorn ("So Long") in both hands, Benatar sounded rejuvenated, but relaxed; this was the sound of an artist rediscovering the joy for her craft.

The Impact
True Love, Benatar's first offering of the 1990's, and first album of semi-original work in two years, was released domestically (U.S.A.) on April 9th, 1991. Promoted by a small scale tour focusing solely on the works of this album, to the annoyance of some, True Love had a tough, but not unconquerable sell. There were many who greeted the record with skepticism, as seen in Jim Farber's assessment in Entertainment Weekly:

"Pat Benatar has just released the comedy record of the year. She's out to become the ultimate tough blues mama, someone who's been singing for decades about hard liquor and harder men. All she does well, though, is sing loudly. Admittedly that was the main requirement for her former persona as she-wolf of suburban hard rock, but here when she sings something like ''I Get Evil'' you get the idea that the worst sin she could imagine would be purposely not to tell her friends about a sale at Neiman-Marcus. At times her backup band (the respected Roomful of Blues) really burns, but Benatar still makes everything sound like the funkier parts of Suzanne Somers' Vegas act."

All Music Guide, via the opinion of Alex Henderson, remarked in a fairer fashion:

"A radical departure from the type of slick pop/rock she'd been embracing on albums like Tropico and Wide Awake in Dreamland, True Love found Pat Benatar embracing blues and early pre-rock R&B. Opting for less production and a much rawer approach, an inspired Benatar ditches the synthesizers and keyboards and sounds like she's leading a bar band in a Chicago dive. From Albert King's "I Get Evil" to B.B. King's "Payin' the Cost to Be the Boss" to Charles Brown's "Please Come Home for Christmas," the results aren't breathtaking, but are generally honest and soulful. Quite clearly, this was an album Benatar was eager to make."

Stereo Review magazine, now-defunct, critic Parke Puterbaugh showered the album with praise:

"True Love is an unpretentious romp through a set of jump blues, and Benatar has enough of an aptitude for the form to know not to overdo it. She's always sung sassily, but the way she wraps her voice around a song like "Bloodshot Eyes," assisted by a solid shot of reverb, is a minor revelation. A pleasurable comeback album for Pat Benatar, who may have hit us with her best shot when we least expected it."

"True Love" VH-1 Documentary, Circa 1991

Commercially, the record didn't solve Benatar's sales woes. The record placed #37 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Album Chart, and would move 339,000** copies overall in America alone. These were Pat Benatar's first Soundscan numbers since it was implemented in tracking sales figures of music in the U.S. The album would place at #40 on the UK Album Charts and #42 on the ARIA (Australian) charts, the only international showings for the record.

Three singles were birthed from True Love: the title track, "So Long," and "Payin' the Cost to Be the Boss." "Boss" hit #17 on the Hot Mainstream Rock Chart in the States, a chart Benatar continued to hold sway over after her chart dominance began to cool. The former two sadly made no waves on any subsequent single formats in America, though "True Love" was a minor Dutch single hit with a placement at #21.

Benatar would go on to record and release Gravity's Rainbow (1993), which returned her to rock music, albeit with a bit more of what passed as the contemporary form rock had taken on at that time. It would be her final album for Chrysalis, though two other fine efforts materialized in the aftermath of her Chrysalis departure: Innamorata (1997, CMC International) and Go! (2003, Bel Chiasso).

Benatar, of course, remains a highly in demand live performing act, but hasn't released a record of original work since 2003. In viewing her discography in hindsight, emphasis placed on True Love, it becomes clear that Pat Benatar lived up to her own hype. Long seen as a rule breaker and empowered woman in a male lorded realm of rock, Benatar made her own way. True Love's stylistic step into the future was proof that even her own genre wouldn't inhibit her artistic credibility, and despite the obvious cynics' guffaws, it was a risk rewarded. Five stars.-QH

[Editor's Note: *=Mr. Rich Lataille is the sole remaining original member of The Roomful of Blues, **=Billboard cited sales figure. True Love is still in print, and can be located used or new in most indie record stores, or online retailers. For current information on Pat Benatar, visit www.benatar.com -QH]

Hiatus a.k.a Life

2011-08-06T22:56:00.005-04:00

The title kind of says it all. I sit here at loss for words to describe a year (thus far) that has seen a lot of twists and turns, some expected, some not so much. When I decided to return from one of my many self-imposed exiles, though it took longer to produce work, the quality of the work was the best I've done on this site to date.

Right now with life kind of requiring living, it has caused me to set my focus on this aside temporarily once again. I only want to bring the best I can bring to this medium. For me, I have prided myself on being a voice for those artists and fans who are looking for themselves out of the noise of the modern middle ages we live in. For those who will read this, and support me, I will return sooner than later (hopefully). Please be patient and know I appreciate you all. Love and luck in the words of my girl Gloria Estefan, and see you all soon. Bless.-Quentin

Mariah Carey: The "Glitter" Redux

2011-06-19T14:20:00.024-04:00

2001 was to be a victorious time for Mariah Carey. A year that unveiled her seventh album, as well as position her crossover into the movie medium with equal ease.

Spending the whole of the past decade defying obstacles and winning hearts, no one, least of all Carey herself, could have foreseen that 2001 would be the first mishap in a career that had only seen a few chinks in any facet of her artistic armor.

In reality, Glitter as an album signalled a larger query of Carey's conflicts with quality over quantity. Unlike those previous bouts, Glitter was Carey's first recording to offer a spotlight to Carey's best and worst moments in one place.

The History
Capping off her golden period at Columbia Records, Carey freshly divorced from former label guru, mentor, and husband Tommy Mottola, made an energized maneuver to sign with Virgin Records in 2000. Settling in quickly, Carey began drawing on all her abilities to create her seventh record and its partner film. Under the working title of "All That Glitters," the film and movie would become Glitter. Barring the obvious allusions of Billie Frank, the film heroine, being biracial, a vocalist, and a native New Yorker, the comparisons between Mariah Carey and Billie Frank's origins stop there.

Otherwise, the Vondie Curtis-Hall directed work placed Carey as Frank in a post-disco, early 1980's neon haze of New York City. There, Frank/Carey struggled with romance, career aspirations, and other obvious plot devices that dramatic, amorous period pieces like this are made of. The movie featured additional acting appearances from Max Beesley, Eric Benét, Shawntae Harris a.k.a. Da Brat, Terrence Howard, and Tia Texada. Carey's first movie was an elaborate gesture made grander by its soundtrack, which was for all intents and purposes an album Carey seemed destined to record since 1995.

The Record
While not the early twenty-something adult Billie Frank was, Carey was a teenager in the boiling pot of New York music culture; an epoch that was rife with exciting, new changes. Black music was bravely soaring to new horizons in dance and a newer, harsher art form known as hip-hop.

In this hotbed, these styles were coalescing and forming, "the black new wave" the movie takes place in, roughly 1983, featured great artists on the grind. Specifically in the film we hear "Freaks Come Out at Night" by Whodini, "You're the One for Me" by D-Train, "Dance Floor" by Zapp, "You Are in My System" by The System, and "Tell Me if You Still Care" by The S.O.S. Band that lit up the cinematic companion piece to Glitter to electric effect.

Further, her own work leading up to Glitter winked and grinned to her teenage background. Read the liner notes to the Daydream (1995) album cut "Fantasy" to see Tom Tom Club's "Genius of Love" as a sample, or the-then recent "Heartbreaker" from her final Columbia offering Rainbow (1999). It styled Stacy Lattisaw's "Attack of the Name Game" to tarty perfection. Carey's musical legitimacy was potent to record the ultimate resurrection of '80's R&B on a single album.

It was something many of her fans and knowing critics had been pining after for sometime.

Carey immediately ushered in assistance from the men who musically shaped that span of time: Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, and the late Rick James. Additional duties were handled by Walter Afanasieff, a major player in Mariah's earlier albums. The contemporary edge was still something Carey wanted to possess, and a problematic error in Glitter (soon to be detailed), and those figures were: Damizza, D.J. Clue, Clark Kent, and James "Big Jim" Wright.

Twelve songs, including a tangled, guest star riddled remix of the lead single "Loverboy," filled Glitter. Of those cuts, the quality work rose to the surface quickly. The ballads, Mariah's notorious watermark, are some of her most silken. The lone Afanasieff number, "Lead the Way" was by-the-numbers, but majestic nonetheless. "Twister," a harmonious slice of gentle soul, was written as a tribute to a friend and stylist of Mariah Carey who passed away.

"Reflections (Care Enough)" lyrically eyed the film plot directly, and brought out a gospel stained emotion that echoes material from Mariah Carey (1990). Detailing Carey's gift at song penmanship, it lovingly would be brought to a larger stage on Carey's ballads collection The Ballads in 2009. "Never Too Far,"a massive and orchestral infused beauty is one of the criminally forgotten Carey songs of the last decade. Read with care and a sense of story telling blue mood, "Never Too Far" is a track worth being rediscovered.

The Rick James produced and penned "All My Life" situated itself as the major player of Glitter. Surrounded by finger poppin' bass, lavish flute accents, and vivid keyboarding, Carey gave one of her sexiest performances committed to record. Though "All My Life" stands strong, it is backed by two other worthy numbers in "Want You" and "Loverboy."

"Want You," a duet with Eric Benét, (who plays Rafael in the flick) pulled from the well inspired by Nick Martinelli, the producer that helped create the sound for '80's U.K. R&B trio Loose Ends. The sharp, sensually tuned in P.M. radio song straightaway casts the listener into a midnight skyline visage of New York City.

The florid "Loverboy" samples Cameo's "Candy" (ironically released in 1986); both Larry Blackmon and Thomas Jenkins (of Cameo) playfully reprise their roles in the song (and video). Carey layered up her whoops, coo's, giggles and sighs to either charming or grating effect depending on the listener. Slightly busier than her previous sample led lead singles, "Loverboy" would be the last in that lane to date.

The cut and paste of Carey's voice over Cherrelle's "I Didn't Mean to Turn You On," from her '84 album Fragile was baffling. A stimulating rush of synthesizers, drum loops, and guitar, the heated and pressurized dance cut actually fit Carey well. It begged the question as to why Jam and Lewis, the producers of the original rendition and its resurrected form here, didn't construct an original song out of the production cloth of "Didn't Mean..." The film uses this as the song that breaks Billie Frank.

As high as the highlights are, the lows are frustrating to sit through. Covers of InDeep's "Last Night a D.J. Saved My Life" and Tom Browne's "Funkin' For Jamaica (N.Y.)," redone as "(Don't Stop) Funkin' for Jamaica" wastes the potential these songs had to move Carey closer to her concept of '80's R&B retro heaven.

"Last Night.." was mobbed by Fabulous, D.J. Clue, and Busta Rhymes who came off clumsy and unneeded, the same being said for Mystikal's verses on "(Don't Stop) Funkin for Jamaica" that reduce Mariah Carey to a veritable hook girl on her own album. "If We" furthered the hook girl dilemma by supplanting Carey to chorus status while Ja Rule, and the late, Nate Dogg delivered the verses to dire effect. These type of creative degenerations had plagued Mariah throughout her recording run up to this juncture.

As never before, Carey brought both her best and worst efforts to the fore in the same space, which made the assessment of Glitter a task that was not as simple as it may have been for any of her previous outings.

The Impact
The film and its album were proceeded by "Loverboy" on 7/17/01, where it topped the U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart, and landed at a comfortable #2 position on the Billboard Hot 100. As the single certified gold, more was made over the David LaChappelle directed video that portrayed Carey as a race track girl, much to the chagrin of critics. Internationally, the single was met with either lukewarm or fair receptions: Canada (#3), Australia (#7), U.K. (#12), and Japan (#52) to name some.

Later, Carey's behavior began to lean toward the erratic during the press blitz for the film and album, culminating in an unscheduled appearance on the now defunct, Carson Daly hosted, MTV Total Request Live Program. Mariah Carey took a brief respite from public appearances at which time the film and album were pushed back: the former would see an American release on 9/21/01, while more disastrously the companion record dropped on 9/11/01. Characterized as "mental exhaustion," Carey emerged from her slight medical break refreshed to finish plugging her double-headed film/album event.

The film itself was savaged by poor sales and reviews, whereas the album was at best received with mixed thoughts.

All Music Guide hard nose Stephen Thomas Erlewine stated:

...this album shows that Mariah needs some guiding force, something to keep her on track. Otherwise, she sinks into gormless ballads, covers of early-'80s funk tunes that sound exactly like the originals, hip-hop funk that plays plastic and stiff. This touches on everything Mariah tried before, but nothing works, not the oversinging, not the sentimental, not the desperate attempts for street cred.

His thoughts were furthered by David Browne of Entertainment Weekly:

...it's Mariah, business as usual: a few overemoted ballads, a few doses of lite-FM hip-hop, all of it as gauzy and shapeless as her previous work.

Though, there were those that championed the areas of Glitter that showed marked growth and artistic range. Sal Cinquemani, of Slant Magazine, reflected:

"All My Life," a collaboration with Rick James, would make a daring yet commercially viable single. Its Studio 54-era synth-flutes and sultry vocal could, at the very least, rub up against the boundaries of pop radio like no other Carey tune has since 1995's "Fantasy." "Want You," a duet with "Glitter" co-star Eric Benét is another retro gem, featuring grinding bass and Carey's distinctive vocal phrasing (she uncurls seemingly verbose adjectives like "painstakingly" with unrivaled ease.

The most fair and accurate review came from Rolling Stone author Rob Sheffield in the August 30, 2001 issue of the magazine, right as the record was pushed back to its eventual September drop date. Now, and not uncommon in print journalism, the article is difficult find on Rolling Stone's own website. It has been replaced with an obvious and negative throwaway opinion of Glitter. Knowing I read the original review, and with the strength of Google, I found the original article where Sheffield accurately captured the ethos of this album as thus:

The vintage-flavored music evokes classic R&B groups like Ready for the World, Atlantic Starr, Skyy and even my beloved Klymaxx.

Additionally Sheffield nailed what the best sides of Glitter were meant to accomplish:

With Glitter, Mariah takes a step toward staking her claim as a grown-up.

"Never Too Far" from Glitter
Directed By: Vondie Curtis-Hall

Commercially, the record continued the downward arc that started with Rainbow, moving just 100,000 its first week of release. The record in the States would lurch into #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 Album chart, while placing just one spot above at #6 on the U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Album chart. It did certify platinum status quick enough in its American arena. The worldwide audiences received it slightly better: Japan (#1), Spain (#3), France (#5) U.K. (#10), Australia (#13).

As such, a plethora of various promotional singles were culled from Glitter to keep the album afloat in the international territories. These singles included "(Don't Stop) Funkin' for Jamaica," "Reflections (Care Enough)," and "Last Night a D.J. Saved My Life." A video for "(Don't Stop)..." can be currently seen on Youtube, but received no push. The major follow-up to "Loverboy" in the United States was "Never Too Far," promoted with a performance segment of the song taken from the movie. The single missed the U.S. Pop and R&B charts altogether, but did well at #17 on the U.S. Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart. Currently, Glitter has shifted 3 million units worldwide according to a Live Nation article from 8/24/10.

The chaotic fallout from all of this caused Virgin Records to buyout the $100 million dollar contract they had given Carey, effectively paying her to leave the label. Carey inked a deal with Island/Def Jam Records who would release Charmbracelet (2002), The Emancipation of Mimi (2005), E=MC² (2008), Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel (2009), and Merry Christmas II You (2010).

Of the batch, it would be Mimi that returned Carey to commercial and critical favor, if its creative slant wasn't nearly as interesting as Glitter's best sides. That honor would be reserved for 2009's Memoirs, which not only saw Carey in her best voice since then, but like that album it (again) staged the best and worst Carey had to offer.

This is, and may always be, Carey's eternal battle. Informing Carey's unwillingness to either balance, or truly explore a particular artistic path has left Carey's discography ravaged with holes. Glitter was a tool that could have easily broadened Carey's sound, and while it is true that every creative endeavor is not always met with friendliness, the effort is applauded. Without the risk, there is no reward, and for Carey it is not too late to grasp the risk and create the album to rival Butterfly (1997). In the meantime, one can look at the erroneous ends of Glitter and forgive them, for the songs that do it right, do it well and give insight into what may still be. Three stars out of five.

[Editor's Note-Glitter is still readily in print and can be located in most music retailers.-QH]

Jennifer Lopez's "Love?" Lacks Lola

2011-05-07T18:48:00.005-04:00

"L-O-V-E, let's not mess around, we both know what we need. Now here is what I want, understand me when I say, make it last, 'kay?"

With that assertive declaration boldly made in "Fresh Out the Oven", the first breath from the Love? project, Lopez was confident and aware of what she wanted and needed. "Fresh Out the Oven" gripped the listener in its clasp of late night, disco back wall whispered come-on's. Musically, "Fresh..." sandwiched itself somewhere between Prince's "U Got the Look", albeit with the tempo lowered a few paces, and Kylie Minogue's "Slow". A perfectly placed feature from Mr. Armando Christian Perez, a.k.a Pitbull, gave it an even ruder feel. Then, with what promised to be the return of Jennifer Lopez as Lola in 2009, rather became one of the two years that saw the Love? album setback repeatedly.

Epic Records, unsure of how to promote the track and its cunning and subliminal video, wrote off "Fresh..." as a mere "buzz track" and back peddled with a more climate friendly taster in "Louboutins" in 2010. That song, to the knowing, was a slight clone to the superior Brave (2007) fashionista feminism manifesto album cut "Miles in These Shoes".

When that song, despite some of Lopez's strongest live performances to date, failed to catch on Epic Records dropped Lopez into the lap of Island/Def Jam Records. It ended a partnership that had run since 1999 when Jennifer Lopez first appeared as a singing entity.

There, Lopez began to wrap up and finish an album that still lacked an identity and specific mission outside of restoring her sales status. In the meantime Lopez found time to take a seat on the American Idol judge panel with Randy Jackson, and Aerosmith fronter Steven Tyler.

Love?, Jennifer Lopez's seventh record, attempts to solve the commercial conundrum Lopez began to court as early as 2005 with "the only" platinum peak of Rebirth. The real elephant in the room is that despite its low selling point, Brave the last Lopez affair, was her masterstroke. It could only be challenged by previous masterstroke entries from Como Ama Una Mujer (2007) and This is Me...Then (2002). All three albums presented that Jennifer Lopez had more bite than her harshest critics ever led the public to believe.

In music balance is everything when it comes to commercial and creative aspirations, so does Love? tightrope between legacy longevity or "for today" fortunes? The answer is a resounding, and sad, no to the former, and yes to the latter. There is no mistaking that Lopez was never a non-commercial being, but one that did gracefully pick up artistic mileage as she propelled along in a mainstream lane.

Love? barely approaching the transitional highs of Rebirth, with exceptions being issued to "Good Hit" and "(What Is) Love?" which will be discussed at length later, ties with J.Lo (2000) as her worst offering.

Production duties on this fiasco mainly incriminate: RedOne, Lady Gaga, Terius "The-Dream" Nash, Christopher "Tricky" Stewart, Danja, and several other mainstream mobsters who songwrite and knob twist Lopez's unique sound into faceless Top 40 oblivion.

Previously, La Lopez proved she could exert heavier themes, so songs like "Starting Over" and "Until It Beats No More" should have not been an issue. They fail on Love?, as musically they do not provide adequate staging for her vocal growth patterns that were integral on Como Ama Una Mujer and Brave.

"On the Floor", the current chart hit heavyweight, almost raises the stakes with a sultry riff or two of Kaoma's "Lambada" merging with Lopez's voice to echo the sweet sugar rush that made "Waiting For Tonight" a transcendent modern classic. But with the bulky dance beats hitting harder than needed, both Lopez and Pitbull seem to be content playing second fiddle to RedOne's techniques. Mentioning RedOne, his and Lady Gaga's pieces "Invading My Mind" and "Hypnotico" evidence, from their overwrought titles, to their listless electro fuzziness, that Gaga's sound is not one size fits all. If anything it shows how her own work will not hold up as plentiful as some say it will.

"I'm Into You" is charming and sweet as a perfume cloud, and mimics its permanence. The cameo assist from Lil' Wayne is not needed at all, feeling like someone sliding a platinum grill front over an already beautiful smile. "Take Care" (featured on the expanded edition of Love?) and "One Love" become redeemable with repeat visits, as "Take Care" is a gummy summer trifle, and "One Love" is springy.

Love? is not completely lost, as two songs make the record worth the trek through other unworthy fare. "Good Hit" is an update on Lopez's Boricua street power, dressing it up in cybertronic camp cool sonics that bring to mind Robyn's "Fembot" from last year's Body Talk (2010). Even still, the execution of the playful fussiness that skips along the jumping beat on "Good Hit" is Lopez through and through.

"(What Is) Love?", one of the few tracks that made it from the initial sessions of Love?, is where Jennifer flourishes. A moving song, it looks to introspection and cute critique ("I've had blind dates, hooked up with some real flakes. I've gone out with church boys, musicians are the worst"). Coming into proximity to the range of her prior work vocally and emotionally, it gives us the portrait of what makes Jennifer Lopez so appealing: personality. That certain something which makes her approachable beneath her larger-than-life veneer.

Despite any criticism that was hurled at Jennifer Lopez, she always had spunk in major supply. Whether she was the round the way girl, aspiring diva, or sharing (directly or indirectly) her love tales, she built on that trait by becoming a better singer, songwriter, and overall music persona. Love? is the necessary evil of giving commercial clout to La Lopez, but saps her of all her powers, leaving her almost unrecognizable. That may work for Britney Spears and her cult in 2011, but Jennifer Lopez's faithful require more stimulation, or at the very least her supposed ego Lola from the initial Love? sessions.

"Good Hit" Promotional Teaser Music Video Short

"Everyone's got to make a living..." went the sampled tag on her '02 hit "Jenny From the Block," and while we know Lopez has a brand to maintain, it was always one that had a lovable heart at its center. Hopefully, with the success of Love? it will leave space for Lopez to return to her upward ascent to art and heart oriented stuff that has made her the pop maven she is today. Two and a half stars out of five.-QH

[Editor's Note: Love? in all music retailers now.-QH)

Silk Electric: Diana Ross' RCA Years

2011-05-05T21:47:00.031-04:00

"The '80's were about creating a new life."

Disregarding the obvious holes in Diana Ross' '70's output, Ross' tenure at Motown is stuff of legend. Everyone knows of her rise as a Supreme during the '60's, but it was her work the following decade that intertwined dramatic, emotional, and pretty soul-pop threads to create a sonic tapestry familiar to many.

The start of the '80's had begun with a bang, the monopolizing victory of diana (1980) proved she had done everything she could at Motown. Now, Ross was ready to fly and explore new realms, proving once and for all that she was more than a mere thrall, romantic or otherwise, to Berry Gordy and his label.

Polygram, Casablanca, and Geffen all began to court Ross to join their ranks, but it was RCA Records who snared Ross with a $20 million price tag and promises of creative fulfillment. Diana Ross signed to RCA Records in 1981, the label, at various times during her stint there, would house Hall & Oates, the Eurythmics, and the Pointer Sisters. Diana Ross was another jewel added to their crown, and would remain there until 1987.

For some, the RCA period was seen as one of '80's excess, a span recognized for indulging in Ross' more garish pop fantasies. It has been leveled that this era could be viewed as a blotch on a pristine recording history.

That, of course, is only a surface assessment. There are portions of the RCA work that are not as peerless as her Motown material, but even that had its own flaws which many revisionists tend to forget. The freedom exercised at RCA was without equal, mirroring the peaks and valleys of the most transitional decade in black music. Where others feared to tread, Diana dared, and even when she missed her mark, the effort could be applauded.

Ross gave an eloquent statement about her time at RCA Records in her 1993 memoir, Secrets of a Sparrow:

I was given the opportunity to produce my own records, from finding the musicians, to setting up studio time, mixing, mastering, layering the music onto the tracks, finding the engineers, overseeing the photographs, creating the title, choosing the costumes, the names, the liner notes, every single ingredient. I also inspected the label copying, the layouts for the (album) jacket, selected the release dates, and most important sat through hours and hours of producing. It was a magnificent experience.

On the thirtieth anniversary of Diana Ross taking a seminal role in her career, that has spanned five (and counting) decades, a longing glance back at the albums that defined a time of change, fearlessness, and abandon, is definitely in order...

Why Do Fools Fall in Love
Released: 10/4/81
Produced By: Diana Ross
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop #15, U.S. R&B #4, U.K. # 20

Singles: "Why Do Fools Fall in Love," "Mirror, Mirror," "Work That Body," "It's Never Too Late"

The first Diana Ross serving to emerge off of the RCA label was a solid seller, continuing her upward commercial trend which kicked off again in 1979. The title track was a cute, to the point of contention for some, cover of the Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers doo-wop cut of the same name. The remainder of Why Do Fools Fall in Love concerned itself with balancing established comforts and a few surprises. The familiar sonic forms sported whipped disco-lite delights in "It's Never Too Late" or pretty, if at times candy spun treats like "Sweet Nothings" and "Sweet Surrender".

Ross' surprises were of note here, such as the camp kicking "Work That Body" or the razor-edge rock and funk bump of "Mirror, Mirror," a dual pop and R&B format crossover smash. Amongst a canvas of hefty, (but never overdone) guitar, prominent drums and bass, "Mirror, Mirror" was cutting edge.

Why Do Fools Fall in Love would be Ross' best selling album from RCA, though it wasn't her strongest in regards to what she would do with her creative reach.

"Mirror, Mirror" music video

Silk Electric
Released: 9/10/82
Produced By: Diana Ross
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop #27, U.S. R&B #5, U.K. #33

Singles: "Muscles," "So Close," "Who"

Evidenced in its Andy Warholian cover, Ross' true RCA freedom came to fruition, with some miscalculations, on Silk Electric. Once again in the driver's seat when it came to production, Silk Electric was a surprisingly crisp, clean, and spontaneous set of black pop tracks. The record is most loved for housing the Michael Jackson penned hit "Muscles," the first, genuine Diana Ross guilty pleasure showcased a fantastic middle eight break. "Who" was bewitching and solid, culled from much of the same soul satin cloth songs like "Once in the Morning," "Tenderness," and "Mirror, Mirror" were cut from in the last few years.

A fascinating take on conceptual momentum is heard in "Turn Me Over," which on the vinyl copy was an eerie, but lush call to the listener to turn the record over before side one concluded. Ross was breaking the third wall to reach her listeners. Sadly, the energy occupying Silk Electric was focused on most of the uptempo songs, as the slow jams became mired in adult contemporary sogginess that tied up the ballad vehicle that normally allowed Ross to hit paydirt.

Silk Electric was Ross' big, luminous step forward making good on the premise of more artistic breathing room.

"Muscles" music video

Ross
Released: 6/9/83
Produced By: Gary Katz, Ray Parker Jr., Diana Ross
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop #32, U.S. R&B #14, U.K. #44

Singles: "Pieces of Ice," "Up Front," "Let's Go Up"

Ross was the RCA era's lone long player to play as a coherent album. Diana Ross decided to bring in producers Gary Katz and Ray Parker Jr., assured and accomplished in fields of jazz, pop, and R&B, to guide the album. Diana herself would self-produce the funk rave-up "Girls" to amazing effect. Split into two sides, Katz handled the first half of Ross, while Parker Jr. took the second half, the previously mentioned "Girls" closed side two.

Both producers sewed a seamless pattern of classic Diana Ross and the future bound ambitions heard on Silk Electric. The warm, giddiness of "You Do It" manages to sit comfortably next to the tense questioning in "Love or Loneliness". Ross' voice charges "Up Front" with heat, yet takes on an affirming hue on the album opener "That's How You Start Over."

However, "Pieces of Ice" steals the spotlight on Ross. It stands as Diana Ross' most enigmatic work without equal. With a suspenseful gong instrumental opening, it leads into sharp, shooting synths that pound, guitars that lick at the muscular bass rhythms, all the while Ross rides the cryptic lyrical analogy of sexual attraction with skill.

This song, along with several others, were highlighted in her Central Park concert in New York City on July 21, 1983. Ross had now adapted to the art of the music video, and "Pieces of Ice" also managed to be a successful venture into the medium. Though the most commercially disappointing of the RCA output, this record is the only one that exists outside this particular age.

"Pieces of Ice" music video

Swept Away
Released: 8/2/84
Produced By: Raymond Arcusa, Arthur Baker, James Anthony Carmichael, Bernard Edwards, Daryl Hall, Richard Perry, Lionel Richie, Diana Ross
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop #26, U.S. R&B #7, U.K. #40

Singles: "All of You," "Swept Away," "Touch By Touch," "Missing You," "Telephone"

The salve to the sales slump of Ross, Swept Away was a multi-helmed recording that included ingredients from several producers, including Diana herself. Tying with Silk Electric as her most pop leaning record of this grouping, it also circled Silk Electric in its fragmented pacing. "Missing You," a cross genre hit, would be Ross' last major Top 10 pop hit, but was a luscious swan song. "Missing You" incorporated the sincerity that connected the dots between her and her audience on her best ballads, this being no exception.

Daryl Hall (of Hall & Oates), a fellow label mate, was one of the many production hands in Swept Away's pot. He and John Oates were at the peak of their powers with Big Bam Boom, also out the same year as this album from Lady Ross. Lending his pen, background vocals, and ear for sharp dance-pop precision, he steered the sound of the title track. The refreshingly tropical swirls in "Touch By Touch" were arranged just so, while the more spidery and jittery "No One Makes Me Crazy Like You" came on with alluring pressure.

"Telephone," another of Ross' many R&B hits from this time, was rendered by Bernard Edwards of CHIC. CHIC themselves had disbanded after their last release in 1983, Believer. Both he and former bandmate Niles Rodgers had moved into the lucrative market of behind-the-board wizardry for many artists of the '80's, and had of course led Ross' diana album to heady heights four short years earlier. The tart song would be sampled by hip-hop king LL Cool J for his G.O.A.T. (2000) album staple "Hello".

A few other jewels lined Swept Away ("It's Your Move"), but there were errors such as the schmaltz shocker duet with Julio Iglesias on "All of You". Swept Away's function as a high-octane, state-of-the-art, crossover album was executed well even if it was uneven majority of its spinning time.

"Missing You" music video

Eaten Alive
Released: 8/23/85
Producers: The Bee Gees, Albhy Galuten, Michael Jackson, Karl Richardson
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop #45, U.S. R&B #27, U.K. #11

Singles: "Eaten Alive," "Chain Reaction," "Experience"

Stepping away from producing her own records, Diana began to pick others to lead her records to traverse new sound fields, possibly looking to expand her appeal once more. By this time, Ross was only making contact with her two major markets: U.S. R&B and U.K. Pop. "Eaten Alive," the lone track Jackson co-produced, was ambitious if a bit too busy, and a customary U.S. R&B chart grazer.

The bulk of the record was handled by The Brothers Gibb, known commonly as The Bee Gees. The harmonizing trio slicked up Eaten Alive, sometimes a bit too slick, but it was far more organized than its predecessor Swept Away.

Excusing the exquisite heartache in "Experience," "Chain Reaction" was the star of this record. This stomping, sweet Motown salute gave Diana Ross her second U.K. chart topper since "I'm Still Waiting" a decade prior in 1971 from her second record Everything Is Everything. The British pop act Steps would score a decent hit with their accomplished cover of it in 2001 from their Gold: Greatest Hits.

The remainder of Eaten Alive found Ross in good voice, emoting here ("More and More"), seducing there ("Oh Teacher"), but in a fashion, Eaten Alive felt like a holding pattern for something a bit more engaging.

"Chain Reaction" music video

Red Hot Rhythm & Blues
Released: 6/9/87
Produced By: Tom Dowd, Luther Vandross
Chart Placements: U.S. Pop #73, U.S. R&B #39, U.K. #47

Singles: "Dirty Looks,"
"Tell Me Again," "Shockwaves," "Mr. Lee"

The final RCA offering was meant to restore Ross to a semblance of chart succession, but ended up tying her best RCA record Ross in quality, even if its quantity didn't stack up in her favor chartwise. The album was proceeded by a successful television special of the same name which looked back to black music at its halycon days, and forward to where it was headed.

The late Tom Dowd, who had paired with greats like Dusty Springfield, Aretha Franklin, and Otis Redding brought a mature and balanced air to Red Hot Rhythm & Blues. A loose concept record that juggled covers of soul chestnuts with contemporary cuts was an intriguing approach. Led off with the cool "Dirty Looks," her final RCA hit at #12 U.S. R&B; it was slinky, sexy, and posh.

The covers ranged from the moody vocal sketch of the Leonard Cohen penned "Summertime," one of Ross' finest moments ever recorded, to the blushing, knowing Motown wink of the Jackie Ross diamond "Selfish One". Original work was also promising, as the now departed Luther Vandross produced and backed Ross on the revealing "It's Hard For Me to Say," also "Stranger in Paradise" was an after hours treat to be savored.

The British version of the album featured additional songs in "Mr. Lee" (a single there), and "Tell Mama". Though this record failed to find an audience in 1987, it has as much of its demure charm and pull as it ever did.

"Dirty Looks" music video

With the RCA era ending on the quiet hush of Red Hot Rhythm & Blues, Diana Ross collected herself and spirited away back to her home of Motown Records. This time taking a hand in owning a percentage of the company, keeping the lesson of control from the RCA experience close to the hilt, Ross would steady onward at Motown Records from 1988 through 2000. There, she experienced somewhat of a second British blossoming as she achieved victories with records like The Force Behind the Power (1991) and Take Me Higher (1995). She still stands in 2011 undiminished as a live act globally, specifically in England and the United States.

Taking stock of Diana Ross' run during the 1980's, even with her bumps and stumbles, she racked up an impressive number of awards and charts hits. Focusing on the latter perspective, Diana Ross placed a combined total of 28 singles on the U.S. R&B and Pop charts. Of the 28, 15 were R&B scores with the highest entry of "Missing You" (#1), and the lowest entry of "Chain Reaction" (#85). Pop stood strong with 13 scores, featuring the highest entry with "Why Do Fools Fall in Love" (#7), and the lowest entry with "Chain Reaction" (#95). The United Kingdom birthed 18 chart hits in this period, their highest entry seen with "Chain Reaction" (#1), and lowest entry with "Let's Go Up" (#79).

Six records were released in the span of 1981-1987, all reaching the Top 50 on the three previously mentioned market charts, except Red Hot Rhythm & Blues with a #73 position in the U.S. Pop chart. In America Why Do Fools Fall in Love achieved platinum security, and gold was locked in for Silk Electric and Swept Away.

However, record labels have to pay to have records re-certified, it has been rumored that many of these records have gone on to sell gold and platinum units in all three areas Ross appeared. Of course, this was pre-Soundscan era, and adjustments for current inflation would need to be made, but until they are re-certified one cannot be sure.

Critically, division occurs for this section of Diana Ross' music. It also remains yet to be completely anthologized properly, though the 1997 released package Greatest Hits: The RCA Years made a decent, if disappointing effort. There is still not a major set that has collected all of these singles in one space outside of the well known ones. Interestingly enough, Joseph F. Laredo, the liner note essayist in the just mentioned RCA best of, summed up the ethos of this time perfectly:

They (The RCA Years) were challenging, transitional years for her (Diana Ross) during which continued commercial success, as well as the occasional setback, were attended by a level of creative freedom and artistic independence she had never known.

Diana Ross has been popular in terms of her discography being revisited in detail recently, starting with the unreleased, and divine, Blue in 2006. The reissues for her Motown catalogue have been constant since. It could be that the RCA works are waiting in the wings for their second chance at remastered life, as majority of these are out of print in the U.S.A. and only up for purchase as Japanese imports currently.

Performing "Touch By Touch" @ the American Music Awards '87

A toast then to the Diana Ross who braved the unknown and usually won out, to a Diana Ross who knew no boundaries for what black music could be or do. Here's to the odd, beautiful, and refined touch of her silky soul that became "electric" during the '80's.

[Editor's Note: Again, all of these records are available, via Amazon, or other Internet music outlets as Japanese imports. It looks as if Silk Electric is the only one of the six here to go out of print recently.-QH]

New Releases from 2011's Fella's...Thus Far

2011-04-12T23:51:00.012-04:00

Chris Brown: F.A.M.E. (Jive)
On Chris Brown's fourth album F.A.M.E. ("Forgiving All My Enemies" or "Fans Are My Everything"), the immediate feeling when the listener immerses themselves inside the album's walls is the frenetic range of moods: anger, sensuality, swagger, flirtatiousness. Brown navigates each mentioned mode with dexterity, most of the time. The songwriting, which has the hefty task of bringing across these themes, isn't always up to par, having to compete with Graffiti's (2009) solid material. Thankfully, the hooks are kept hooky, and some verses are sincere, as they are salaciously witty.

The mean mugging dual hits of "Deuces" and "Look at Me Now," each featuring a bevy of supporting hip-hop cat daddies, strike in their sturdy productions, but will or won't appeal to each Chris Brown fan depending on the way they like their urban Chris served. If you're looking for more tongue-in-cheek rowdy fun, visit the Wiz Khalifa assisted "Bomb" or the boudoir come-hither on "Beg For It," which work without roaming into the overt extremes some parts of F.A.M.E. veer into. Both of those tracks are featured on the expanded edition of F.A.M.E..

Unsurprisingly, the safest material here falls into his ballads. Assured and handsome, he twists some charisma out of the SWV '90's shuffler "Right Here," which was carved from Brown's forefather Michael Jackson's melody sherbet masterpiece "Human Nature," that also makes an enjoyable appearance giving Brown a double sample smash. The reflective "All Back" (with a cool country tinge), and "Should've Kissed You" platform he hasn't lost his heart.

The Benny Benassi produced "Beautiful People" conveys a deep love of Italian house, which Brown fits into nicely. That doesn't raise eyebrows, electronic music, in various mediums, has been the rage in popular music for the last six years. While Brown was not the first to wear it, his donning of it on the expanded version of Exclusive's (2007) single "Forever," and later sprinkling it throughout Graffiti, showed an ear for the pulse of the sound outside of the "thump-thump-thump" incarnations favored by everyone from Usher to Lady Gaga.

The two standout masterjams are "Say It With Me" and "Oh My Love" making Brown the leader of this interpolation of electro values in black music today. The songs favor layered forms, with synaptic shattering drops, swooshes, and rushes that bring to mind latter day Jamiroquai funktronica. Melody isn't shortchanged in the process, as Brown (with and without vocal distortion playfulness) snatches his voice in and out the mixes. Specifically "Oh My Love" combines grimy hip-hop blasted verses, with mannered and romantic choruses, a delicious musical versus battle between his own psychoses.

F.A.M.E. is a transitional work, but houses enough strong material that professes that Brown is far from finished in his field, and is the one to watch in the coming years.

Duran Duran: All You Need is Now (Tape Modern/S-Curve)
Duran Duran's thirteenth studio spinner, All You Need is Now, will have different meanings to the two largest factions of their fan base.

For the crowd who've anxiously, and at times obnoxiously, crowed for the glitter days of Duran's career triumvirate Duran Duran (1981), Rio (1982), and Seven and the Ragged Tiger (1983), Now is everything and more.

The flipside: the audience who has watched and cheered for Duran Duran as they evolved, even when it wasn't always to commercial or critical merit, may eye Now with an air of suspicion. It is their first, open return to a specific soundfield in their history.

Undeniable is the sheer greatness of Le Bon (vocals), Taylor's (John on bass, Roger on drums), and Rhodes (keyboards) sculpting, with wonderkid producer Mark Ronson, the ore of that salty trio of records that defined their genesis without it coming off as ridiculous or weighted. The opening and crashing assault of Roger Taylor's precise cymbals and drumming on the flashing "Girl Panic!" is the type of pulse raiser that will pump feet and fist. The neo-disco glide, with John Taylor's bass prominent, finds Scissor Sister Ana Matronic dropping some chocolate coated vocals, in "Safe (In the Heat of the Moment)". That song is sexy and not austere, but mature.

Their songwriting, which tends to be strong despite a misstep or two, is in its best form on the obsessive "The Man Who Stole the Leopard," Le Bon's clipped cool affectation is fascinating, and makes room for a cameo from Kelis to make a guest feature adding, not subtracting, to the stylish song. That stylish turn, is thanks to Rhodes, who despite any producer they've worked with, has arranged keyboards, and other objects onto the Duran Duran canvas to keep them on the edge of esoteric.

With an existing bank of ballad capitol, "Before the Rain" is another addition to the treasure pile, and the bonus edition cut (available via Best Buy only) "Early Summer Nerves" is all tense, pop sinew.

An argument could be made that when their knack for experimentation was exploited, a first, for commercial gain on Red Carpet Massacre (2007), the door toward nostalgia didn't seem so taboo. Then again, maybe it was an acquiesce to the idea that only returning to the era of "The Reflex" would bear fruit, which is silly to even consider given Duran Duran's prolific output in three decades. Despite Ronson's ego-maniacal statements about Now being the "true" follow-up to Rio, the title track knowingly winks at their experienced fans with a distorted lead, and recurring, synth line owing more to Medazzaland (1997) or Pop Trash (2000) than Rio.

All You Need is Now is a pilgrimage to nostalgia in certain degrees, but one earned in the blood, sweat, and tears of evolution. Rather than an admission of defeat, it’s a full circle acknowledgement of where they've come from, and where they will still journey.

Lupe Fiasco: L.A.S.E.R.S. (Atlantic)
For an artist, the road to authentic expression ne'er did run smooth, especially in the fickle and contradictory realm of hip-hop music. Lupe Fiasco's L.A.S.E.R.S. ("Love Always Shines Everytime Remember (2) Smile") went through several transformative stages, at one point being touted as three part junior effort to herald an impending retirement, before taking its current state. The record would also be mired deep within label politics, which resulted in Fiasco's fans taking to the streets (literally) to free the record from Atlantic's tyrannical oppression.

When the album finally materialized, it was an album of conflict. Two different albums both presented and performed by Lupe Fiasco. On one side, you have the slick cuts meant to appeal to the ring tone oriented ghettos (charts) that house most of today's hip-hop. Though they aren't uncharismatic, they do feel phoned in, and even with the cryptic messages folded within ("State Run Radio"), they feel flat.

The other side picks up where the conceptually charged album The Cool (2007) left off.

Tracks "Letting Go," "Words I Never Said," and "Out of My Mind" are brittle, metallic, dry ice hip-hop wonders. The mood roils off each track curiously impassioned and restless. The features, in running order as mentioned, of Sarah Green, Skylar Grey, and Trey Songz are almost like vocal wallpaper, decent accents but easily peeled away, the songs lyrical and musical cores can exist without them. This issue was evident on The Cool, that also was too top heavy in its features which often were unnecessary.

Two Lupe Fiasco classics will be associated with L.A.S.E.R.S.: "Till I Get There" and "All Black Everything". The former is a heartwarming, but honest and bittersweet view into Fiasco's battle to remain relevant in a market that doesn't thrive on intelligence and thought, the latter a brilliantly bright and Utopian lyrical masterpiece.

Lupe Fiasco has been forthcoming in the press for this album that it was a labor, one that saw him compromise, but at the same time win. L.A.S.E.R.S is far from perfect, but is a compelling look at a man at the crossroads of creative censorship, brave (and foolish?) enough to bridge the commercial gap, and still get his thoughts to the public.

Ricky Martin: Música + Alma + Sexo (Sony)
Ricky Martin's career has stretched three decades, and is now moving into its fourth one. That reign in Latin pop music is only surpassed by his female predecessor Gloria Estefan, but unlike Estefan, Martin has worn several visages and none hinted at what he musically was. In the Eighties he was one of the many boy wonders in Menudo; he later would exit Menudo and find success in the Nineties as a sensual, if staid Spanish adult crooner. His most galvanizing success appeared in riding the crest of the American "Latin Pop Explosion" that boomed in 1999, crossing over with buttery smoothness.

The last ten years found Martin recording still, returning back to his Spanish roots when the Americans grew fickle, but again nothing peeked beyond the ambiguous shades Martin showed through his music. With Martin's public outing as a gay man recently, it immediately put a level of pressure to what his music would sound like.

His ninth record Música + Alma + Sexo ("Music + Soul + Sex") rightfully gives Ricky Martin his first album to move beyond niceties, and give him a face. Working in tandem with producer Desmond Child, Martin's flavorful tone, always best in his native tongue, burns on the surging "Más," a rousing, summer dusk stinger that will bump in cars and on dance floors with equal flair. "Frio," with its tribal turns, is lush upon each return.

The slow burners, Martin staples in Spanish or English, vocally beat with urgency as heard on "Tú Y Yo" and the "Cántame Tu Vida"; "...Vida" lures the listener with its zephyr brushed touch that will win over the most non-bilingual individual.

The album features several English translations of the songs, sadly lacking the same pull that their Spanish versions profess. Joss Stone's duet with Martin on the English version of "Lo Mejor de Mi Vida Eres Tú," recast without Natalia Jiménez, as "The Best Thing about Me is You" is wasted as it just doesn't work in the same context. Whether Martin will be able to beat the curse of his more limited English releases, possibly releasing one to rival his best Spanish recordings, is unknown. Yet, the album translates Martin's recent life changes as a gay, Hispanic man, now a father of two, making it human and tangible despite the supposed language barrier.

Mint Condition: 7 (Shanachie)
Twenty years have been kind to the men of Mint Condition. Stokely Williams (vocals), Ricky Kinchen (bass), Homer O'Dell (guitar), Larry Waddell (piano), and Jeffrey Allen (saxophonist/keyboardist) have weathered the loss of member Keri Lewis (keyboards), going from a major label deal to an indie one, and have continued to retool their brew of Minneapolis R&B to fine precision. 7, as the title implies, is their seventh record of original material, and the new songs featured are still mint.

Vocally leading the brigade, Williams sounds bold, in full control of his gifts. Those pipes are on display when putting in overtime on what can only be called contemporary psychedelic rhythm and blues on "Mind Slicker," or the Quiet Storm color-by-numbers "Ease the Pain".

The band itself kicks, demonstrating that their “Minneapolis Sound” fathers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis (who discovered Mint Condition in 1989) would be proud to see how they've absorbed their Twin Cities funk and swirled in a surplus of influences. The echo drum and bass quake of "Can't Get Away" bounces right next to the synth-washed snapper "I Want It" as the perfect one-two opening salvo. "I Want It" has further appeal, sporting its hypno-pant loop from Stokely recalling another Minneapolis titan, Prince, and his vintage groove storm "Sexy Dancer".

The "band" focus, which has been a perennial for Mint Condition records, appears as songs naturally flesh out. Like many of the albums discussed here, there is a deluxe version that is available at Best Buy with five bonus songs. Of the five, and tying into the band theme discussed momentarily, two live songs, from Mint Condition's past discography, are provided, performed recently at Yoshi's in San Francisco. The live songs will cast a spell on listeners as much as the studio work does on 7; proving the strength of Mint Condition. They manage to be consummate studio professionals who translate live energy to the record, and show no age or wear twenty years into the game.

[Editor's Note: All records currently available at music retailers, physical & online.-QH]

The 14 Blue-Eyed Soul Paladins

2011-04-09T17:35:00.023-04:00

R&B is “cred,” musically speaking. Next to rock music, an offspring of R&B in actuality, rhythm and blues is taken very seriously amongst its fans and performers of its sound. The aural-spiritual life blood of the people of African descent living in America, it is modern folk tale passed down for its people, by its people. Skepticism runs amok when one not of the black experience attempts to don the sonic mask of R&B and use it in any shape, form, or fashion.

There are a select few of the Caucasian persuasion that have pulled off the major R&B coup. Every singer listed here has, at some point, given homage and integrated black musical D.N.A. into their sound. Some featured here have done it more than others, and only one could be considered an actual “white R&B singer”. Regardless, these acts shine above the rest in executing this merge of sounds, cultures, and transcending the often messy color lines that are still apparent in popular music in 2011.

This list is presented in chronological order in relation to when the artist, as they are known, entered the popular music sphere. It is not based on the importance or supposed superiority of one over the other. These are reflections into my personal inclusions on this elite pantheon of white men and women who were bold, brave, and brash enough to wield the sword of R&B responsibly and greatly. This piece in its entirety is dedicated to the memory of Mary Christine Brockert, known as Teena Marie.

#1. Dusty Springfield
Year of Origin: 1964
Mary O'Brien, later Dusty Springfield, stepped out of the frilly family folk act of The Springfields to become the first of her kind: a blue-eyed soul singer.

At one point in her career, she sojourned to Memphis, Tennessee, the capitol of Stax soul music, to record the legendary Dusty in Memphis (1969). That long player cemented Springfield's legacy of importance in the movement of white singers authentically singing black music.

This British flame burned brightest in the mid-Sixties toward the early half of the Seventies. With a voice that straddled gutsy blaring, or orchestral paced works, Springfield was versed vocally in bringing the subtler pop readings to the often powerful rhythmic elements of black music.

Springfield recorded infrequently in the remainder of Seventies, before returning to the music scene in 1991 with help from electronic duo The Pet Shop Boys on Reputation, and her 1995 effort in entitled A Very Fine Love. While breast cancer would claim the vocalist in 1999, her music continues to live on.

"Twenty Four Hours From Tulsa" from A Girl Called Dusty (1964)

Recommended Listening: Ev'rything's Coming Up Dusty (1966)

#2. Hall & Oates
Year of Origin: 1972
Darryl Hall and John Oates both met and were reared in another famous hotbed of black music: Philadelphia. Coming together as a maverick duo (equally writing, singing, and later producing), Hall & Oates came creeping out of Philly when acts like The Delfonics and The Stylistics, amongst many, were heralding a softer and creamier edge to urban music.

What made their material extremely powerful was its daredevil blends of folk, rock, pop, R&B, and later disco, new wave, punk, and adult contemporary elements rooted in the now classic “Philly Sound” vein.

When they later took the reins by producing their own work, they continued to even more astounding victories.

Later to be crowned the most successful recording duo by Billboard magazine, Hall & Oates’ career has spanned four decades, and counting, with their influence felt from the amount of imitators, samplers, and covers throughout the years.

"Wait For Me" from X-Static (1979)

Recommended Listening: Bigger than Both of Us (1976)

#3. Teena Marie
Year of Origin: 1979
Mary Christine Brockert, later Teena Marie, would subvert Dusty Springfield's iconic position as the first blue eyed soul singer, by becoming the first white R&B artist. Kicking off at Motown Records, studying under the tutelage of funker & lover Rick James, Marie would later graduate to arrange, produce, compose, and play herself on each album she cut from her junior effort Irons in the Fire (1981) onward. Initially hidden from the view of her black audience on her debut, Wild & Peaceful (1979), Marie's white revelation on her second album jacket cover Lady T (1980) didn't sway the now loyal following she had.

With chart history confined mostly to the R&B charts, barring her 1984 crossover hit "Lovergirl," Marie enjoyed unprecedented success with her witty, literate worded works charged with a voice that could stretch and bend effortlessly.

After a period of inactivity in the Nineties, barring Ivory (1990) her last effort at Epic Records, and the independently issued Passion Play (1994), Marie appeared again in 2004 with her hit return record La Doña on the Cash Money Classics imprint. Marie sadly and unexpectedly passed away just a day after Christmas in 2010. Her last offering, the excellent Congo Square (2009), showed her undiminished talent, one that is missed.

"Behind the Groove" from Lady T (1980)

Recommended Listening: Robbery (1983)

#4. Culture Club
Year of Origin: 1981
Out of all the New Romantic groups that swarmed from England in the early Eighties, Culture Club possessed an altogether organic ebb that set them apart from Duran Duran, a-ha, and the like. Boy George (born George O'Dowd), the vocalist who drew inspiration from Gladys Knight, was joined by Roy Hay (guitar), Jon Moss (drums), and Mikey Craig (bass). They went on to create the warm weight that defined the chart classics "Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?" and "Karma Chameleon."

Reggae was a prominent fixture alongside the dancier minerals on their dark and saucy debut Kissing to be Clever (1981), but 1982's Colour By Numbers was even more tempered with sophistic-pop threads owing more to vintage jazz and soul music than anything else.

Visit with the Motown shiner "Church of the Poison Mind," the stark "Victims" and "Black Money," all featuring additional backing vocals from their session powerhouse vocalist Helen Terry, for proof. The record would go on to become their watermark moment, arguably at least until 1999's Don't Mind If I Do.

With a second reunion rumor on the wind for the 30 year anniversary of the release of their first album, one can be sure to hear the same commitment to soul-pop quality that characterized Culture Club's finest moments.

"Mistake No.3" from Waking Up with the House on Fire (1984)

Recommended Listening: Colour By Numbers (1982)

#5. Eurythmics
Year of Origin: 1981
Another of the giants to emerge in the Second British Invasion of the early Eighties, the Eurythmics (Dave Stewart, Annie Lennox) were glass sharp from the start. Startlingly chilly, danceable, Stewart's icy arrangements hung on Lennox's froth filled voice with perfection. Based on the work of their first four records, their eligibility for this list could be questioned. It can be stated that both Lennox and Stewart were stout Tamla Motown devotees, which played a role in their next album and its identity.

In a twitchy move of musical retooling, the Eurythmics completely transformed from the leading electro-synth duo into a rocking R&B duo on their fifth outing Be Yourself Tonight(1985), which is where their inclusion to this list becomes a must. Putting what many already suspected was a slightly soulful Lennox in groove laden guitar and bass driven inflected numbers like the brassy "Would I Lie to You?" was too perfect for words.

Even the collaborations boasted credible gold, Stevie Wonder popped in for a playful harmonica cameo solo on "There Must Be An Angel (Playing with My Heart)," or the feminist anthem of ages with Lennox doing a duet, toe-to-stiletto-toe, with the Queen of Soul herself Aretha Franklin on "Sisters Are Doin' It For Themselves".

Elsewhere, Stewart sewed the elements of R&B, pop, rock, with a glossed kiss of electronica on the late night sugar rush of "It's Alright (Baby's Coming Back)". Such a dramatic transformation, which was not at all expected, was a true wonder to behold. The Eurythmics would move further into the organic rock/soul composite field with Revenge (1986) before returning to the more overt computer cool of old on Savage (1988). Not a direct user of blue-eyed soul in the obvious sense, Be Yourself Tonight refuted that for at least a moment to win over both sides of the music playing field.

"It's Alright (Baby's Coming Back) from Be Yourself Tonight (1985)

Recommended Listening: Be Yourself Tonight (1985)

#6. Simply Red
Year of Origin: 1985
Who knew that one-time punkster Mick Hucknall would go on to form and front one of the most beloved duality laced acts in adult pop and soul music history? Like many of the acts here, Mick Hucknall's smart outfit was from the United Kingdom.

Unlike any the prior New Romantics talked about before, Simply Red’s sound was completely based in the jazz lines and moody pop tones. Gems from their debut record Picture Book (1985) such as "Holding Back the Years" and Money'$ Too Tight to Mention" are often cycled into every Quiet Storm playlist conceivable.

Simply Red would go through several line-up changes before becoming a talented, if revolving door of session musicians to Mick Hucknall's dynamo voice and penmanship. 1989 saw a stirring hit rendition of the Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes chestnut "If You Don't Know Me By Now" on A New Flame.

In the Nineties, Simply Red's successes were confined to European, British, and Asian shores for sumptuous recordings like Stars (1991), Life (1995), and Blue (1998). They would slam back into the U.S. mainstream with "Sunrise," a juicy recasting of the already mentioned blue-eyed poster boys Hall & Oates classic "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)" on Red's Home (2003). Recently disbanding with their last sellout show in Britain's O2 Arena on December 19th, 2010 they leave behind pop records threading in varying strands of black music culture (jazz, reggae, funk, soul, R&B).

"Home" from Home (2003)

Recommended Listening: Blue (1998)

#7. George Michael
Year of Origin: 1987
Along with Andrew Ridgeley, Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou, or George Michael as he is known commonly, ruled between 1982 and 1986 as the twee pop duo Wham! Hinting at a much more mature direction with the Wham! single, which for all intents and purposes was a Michael solo outing, "Careless Whisper," Michael began assembling his solo effort for a 1987 release.

The effort rendered Faith, which would go on to be a global sensation evidencing Michael’s ear for writing, arranging, and producing his own work. Steeped in a fair amount of R&B aesthetic, Faith crossed chart borders with cuts like "Father Figure" and "Hard Day". Michael would continue to use this R&B element within each subsequent album that followed, maintaining an iron fist hold in his native Britain and the remainder of the globe when his American audience waned in 1996.

Michael's strength lies in his natural affinity as a singer and producer to capture the ideas of rhythm and blues, its structures and pathways, and keeping them accessible to a pop audience. More than any other artist featured on this list, Michael blurs the line between pop and R&B music with an almost uncanny ease.

"Amazing" from Patience (2004)

Recommended Listening: Older (1996)

#8. Swing Out Sister
Year of Origin: 1987
Partners in pop, Andy Connell and Corinne Drewery dropped in with the wide-eyed "Breakout" in '87. A beloved treasure from its period, most associate Swing Out Sister with one-hit wonderhood. In reality, Swing Out Sister have been some of the most daring and hip retro-activists, musically speaking, since their debut.

From their Jimmy Webb and John Barry inspired works, to the fusion dabbling that tie in hip-hop beats with Brit-beatnik acid jazz fetishism, Swing Out Sister has always been experimental.

Importantly, they moved into a very fun period where they explored Seventies funk and live grooves. Their third offering Get In Touch With Yourself (1992), boasting the Young-Holt Unlimited's instrumental version (called "Soulful Strut") of Barbara Acklin's "Am I the Same Girl?" with the actual song, concerned itself with more sensual patterns than their first two records.

They would take it further with 1994's The Living Return which saw S.O.S. expanding to include their live band and bring that vibe into the studio. They would switch back and forth between their classic Sixties pop fascination on Shapes and Patterns (1997), before returning to the fusion ideas that formed the forward urban piece Filth and Dreams (1999) as they moved onward. These records demonstrated major stylistic growth for Drewery as a singer and Connell as an arranger.

Still active, their last record Beautiful Mess (2008/2009) showcased some of the sticky funk in spots that characterized their early Nineties records.

"Notgonnachange"* from Get In Touch With Yourself (1992)

*Denotes single version versus album edit featured in video.
Recommended Listening: Get In Touch With Yourself (1992)

#9. Lisa Stansfield
Year of Origin: 1989
"The Rochdale Diva," and in some ways Teena Marie's only real female equal, and Dusty Springfield's obvious heir apparent, Lisa Stansfield is considered to be one of the leading ladies of the movement this list details. Blasting into the existence with the neo-standard "All Around the World," Stansfield's mournful, but forceful plea literally reverberated from radios the world over.

Moving into a more tasteful classic soul-pop vein with efforts such as Real Love (1991) and So Natural (1993), Stansfield remained a household name throughout Europe and England. Record label politicking would cause So Natural to receive no domestic Stateside release, so when her fourth (third in the U.S.) epnoymous effort Lisa Stansfield (1997) dropped, its U.S. reception was unfortunately lukewarm.

Her last two releases Face Up (2001) and The Moment (2004) were contemporaneous, but level and beautifully crafted receiving a British release only. Stansfield has temporarily retired from singing these days, though it would advantageous for today's new crop of Brit-blue-eyed brats to see a master at work.

"Let's Just Call It Love" from Face Up (2001)

Recommended Listening: Real Love (1991)

#10. Texas
Year of Origin: 1989
The center of this Scottish pop unit revolves around vocalist Sharleen Spiteri (center),bassist Johnny McElhone (far left), guitarist Ally McErlaine (between McElhone and Spiteri), and keyboardist Eddie Campbell (second to right) with varying musicians shifting in and out throughout their twenty year span. Additionally seen here, circa 1997, is Richard Hynd (far right) who was Texas' mainstay drummer until departing in 1999.

Texas' debut, with its spacious rock peaks and valleys, Southside (1989), was highly influenced from American rock 'n' roll (think Joshua Tree (1987) era U2). But with a single cover of Al Green's "Tired of Being Alone" on Ricks Road (1993), the die was cast for their sonic makeover that took place on their fourth album, White on Blonde (1997). Mixing alternative rock-pop with blue-eyed soul seemed an unlikely victory, but that's just what happened as Texas enjoyed a second burst of popularity after a down period.

Spiteri's larger-than-life vocal presence was also able to pour itself into cooler soul-pop treats; she further consolidated that on 1999's The Hush. Two additional album releases in 2003 and 2006 followed. Texas paused as a group while Spiteri recorded and released two solo records. Texas is set to return sometime in 2011, whether or not they'll return to the shimmering creative heights of Blonde or Hush; they've earned their spot here with those efforts.

"In Our Lifetime" from The Hush (1999)

Recommended Listening: White on Blonde (1997)

#11. Jamiroquai
Year of Origin: 1992
In the mold of the previously mentioned Simply Red revolving door staff, Jason Kay (Jay Kay) does the same as Hucknall in his funk conglomerate Jamiroquai. Jamiroquai is one of the three prongs on the trident of the U.K. acid jazz movement, along with The Brand New Heavies, and Incognito; Kay initially auditioned to be the vocalist for the Heavies, but that job went to N'Dea Davenport.

It ended up working out for the best as he went on to found Jamiroquai, their (initially) socially conscious funk, jazz, and more reserved disco featuring cameos from the Australian digeridoo instrument (until 1999) stormed the world charts, even hypnotizing America for a time in 1996 with their third album Travelling Without Moving.

As they progressed, their work would evolve into an even harder, sleeker, danceable, soulful disco form. Additional layers of rock and electronica are revealed upon peeling through their works, though they have kept all these roped in by their funk origins. Jay Kay's Stevie Wonder disciplined pipes skip over those aforementioned dance cuts, and infuse the slower songs with compassion and believability. Still in demand today, Jamiroquai is the best funk anyone has heard since, well, the Seventies.

"Runaway" from High Times: Singles 1992-2006 (2006)

Recommended Listening: Return of the Space Cowboy (1994)

#12. Nikka Costa
Year of Origin: 2001

Daughter of Don Costa, a notable music producer, Costa had several "starter" records to her name (Butterfly Rocket (1996) gets a honorable mention), before she officially entered the American arena with Everybody Got Their Something (2001). Produced by Mark Ronson, who later played a hand in the career of uber-hispter Amy Winehouse's Back to Black (2007), Everybody was hip and saucy. It owned an obvious blue-eyed sheen but with tougher, black rock rooted grit that was indebted to the vibe of Ike & Tina Turner.

Costa's voice is known for its chameleonic deftness: screeching and powerful, reflective and pensive, even pulsing with wit and humor depending on the song.

Her second outing Can'tneverdidnothin' (2005) received no push from her (then) label home Virgin Records, and she moved to Stax to release the dusty, but feel-good Pebble to a Pearl (2008). Although she has never achieved anything more than merely modest commercial returns, Costa shines not just as a singer, but a sensitive songsmith and visceral live performer aware of all her strengths.

Gearing up for her new, independently released record PRO★WHOA! , which supposedly boasts her trademark blue-eyed rock, will also include some poppier forays. Whatever the direction, for the self-proclaimed "funky white bitch," the record is sure to be an adrenaline pumper.

"Like a Feather" from Everybody Got Their Something (2001)

Recommended Listening: Can'tneverdidnothin' (2005)

#13. Joss Stone
Year of Origin: 2003
Leading what would be the new wave of British blue-eyed female singers emerging at the start of the last decade, Joss Stone shines more than them all. In her early-to-mid-teens, her debut release The Soul Sessions (2003), a collection of R&B nuggets, and one sexy White Stripes cover (the lead single) placed the Brit teen in the middle of a veritable eye of a hurricane of attention.

She would follow that recording with the (over) mature Mind, Body, & Soul (2004) before settling into a more youthful, but fun set-up on her junior long player Introducing...Joss Stone which featured production muscle from Raphael Saadiq. On each mentioned effort, Stone’s voice platforms a rich, full, and always “on” spirit that is thoroughly infectious. Though there are those that argue her inexperience leads to her singing verging dangerously near caterwauling, Stone showed her song reading skills on her last album Colour Me Free! (2009).

The title of that last album referenced a nasty and public battle with Stone's label EMI Records. Granting her wish EMI released Stone; she is currently at work on her fifth album with Dave Stewart (yes, of the previously mentioned Eurythmics fame). The record will appear on her own indie imprint label Stone'd Records. At 23, Stone has accomplished what many beyond her age often struggle to, and even with some of the more recent revisionism about her place in the oft-mentioned wave of Winehouse's, Duffy's, and Adele's (with respect to Adele), Stone's place in the blue-eyed soul stable is not in question.

"Tell Me 'Bout It" from Introducing...Joss Stone (2007)

Recommended Listening: Colour Me Free! (2009)

#14. Robin Thicke
Year of Origin: 2003
Thicke began as an unassuming, but talented songwriter for various pop and R&B stars before his own debut, Thicke, manifested in 2003.

Thicke's earthy and handsome atmosphere did not clue at the leap of his artistic and commercial reach his second record The Evolution of Robin Thicke (2006) would attain. Led by the single "Lost Without U," which has become a multi-R&B format radio staple, the record would place Thicke in a unique position. That position is to be the first to revolve around Teena Marie's throne of being a white artist with a legitimate black audience buying his records from the outset.

Thicke's mixture of masculine, but gentlemanly oriented hip-hop, jazz, and "old" and "new" school vibes have endeared Thicke to a young and old generations of African-Americans. Two more records came on the heels of his groundbreaking second album, one met with critical praise (Something Else, 2008), the other met with mixed reviews (Sex Therapy, 2009). The sky, however, is still the limit for Robin Thicke, with a voice that is honeyed and expressive.

"Magic" from Something Else (2008)

Recommended Listening: Something Else (2008)

Returning Soon

2011-04-07T19:27:00.000-04:00

Watch this space...

Hiatus

2011-01-09T21:36:00.003-05:00

I appreciate any & all who continue to read The QH Blend. Taking a bit of an extended hiatus due to my return to university, and needing a complete recharge to do this type of stuff. I've got some cool plans to execute for 2011. In the meantime, enjoy the archives. Thanks.-QH

The QH Blend's Best in Music of 2010

2010-12-07T20:43:00.013-05:00

The QH Blend Proudly Presents: The Best in Music of 2010

The Records of 2010: Movement One

#1 V.V. Brown's Travelling Like the Light (Capitol/EMI)
It is hard to be a black pop singer in 2010, but Ms. Brown makes it so simple. V.V. Brown, established in 2009 in her native Britain before attempting American shores, picked a turbulent time to broach the U.S. audience consciousness. Thankfully, her debut Travelling Like the Light makes her case well. With an elastic voice that smooths out the warm, feel-good "Shark in the Water," or power pops on the twitchy album opener "Quick Fix," Brown never hesitates in artistically stating what pop music can still do. Further demonstrations include forays in doo-wop new wave mash-ups ("Crying Blood") lush euro-balladry ("Travelling Like the Light"), and songs that simply defy description ("Game Over"). V.V. Brown breaks pop music rules and makes her own, 'nuff said.

#2 Scissor Sisters' Night Work (Polydor)
The Scissor Sisters are nothing if persistent in steadying forward. After a slight break between 2006's Ta-Dah!, Night Work arrived like a heady pill rush on a dance floor at midnight. The laser shining thump-a-thump on the title track is instantly hypnotic, making short work of resisting the charm of Night Work void. There is even space for pretty, anthem-driven pop/rock strokes in "Fire with Fire" and "Skin Tight" which showcase lead vocalist Jake Shears' broad vocal effects. The unrepentant party record of the year and one sure to thrill well into the future.

#3. Macy Gray's The Sellout (Concord)
Macy Gray has surpassed several of her former neo-soul counterparts, who shall remain nameless for the sake of comment box controversy. The Sellout, Gray's fifth opus, saw her return to her songwriting roots after a stylish detour on BIG (2007). Gray still has plenty to rhapsodize about, and whether it is heartbreak ("Let You Win"), global group hugs ("Beauty in the World"), or her own psychosis ("Help Me") she reigns it in with some of the best experimental sounds in contemporary R&B. Gray evidences that R&B can be spacious for other influences.

#4. Katie Melua's The House (Dramatico)
Katie Melua's The House is her moment to step forward into a larger creative space. While most of England (and Europe) know her prior pastel toned pop, teaming with the reclusive genius William Orbit only strengthened her strengths, and dropped in some surprises. Murder ballads rub elbows with several world music rinsed cuts, but her torch material still remains.

#5. Adriana Evans' Walking with the Night (Expansion)
Her godfather is Pharaoh Sanders, her mother is Mary Stallings, jazz credentials run in this lady's veins. While most will only know Ms. Evans from her demure late '90's eponymous debut, or as the cool voice behind the theme of LOGO's black gay drama Noah's Arc, Adriana Evans fifth long player Walking with the Night demands wider exposure. An alluring cocktail splish splash of hip-hop beats, bossa nova flirtations, instrumentals, and sassy salt all for the unlocking for the uninitiated or the Evans head in the know.

#6. Robyn's Body Talk (Cherry Tree/Konichiwa/Interscope)
An ambitious project that was proceeded by two EP's before the finalized product landed this month, Swede popper Robyn slays any doubters with her fifth album Body Talk. Equal amounts of electronic brashness ("Fembot"), sweaty house music chops ("None of Dem"), or even trading truly dirty bars with Snoop Dogg where most of his partners feel edited ("U Should Know Better"), Robyn does it all. She empowers her fans too; several tracks that didn't make the actual album, were featured on the EPs, and allow fans to control and resequence the album as they see fit. This method both embraces the digital and CD formats, past, present, and future. Robyn slays again.

#7. Erykah Badu's New Amerykah: Return of the Ankh (Universal Motown)
The first part of the New Amerykah series, 4th World War (2008), leaned on the external and political themes. On the second chapter, Badu looks inward and rocks with her inner soul glow. A summery, slick, clever smorgasbord of R&B snippets, moods, and threads are woven with that kooky Badu flavor giving her the most accessible album in her oeuvre since Baduism (1997) or World Wide Underground (2004).

#8. Kylie Minogue's Aphrodite (Parlophone)
Yes, we can feel her in our stereos, and Minogue's eleventh platter Aphrodite is a clean, sharp, and effective taste of European pop music. There are plenty of clubbers that will be filling floors from New York to Ibiza all the way into the summer of 2011, but some of her lesser known cuts such as "Illusion" and "Higher" will bewitch her longtime fans. "Better Than Today" is also a clever re-write of the rock/soul/pop vibeology found on the unsung "2 Hearts," her lead single from the schizo-pop X (2007).

#9. Kelis' Fleshtone (will.i.am music group/Interscope)
R&B artists are only allowed a certain degree of experimental freedom, as long as it doesn't veer too far from the code of rhythm and blues ethics. In a daring Pointer Sisters-esque move, Kelis threw herself headfirst in the electronica arena on Fleshtone, blurring the lines of what black female artists can or cannot do. Far from an easy ride, Fleshtone requires the listener to take a journey, and through each song map, Kelis guides through a kinetic garden of diverse, if at times jarring sound fields.

#10. Seal's Seal 6: Commitment (Warner Brothers)
Seal stumbled on 2008's Soul, his first standards set, and a blundered opportunity to put his mark on that time honored tradition. Then again, after creating five masterpieces prior to Soul, one can forgive one misstep. He regains his footing, and presents his best vocal work ever on Seal 6: Commitment. The backdrops are soul-pop heart throbs with a major nod toward the honey and clover "Best of Me," Seal sounds and exudes his charm even if he has hit a veteran stride. Commitment just sounds too good to argue with.

Runner-Up Records of 2010: Second Movement

#1. Toni Braxton's Pulse (Atlantic)
Despite a minor hiccup, 2002's More Than a Woman, which itself was not without several highlights, Braxton has been in the business of crafting expert rhythm and blues records since 1992. Her sixth long player, and first for Atlantic Records, Pulse is no exception and rises to the top as one of her clearest realized visions. Excellently written, balancing precariously between tasteful forays into contemporary spins ("Lookin' At Me") and fun diversions ("Make my Heart"), Pulse is crafted with ballads that Braxton wraps her velvet toned voice around.

#2. KT Tunstall's Tiger Suit (Virgin)
KT Tunstall's two constants are her earthy, but chameleonic voice and her fizzy folk fetish. Since her debut Eye to the Telescope (2004/2005) she has added varying shades of different genres generously to her folkloric presence, and Tiger Suit does the same. This time the borrowing comes from a few electronic whizzers and whirrers, which are seen and heard on the slippery "Glamour Puss." Rejuvenating versus radical, Suit excites with tribalism on "Uummannaq Song," and chills on the Asiatic tear inducing "Lost." The stars of the set remain that unmistakable voice and folky lyrical and song structure.

#3. Chrisette Michele's Let Freedom Reign (Def Jam)
Let Freedom Reign, La Michele's junior effort, is a spangled, glittering confectionary of modern R&B. Expanding on the graceful step into a more commercial air with Epiphany (2009), Reign's confidence ("I'm a Star") is buoyed by sincere pleas and confessions ("I Know Nothing"). The title track itself, featuring excellent hip-hop features from Talib Kweli and Black Thought, steps into Michael Jackson's "They Don't Care About Us" biting musical territory, while vocally touching on Donna Summer's '82 epic cover of the Jon & Vangelis nugget "State of Independence."

#4. Corinne Bailey Rae's The Sea (EMI)
Out of tragedy and adversity can come blessings, and with Rae's sophomore outing The Sea, Rae took her husband's untimely death, using it constructively. An aural spread of vintage soul, with some guitar workings, Rae's flowery and emotional vocal presence flies on the rending "I'd Do It All Again." There is room for healing and celebration of new love, the breathtaking romance in "Paris Nights/New York Mornings," and the sexual/spiritual appetites of "The Blackest Lily" make for captivating tales.

#5. Sade's Soldier of Love (Epic)
Bleak in contrast to the warmer, if still somber Lovers' Rock (2000), Soldier of Love is a work of art in its own right. Sade and Co. prove that they can still lay on the grooves from a band stand point, ensuring these tracks will undoubtedly translate to the stage for their upcoming tour in 2011. What brings returns to Soldier of Love is its dusty voiced songtress spinning her voice around the contemplative "Skin," or father praising island bathed "Babyfather."

#6. Goldfrapp's HeadFirst (Mute)
Marking their tenth year in recording, Will Gregory (a modern day Dave Stewart) works synthesizers to Alison Goldfrapp's glacial sing song voice on their fifth long player. Refusing to be pigeon holed by any critic or fan, this time Goldfrapp have placed themselves in the keyboard fault lines from Van Halen's '84 power pop rocker "Jump" with a few Euro kicks. If everyone is doing '80's rip-offs, at least go all the way, and with Alison's enthused, if slightly detached singing leading the propulsive "Rocket" and space lounge "Dreaming," Goldfrapp is both ironic and deadly serious.

#7. Shakira's Sale El Sol (Epic)
Last year, Shakira almost had the gold on her sixth record She Wolf. The title track, along with "Men in This Town," and "Gypsy" ranked as some of her best work. Sadly the clumsy Neptunes led portion of the album shed the neo-disco revival those tracks attested, and placed her in arrangements that left much to be desired. On Sale El Sol, her first Spanish project since the massive Fijación Oral Volumes 1 & 2 (2005) period, she is almost unseasonably summery. Blending some of her nouveau American pop touches, "Loca" and several of her staple ballads are sure to delight the loyalists and bring neophytes to her Spanish playground.

#8. Hanson's Shout It Out (3CG)
Damn it all if Hanson has not been behind some of the most creatively fertile albums since people wrote them off after 2000's unsung This Time Around misplaced their commercial fortunes. Not at all sullied, the brother trio makes like the Jackson 5 heading to Epic Records in the mid-70's and puts down some funk-lite, brassy horn kissed music that is all played, sung, and performed earnestly. They also can do ballads well, as seen on the "I need a hug" diamond "Carry You There."

#9. Hot Chip's One Life Stand (EMI)
Obtuse British dance acts aren't necessarily rare. Hot Chip though has a special ingredient they infuse their oddly appealing electro burbles and grooves with: Alexis Taylor. The lead vocalist of the outfit, Taylor's clipped, cool, at times unorthodox calm approach is what elevates One Life Stand, Hot Chip's fourth recording to date, to outstanding status. "Hand Me Down Your Love" is an evening sidewalk stepping classic, complimenting the deeper dance inclinations of the title song. Closing with a clutch of tempered slower tracks, Hot Chip confuses and enthralls.

#10. Jamiroquai's Rock Dust Light Star (Universal)
The cynics who sneered that searing records like A Funk Odyssey (2001) and Dynamite (2005) weren't funk heavy enough won't necessarily be moved by Jamiroquai's newest offering, the chilled and whipped Rock Dust Light Star either. The title brings to mind a more "crash bang boom" brilliance than given here, instead it reworks the same 1970's R&B passions they've been known for since 1993. The new veneer isn't unlikable, as it gives the front man Jay Kay a chance to slide into some of his most mesmeric vocal deliveries. "Blue Skies" sweeps just so, and even when the tempo begins to ascend with the star streaked clubber "She's a Fast Persuader," Kay's voice is restrained and tasteful. Not revolutionary, but never unpleasant, it is a nice comedown from the last two dance floor heavyweights their previous albums were.

The Singles of 2010: Movement 3

#1. "The Flood," by Katie Melua from The House

It is a shame her largest market Britain buys her records, but cynically disavows Melua's forceful but never brash voice. On this, her masterpiece, Melua pairs with a truly marvelous sonic stage provided by the mastermind William Orbit. A delicate euphemism about opening oneself to life's mysteries and truths, Melua leads and synthesizes musical elements that can only be described as deliciously oriental, ornate, and majestic.

#2. "Hands Tied," by Toni Braxton from Pulse

Despite a video that plays on the basic analogy of the song surface, "Hands Tied" is a moving song story. Interplaying of crisp guitar and piano, Braxton stretches her vocal limbs on the verses before stepping into the chorus which hooks audiences with repeated listens.

#3. "Shark in the Water," by V.V. Brown from Travelling Like the Light

With a guitar loop that would make George Michael's "Faith" nod in approval, V.V. Brown is soul deep, but melodically driven on her sunny walk in matters of the heart. Bouncy, carefree, and effortless, "Shark in the Water" was the pop single that no one Stateside got to hear.

#4. "All the Lovers," by Kylie Minogue from Aphrodite

A surging uptempo ballad, with a heavenly topped vocal from Ms. Minogue, "All the Lovers" is instantly classic. Ranking alongside her prior numbers such as "Better the Devil You Know," "Confide in Me," "In Your Eyes," "Slow," and "The One" this is one that will draw all ears regardless of its genre due to its beautiful and layered execution.

#5. "4th of July (Fireworks)," by Kelis from Fleshtone

Fleshtone is a sturdy album that has spun off a bevy of strong singles, four at the time of this writing. Of the four, "4th of July (Fireworks)" features slab, thick piano stabs, spine shattering beats, a droning male backing voice (added just at the right moments throughout), with Kelis placing her distinct flavor cherry on the top of this aural sundae.

#6. "Thinkin' 'Bout Something," by Hanson from Shout It Out

Snazzy, jazzy, peppy, groovy, and catchy. Pop music hasn't sounded this robust or generally fun since Hanson held more sway over the radio in the late '90's. Those in the know already are aware that this is another glorious addition to Hanson's crown of cuts, but for those unsure check out the best reason to "blame it on the boogie" since The Jacksons.

#7. "Fire with Fire," by Scissor Sisters from Night Work

The second single "Any Which Way" is the more obvious choice to be included, but even that floor filler doesn't have the pull that "Fire with Fire" has in abundance. The quiet pace that the verses ski along before that adrenaline explosion of a chorus that places Shears amidst a wall of chrome synths is irresistible.

#8. "Dancing On My Own," by Robyn from Body Talk

A more bittersweet tear drop of a song one will never find, and it manages to outdo Robyn's best single showing "With Every Heartbeat" from her fifth album Robyn (2005). Her authoritative presence brings weight, it garnishes the twinkling production of the track.

#9. "Shame," by Robbie Williams & Gary Barlow from In & Out of Consciousness: The Greatest Hits 1990-2010

A duet with former Take That bandmate Gary Barlow on this comical, but moving pop ditty was a tie-in stroke of genius. Precipitating one of the biggest reunions in British pop music this year, Williams and Barlow trade lines in their handsome tones, and manage to be both genuine and tongue-in-cheek in their musical mending fences. The cut itself is an almost gentle, folksy mock-up, which is casual as a summer spring, but works well.

#10. "Nothing," by Janet Jackson from Why Did I Get Married Too? Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

A lulling, sparse R&B love song that succeeds in showcasing Jackson's full range, "Nothing" pairs well with her more frenetic single counterpart "Make Me" from 2009's Number Ones set. Furthering that Jackson vocally shines best on slower, more patient moments, it's one of her most revealing songs of recent memory.

[Editor's Note: A thank you to Andrew Bird for his amazing art, and Darren Spence for coming through in a tight spot. Much love to you both.-QH]

Forever Spice: Spice Girls "Forever" 10 Years On

2010-11-04T20:25:00.027-04:00

At the dawn of the last decade, the Spice Girls were the biggest female group in the world. Launching in 1996 in their homeland the United Kingdom, an irresistible alchemical brew of personality, exceptional music, and marketing savvy pierced the global consciousness in a way few acts could or would.

Surviving the untimely exodus of member Geri "Ginger Spice" Halliwell in the late spring of 1998, the remaining four Spice Girls (Melanie's Brown & Chisholm, Victoria Beckham, Emma Bunton) blazed through their American leg of the Spice World tour, planting the grains of maturation that would take root in the next two years in the form of their third, final, and unsung long player Forever (2000).

The History
After Halliwell's departure, the Spice Girls began a visual and musical shift into a more developed refinement. The closing of their first tour birthed, sans Halliwell, the somber and eloquent "Goodbye," (their eighth U.K. #1 hit), proving their talents had gelled more tightly together as songwriters and vocalists.

As 1999 began, each Girl had branched into various solo projects while the writing and recording for Forever started. Also during this hectic period, the Girls embarked on a U.K. only "Christmas in Spice World" tour that received rave reviews, and it was here they showcased some of the material that would be featured on their junior effort in first year of the millennium.

The Record
The initial sessions for Forever began in the summer of 1998, with producers Richard Stannard and Matt Rowe, whom they had partnered with on Spice (1996) and Spiceworld (1997) equally. While Forever's first single was "Goodbye," the actual album would not materialize into being until the fall of 2000, totalling two and half years since an album of original group work had been released.

Additional collaborators included Elliot Kennedy, who was the co-writer that had assisted on the classic "Say You'll Be There," Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins and his cartel, plus the duo Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. Songs like "W.O.M.A.N.," "Right Back At Ya," and "Holler Holler" (later to become just "Holler") eyed a sleek, sexy, sophisticated edge that drew on both dance tones & tasteful R&B. Neither style was totally alien to the Girls, the latter in fact had been the driving pulse on their debut recording Spice. One listen to Spice's elements such as "Last Time Lover," "Naked," and "If U Can't Dance" suggested the Girls had an ear for just a bit of grit to be cut with their shimmer.

"If U Can't Dance" in particular substantiated their taste for grooves in its usage of an iconic sample loop composite of Sly & the Family Stone's "Sing a Simple Song" and Parliament's "Theme From the Black Hole" made infamous on the hip-hop outfit Digital Underground's classic "The Humpty Dance." The fact that the Spice Girls could ride that sample as daringly and superbly as the Digital Underground attested they weren't pop kewpies.

As recording commenced, both Rowe and Stannard's work ("W.O.M.A.N") were cast aside as the Girls began exclusively working with Jerkins, Jam, and Lewis. Both productions units had a knack for bridging the gaps between the realms of pop and R&B. Jerkins work included, but was not limited to soul ingenue Brandy's sophomore set Never Say Never (1998), and Jennifer Lopez's On the 6 (1999) and its lead single "If You Had My Love." That work manifested his direction to move the Girls into their next venture. He and his Darkchild imprint would handle eight of Forever's eleven tracks.

Interestingly, Jam and Lewis had the best understanding of melding the melodies of pop with the larger beats of R&B music. Starting off in Minneapolis, Minnesota alongside Prince and The Time, they would go on to produce some of the hottest black acts of the early '80's. Jam and Lewis shaped a post-modern black dance phonic that later became known as "The Minneapolis Sound." Their work with Janet Jackson, at this time a fellow label mate with the Spice Girls, on her third album Control (1986) and throughout her next three decades indicated their knowledge and credibility.

Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis spent time with, former Virgin Records darlings, The Human League and birthed the Crash (1986) album. That album was clearly a point of inspiration for Jam and Lewis here. They helped redefine, creatively and commercially, The Human League's synth sound, broadening it. They would produce two sides on Forever.

The Spice Girls themselves stayed true to their songwriting credentials amidst the talented gentleman driving Forever's sound. The opening salvo, and lead (second) single "Holler" was cool and crisply done up accordingly in Britain's fashionable two-step R&B style (later imported officially to American shores via U.K. soul crooner Craig David). Vocally dexterous after a combined two years of consistent touring, each member handled a section of the verses before drawing together for the slippery chorus call. Beckham of the four, had a marked improvement with her most distinct singing thus far, setting the stage for her eponymous debut that would premiere the following year.

Farther on, the keyboard boldness in "Get Down With Me," the swank showered "Wasting My Time," and the posh, lip glossed Girl Power kiss off "Weekend Love" saw the Girls working their musical muscles in their sassy dance and R&B motifs.

The saucy and defiant call-to-arms "Right Back At Ya," co-written with the previously mentioned Elliot Kennedy was more explicit and harder than his slight urban flirtation the Girls showcased during their "Christmas in Spiceworld" shows. Kennedy reportedly felt that Darkchild's productions had turned the cut into a "boring, plodding R&B song" a sour comment considering the song had that sonic stance before Darkchild amped it up. Either way, this song would have shined during the Girls' 2007/2008 reunion if it had been reworked.

"If You Wanna Have Some Fun," one of the two Jam/Lewis sides, sizzled. The track rode along a similar pathway that previous Spice stepping favorites "Who Do You Think You Are" and "Saturday Night Divas" had without sounding like a retread. The remaining Jam and Lewis side "Oxygen," was one of the four ballads that softened the uptempo flavors of Forever. Jimmy Jam praised Bunton's voice as one of the best instinctual presences he'd worked with, and she shone on "Oxygen" as well as on the A-Side to "Holler," the epic "Let Love Lead the Way" during her ad-libs. The remaining two ballads: the evergreen "Goodbye" (the sole Stannard/Rowe song remaining), and the musically banal, but vocally stunning "Time Goes By" rounded out the ballads arena.

This album was much more grounded in one or two sounds, a risky move for any pop group, but assuredly for one following behind their genre diversed opus Spiceworld.

The Impact
The climate in the United Kingdom, the Girls' largest market, was still quite frenzied with Spice Girls related electricity in 2000. Still beaming from their BRIT Awards "Outstanding Achievement in Music" win several months earlier in 2000, Forever seemed poised for that potent commercial victory. The initial start was off on the right foot with the preceding single release in the U.K. on 10/23/00 with "Holler/Let Love Lead the Way," where the Girls scored their ninth British number one single. This put them in the pantheon of acts such as The Beatles, ABBA, George Michael, etc. who had a large collection of number one singles in the British singles charts.

Quickly moving silver units in England, it performed well in international markets: Canada, Asia, Australia, Spain, amongst others, "Holler" placed in the upper reaches of these top ten charts. Barring Canada, "Let Love Lead the Way" was #5 pop hit there, that song remained a b-side release with its commercial existence based solely in England.

America saw no commercial single released for either song, and on airplay and import sales "Holler" reached #7 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart. The video for "Holler" was quite popular however on the U.S. MTV TRL (Total Request Live) program, climbing to #5.

Forever was released on November 6th, 2000 in England and the remaining international sectors, and America followed on November 7th. The record had immediate competition from British boy group Westlife and their Coast to Coast album. In a promotional battle that was heated, Coast to Coast stole the vaunted number one slot on the British album chart, while Forever landed at number two. America saw Forever as the Spice Girls' first overt failure there as it lurched into #39 on the Hot 100 with little to no promotion. In England and Spain, the record reached platinum sales peak, double platinum in Canada, and gold in Brazil, Germany, and several other countries. The sales for Forever currently sit at five million copies moved worldwide.

"Holler": Directed by Jake Nava

Forever was a soft seller, the Spice Girls first, especially within their largest market the United Kingdom. America was easier to understand as the Girls really had not had a presence there since their last group single "Goodbye" in 1998. England seemed to begin hinting at a Spice Girls burnout, where they'd actively reigned in group or solo forms since 1996. Critically, the Spice Girls had never been overtly praised, due to the sheer bias toward pop music no matter how accomplished the music itself may or may not have been. Some celebrated the Spice Girls' continued musical steps forward.

Billboard Magazine wrote:

The set oozes with timely funk beats and the kind of well-crafted songs that No. 1 hits are made of.

CDNow concurred:

A frothy soufflé of an album, heavy on the groovy dance beats and go-girl goodwill, light on profundity.

Others were not so kind and accordingly stated as such:

Rolling Stone wrote:

It's been almost five years since England's Spice Girls had people smiling or sneering. Their third album, Forever, will probably provoke a reaction somewhere in the middle -- with one exception, it's just OK.

Spin Cycle thought:

"Forever" is about as glossy as it gets. It's also understandably predictable.

Despite the commercial point, Forever had much life left to it, and easily could have stormed forward. Virgin Records had promotional singles planned and pressed for "Weekend Love," "If You Wanna Have Some Fun," and "Tell Me Why." "Tell Me Why" received excellent remixing from the leading dance floor heavyweight of the day, Thunderpuss. Internal friction sadly began tearing at the group, bringing an abrupt halt to the promotional side of the record. The remaining promotional singles never saw a mass release and are now regarded as collector items.

As 2001 dawned, the Spice Girls quietly disbanded without issuing a formal statement, simply calling it a hiatus. The diminutive success of Forever stretched into the new year with three more Spice Girls related solo projects that would mark the last year of the Spice Girls assured British dominance. The ensuing decade saw more solo recordings met with acclaim, creative wins, or just indifference. The reunion in 2007 heralded their full circle, with Forever's singles "Holler," "Let Love Lead the Way," and "Goodbye" not only sounding strong and relevant, but leaving a huge question mark over these songs parent album.

Was it internal fatigue from a gargantuan start and journey that murdered Forever's potential to reach a wider audience? Or just a twist of the times changing at that period? Fans remain divided passionately over Forever, some viewing it a unnecessary mistake born out of Halliwell's departure. Others see it as a record that showed the Girls at their most ambitious. True, it wasn't a patch on Spiceworld, the colossus of the Spice Girls group discography, but it wasn't recycled leftovers from previous incarnations either.

Forever is the kind of pop record that can confuse if not heard properly. The Spice Girls were never strictly a British or European bound recording act. Their name itself implied a smattering mixture of influences and each album reflected that. Forever remains a bittersweet snapshot of a group still full of musical integrity and fire. Four and half stars out of five.-QH

[Editor's Note: Forever, like the rest of the Spice Girls work, is readily in print.-QH]

Donna Summer's "The Wanderer" 30 Years Later

2010-10-20T07:26:00.004-04:00

The QH Blend has widely discussed the year of 1980 in terms of its connection to the dissolution of disco. Some acts survived, many more struggled. Of all these artists Donna Summer symbolized a fresh start from the ashes of a musical movement that she was clearly identified to be its figurehead. The Wanderer, her eighth album of original work, was an even bigger gambit for Summer. It made a case for her creative freedom, proving under all that disco dust was a pop singer who had been making these characteristic changes all along on her preceding albums.

History
After the muted start with Lady of the Night (1974) and the single led kick start of Love to Love You Baby (1975), Summer climbed through the '70's on the back of several highly conceptualized works that synthesized black dance and European pop into a new art form called "disco." By 1979, Summer had achieved dominance commercially (three number one double albums back to back, the first to do so). Also, her seventh long played Bad Girls (1979) further prolonged her reign and exemplified her transition from slightly underground to mainstream had not soiled her creative flow.

On the horizon was a growing anti-disco sentiment steadily swelling. Placed next to Summer's own discontent with the image her (then) label Casablanca Records had boxed her into repeatedly, Summer was ready for a cleanse. Gracefully sealing off her undisputed glory days with On the Radio: Greatest Hits in '79, Donna Summer was ready to start afresh. Leaving Casablanca Records behind, Donna Summer headed to Geffen Records to mark a very experimentally rewarding period.

The Record
Never a slave to the conventional "9 to 5" black female vocal prototype, Donna Summer was free to explore wider options with her voice. Longtime partners in production Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte, had planted the seeds for Summer's rock revolution with cuts like "My Baby Understands" and others on Bad Girls.

The Wanderer was again a concept recording about a woman attempting to flee from her mundane existence, getting swallowed up by the big bad city and love, and emerging spiritually reborn. The journey was loosely based on Summer herself who had just become a "born again Christian" at this time.

Lean, but filling, The Wanderer downplayed any overt beats, swirling orchestral bursts, for cleaner and sharper guitars, paired with enthralling keyboarding, synthesizers, and some snappy brass pops. The title song, with its playful, spazzy character driven vocal was delightfully wacky, weird, and wonderfully performed. Said character singing stayed in effect on each following song, making the narrative of the record more rich and involved.

Summer sang along the roiling tidal wave of ambient (early) electronica that was "Grand Illusion," where Donna Summer transformed herself into a siren, or on "Cold Love" or "Stop Me" one heard her voice burning with passion and defiance. Though, she was as soulful as any drab belter and with color tackled tracks such as the gospel shaded "I Believe in Jesus," Summer was taking no prisoners with what her voice could achieve on this album.

The musical map of the LP was strewn with rock at its surface, but the melodic poppiness and soul lines were there on repeated visits. The brisk "Looking Up" and semi-R&B sturdiness of "Breakdown" were brilliantly staged by Moroder and Bellotte. "Looking Up" was done up in rhythmic drumming and electric guitar craftsmanship, whereas "Breakdown's" stacked synth stabs glazed over a trimmed beat was the more "dancier" cut featured.

Prose wise, Summer maintained her story telling angle with "Running For Cover" and the muscular "Who Do You Think Your Foolin'" that were strong identity searching anthems.

The Impact
The Wanderer was an immediate critical hit when released on October 20th, 1980. Rolling Stone magazine, who would rank the record #2 in a year-end tally behind Bruce Springsteen's The River, giving it a total of four stars. Pop culture super site Pop Matters Christian John Wikane wrote of The Wanderer in April of 2007 recently stating:

By 1980, Donna Summer had amassed enough currency in her career to take chances. In October, Summer astounded audiences with The Wanderer, a decidedly rock-oriented album that marked Summer’s liberation from the image-making machinations of her previous record company, Casablanca, and from the grueling celebrity lifestyle that sent her to the brink of suicide. (The album also inaugurated David Geffen’s eponymous record label.) Harry Langdon’s album cover photograph for The Wanderer depicts Summer clothed in layers of scarves and leggings, sitting atop a black bench with suitcase nearby, looking very much "the wanderer”. With one hand casually nested in her perfectly coiffed hair, Summer’s gaze is direct and provocative. “I dare you to listen” is the implied message.

Audience reception was understandably split. Summer's primary audience, a white, dance-pop oriented crowd were still stepping to remaining throes of disco's last stomp, see Summer's colleague Diana Ross' "Upside Down" from diana (1980), a more decidedly commercial, but brilliant single and album to be sure. There were those who did respond, seeing the greatness in a broader pop reach and scope for Summer. Being a black woman in a predominantly non-R&B sound on The Wanderer was confusing for the few black fans who didn't flock to Summer in droves before, but were curious by her more groove-laden moments she'd displayed with sides like "Spring Affair," etc.

"The Wanderer"
Directed By: ?

All of these conditions reflected in the commercial outcome which was a gold selling record, a Top Ten hit for the title track, and two Top 40 hits in "Cold Love" and "Who Do You Think You're Foolin'." Summer, the first black woman to win a rock Grammy the year before with "Hot Stuff" was up for Grammy nominations in 1980 ("The Wanderer") and 1981 ("Cold Love").

In Summer's backlog of albums, The Wanderer stands strong and resilient in the face of labels, and despite not reaching a platinum peak with this record, she stayed true to her muse and created a classic in the process. Summer would continue to push her creative envelope hitting commercial paydirt (She Works Hard for the Money, 1983 & Another Place & Time, 1989) and sometimes just the creative wins (All Systems Go, 1987) throughout the '80's. Her latest effort, Crayons (2008) was patterned close to The Wanderer in tone, maintaining that pop at its best is an energetic force evolving and changing no matter what climate it is placed in. Five stars.-QH

[Editor's Note: Like majority of Donna Summer's 1980's work, The Wanderer is out of print and very expensive to obtain. I luckily copped a mint condition copy for $38 in 2007, the prices tend to ebb and flow ranging anywhere from $50-$70 for a CD copy at online music retailers.-QH]

Diana Ross: One Night Only in Dayton

2010-09-23T20:41:00.004-04:00

The Boss. The Lady Who Sung the Blues. A Supreme. Ambitious bitch, or vulnerable vixen? Motown puppet or an artist in the truest sense of the word? Titles will abound, with one crystal truth shining through: Diana Ross is, and always will be, a star. The archetype, touched on graciously by the likes of Janet Jackson and Vanessa Williams. Or outright plundered and pillaged by the likes of Beyoncé. A symbiotic merger of emotion and glamor unmatched.

Marking her 40th year as a solo performer, outside of her classic Supremes days, Ross kicked of 2010 with a concert show to commemorate her successes. Her unique performance here, in the heart of diminutive Downtown Dayton's performance hall the Schuster Center, was for a charitable cause. She was booked by the Kettering Medical Center to celebrate the opening of the Benjamin and Marian Schuster Heart Hospital in Dayton, the same doctor that the performance hall she was playing at was named for.

On the last official night of the summer, a sea of fans, mostly adults, ranging in skin colors, orientations, and gender poured into the center as Ross' tight and versatile band assumed position on the stage. Punching onto that stage with the uproarious, jubilant "I'm Coming Out," she immediately took the audience back 30 years when that single and its parent album diana (1980) held the world in its sway.

Ross' voice has only gotten better through the decades: she handled the vintage bop of the Spiral Staircase gem "More Today Than Yesterday" from her recent offering I Love You (2007) with grace. The butterfly soft "day after" bittersweetness of "Touch Me in the Morning," the more obvious after hours smoulder of "Love Hangover" which was fleshed out and funked up by Ross' aforementioned band also evidenced her voice and its resilience. A juicier live take of "Love Child," a latter Ross period Supremes hit was the highlight of a welcome, if overstayed Supremes hits medley.

She graciously made up for that with a fantastic dance section which included the unsung disco-urbane jam "The Boss," her eternal summer banger "Upside Down," the '95 house hit "Take Me Higher," and her Michael Jackson duet from "The Wiz," "Ease On Down the Road" delighted the hardcore and casual.

The "Lady Sings the Blues" portion of the show found Ross a vision in sequins in blue, she changed a total of five times during the concert. Once a diva...
The definite watermark of the show, offering her vocals nestled into a warm, smooth jazz bed of the Billie Holiday beauty "Don't Explain," yours truly was truly overcome.

Unfortunately only one lone RCA era hit was performed, the Frankie Lymon and The Teenagers doo-wopper "Why Do Fools Fall In Love?" which was the name of her '81 hit album for the previously mentioned label.

Several others lesser known, but beloved, Motown diamonds would have sparkled if performed that night: "Surrender," "Remember Me," "I Thought It Took a Little Time (But Today I Fell In Love)," "Confide in Me," "Sparkle," "It's My House," the list cascades onward. Strangely, "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)," her most enduring live anthem was not done, though crowd standing ovation versions of "Theme From Mahogany (Do You Know Where You're Going To?)" and "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" more than filled the void.

Primarily, Ross' black and gay fans responded most, gay couples were seen dancing in the aisles, one showered the grinning singer with white rose petals toward the end of her performance. The white portion was moving, in their seats, but seemed afraid to stand up until the end, possibly due to the slight formal nature of the show being benefit sponsored. Though, she had majority of the conservative folks up to their soles by the end of the evening.

Tuesday night sported Ross' endurance as an interpretative singer, able to pull out the best of each story in each song, and still span the stylish twists of black pop music throughout the '60's, '70's, '80's, '90's into today.

Diana Ross is always, forever Supreme, the blueprint that everyone yearns to follow, tangible and everlasting still. -QH

[Editor's Note: For more information and current concert dates, visit http://www.facebook.com/DianaRoss -QH]

1986-2000: Duran Duran's Lost Years

2010-09-01T21:38:00.012-04:00

British pretty boys, MTV pin-ups, new romantics, glam rockers. When it comes to British rock/pop outfit Duran Duran, these are only some of the things that could be uttered about this group. Simon Le Bon (lead vocals), Nick Rhodes (keyboards), and Taylors: John (bass), Andy (guitars), and Roger (drums) were one of the leading acts of the 1980's during the advent of MTV. Between 1981-1985 Duran Duran released three albums of original material, a live record, and countless singles that will forever be associated with that moment in time.

By 1985, the group was at its fever pitch and of course sputtered. With the group burned out creatively under the Duran Duran moniker, the group ended up splitting into two factions to record. John and Andy Taylor formed with Robert Palmer, and former Chic drummer Tony Thompson to unite the funk-rock hybrid group Power Station. Rhodes and Le Bon moved further into the electronic influences in their group called Arcadia, while Roger Taylor removed himself from the board completely until the original line-up reformed for Duran Duran's eleventh album, Astronaut (2004).

By the time Duran Duran gathered themselves together for what became 1986's Notorious, only three group members emerged from the break: John Taylor, Nick Rhodes, and Simon Le Bon. Warren Cuccurullo would become a fixture in this period as the guitarist from Notorious onward, officially joining the group in 1990.

Moving bravely into the new musical landscapes ahead, Duran Duran met much resistance. The popular music realm had changed quickly in the year they were gone, and many were quick to write off anything the group did as bids for artistic credibility.

The "critics" were missing the point. Groups like Duran Duran, whose sound evolved throughout their quite active recording career, were always about longevity from the start. Their sound may have morphed, but at the core, their pop changeability and reaching hunger for fresh musical adventures never halted. The years of 1986 through 2000 weren't always kind to Duran Duran. Changes continued, commercial fortunes dwindled, line-ups became amorphous. The quality of the music was never in question, as much of it remained as crystalline as their known earlier works.

This piece attempts to peek into the period that has become known as their "wilderness years" to some, for others it was a golden age of creative spirit tempered by the flames of adversity.

Pop Trash
Released: 6/19/00 on Hollywood Records
Production: TV Mania*
Singles: "Someone Else Not Me," "Playing With Uranium," "Last Day on Earth"

Released after the stormy Medazzaland (1997), Pop Trash keeps the emotional tempo about the same as that recording. The template for the record is ballad led, their most ballad oriented work thus far. Duran Duran by this time had coined their own brand of downtempo cool, as heard on the lead single and opener "Someone Else Not Me." The handsome heartbreak wording is honest and handled with grace by Le Bon, the music itself is bathed in acoustic and generous synth washes.

The warm grooviness housed on The Wedding Album (1993) is gleefully resurrected on "Lava Lamp" which buries itself in the subconscious with its playful chorus call. The album does kick and rock occasionally with raucous cuts like "Last Day on Earth" and "Playing With Uranium." As a whole, Pop Trash demonstrated Rhodes and Cuccurullo's knack for production moreso than any of the other albums from this arc. The liquid/languid ebb and flow of Pop Trash, how each song came and went without overstaying its welcome was simply marvelous, making the LP an easy record for listeners to penetrate.

This would be Cuccurullo's last recording with Duran Duran, as he parted ways with Rhodes and Le Bon after the subsequent tour supporting Pop Trash. Arguably their most misunderstood album in the Duran Duran discography, Pop Trash is home to many treasures.

Medazzaland
Released: 10/14/97 on Capitol/EMI
Production: TV Mania*
Singles: "Electric Barbarella," "Out of My Mind"

John Taylor would sadly depart from Duran Duran during the creation of this project, leaving Le Bon, Rhodes, and Cuccurullo to finalize what became Medazzaland. This album would herald their end with the label Capitol/EMI, which had been Duran Duran's homebase since their launch. The album itself, a black and blue, brooding beast, it's Duran Duran's difficult masterpiece. The title is a taken from a drug called midazolam, a medicinal chemical Simon Le Bon was subjected to during a dental surgery.

A messy mixture of alternative rock and pop was the primary blueprint for the proceedings. After the spooky title track start, with vocals courtesy of Nick Rhodes, the next three songs blast past in a burst of style and substance: the bottomless shifts of "Big Bang Generation," the quicksilver laced "Electric Barbarella," and the Asian splendor of "Out of My Mind" are all loose, dense, divine Duran Duran moments.

Elsewhere there are fragments of electronic and rock hybridization on the bruising "Be My Icon," lyrically on this cut, and others, despondency versus connection thread throughout Medazzaland.

Medazzaland was also a record of firsts, "Electric Barbarella" was the first single to be sold exclusively online at a time when the Internet was still a blossoming avenue for music retail. Not an immediate winner, as the melodies are folded deep beneath the initial surfaces of Medazzaland, with additional exploration on the part of its listener, it does reveal its secrets to the patient.

Thank You
Released: 4/4/95 on Capitol/EMI
Production: Duran Duran, John Jones
Singles: "Perfect Day," "White Lines," "Lay Lady Lay"

A collection of cover songs from a cacophony of music influences: Sly & the Family Stone, Grandmaster Melle Mel, Lou Reed, Bob Dylan, The Temptations, Public Enemy, Led Zeppelin, The Doors, and Iggy Pop. Duran Duran funneled some of these unlikely musical bedfellows through their own kaleidoscopic sound tunnel with surprisingly solid results.

Joined by the originators Grandmaster's Melle Mel and Flash on their song "White Lines," Duran Duran infuses additional elements of rock, soul, pop likability, while retaining the social message and hip-hop edge. Dreamy and abstract adjectives characterize the lone Duran Duran penned cut "Drive By," and plush tug of "Lay Lady Lay." Elsewhere the album is rhythmic and masculine, sewn together tightly on their funky frisky take of "I Wanna Take You Higher." Roger Taylor, of the original "Fab Five" graciously lended his drumming to "Watching the Detectives" and "Perfect Day," appearing in the video for the latter.

Despite the obvious enthusiasm that went into Thank You and glows from its performances, the project underperformed in critical and commercial corners. The record would later be given the unceremonious title of "Worst Album Ever" by the ever snobbish British music magazine Q in 2006 by poll. Interestingly, and a major part of the press junket for this album, every artist covered here enjoyed what Duran Duran did with their work. Duran Duran's most maligned work is actually their most groovy and fun, and while Thank You may've been an exercise of indulgence, it was well crafted and executed.

Duran Duran (The Wedding Album)
Released: 2/23/93 on Capitol/EMI
Production: John Jones
Singles: "Ordinary World," "Come Undone," "Too Much Information," "None of the Above," "Breath After Breath," "Femme Fatale"

The album which shook off their '80's curse and bravely placed them in the '90's, their second self-titled effort (often called The Wedding Album) was cool and cunningly given to critics and cynics. Still inspired to songwrite, even if slightly obtuse at times, about social issues and love, Duran Duran penned two of their strongest songs here: "Come Undone" and "Too Much Information." The former is a murky, sensual trip into romantic twists, while the latter is a glorious surge of energy with jabs at their own history and place in it: "Destroyed by MTV, I hate to bite the hand that feeds me so much information!"

Taylor's trench deep basslines guided by John Jones make "Love Voodoo" and "Drowning Man" simply sumptuous, and hold up against some of Le Bon's most versatile vocalizing. Le Bon truly shines on the adult contemporary reflection in "Breath After Breath" and the melancholia ache in "Ordinary World."

Winning back the sales that had evaded them with each release in the late '80's, The Wedding Album is the most known album of those presented here. Equally celebrated by the casual and devout Duran Duran fans, it has held up in the ensuing years since its release.

Liberty
Released: 8/20/90 on Capitol/EMI
Production: Duran Duran, Chris Kimsey
Singles: "Violence of Summer (Love's Taking Over)," "Serious"

Duran Duran's first offering of the 1990's was a confused, insecure, and transitional piece called Liberty. At this epoch in the group's history, Warren Cuccurullo officially joined (per the album cover) Duran Duran as their guitarist. He had been playing with them tour and album wise for sometime. Also featured on the album cover was drummer Sterling Campbell, who only stayed for this effort, before departing Duran Duran.

Clearly stung by the frosty reception of Big Thing (1988), Duran Duran threw themselves into the pop pot, trying on various genres. At its best, Liberty presents Duran Duran in a holding pattern that could generate great moments. The spiky flirt of "Along the Water," or the rippling and understated "Serious" were gorgeous.

The New Jack flat liner "Hothead," and intriguing titled, but erroneously retro cliche feel of "Violence of Summer (Love's Taking Over)" muted the few triumphs found on the record. Liberty could be seen as a bridge to the perfectionism reached on The Wedding Album, an uncomfortable, but necessary hiccup in Duran Duran's mostly pristine discography.

Big Thing
Released: 10/18/88 on Capitol/EMI
Production: Duran Duran, Jonathan Elias, Daniel Abraham
Singles: "I Don't Want Your Love," "All She Wants Is," "Do You Believe in Shame?," "Big Thing," "Too Late Marlene"

A startlingly winning contemporary absorption of musical climate changes, synthesized with established phonic foundations are heard on Big Thing.

Big Thing operates in part glossy dancers in the manner of "I Don't Want Your Love," "All She Wants Is," and "Drug (It's Just a State of Mind)" whose gummy uptempo lines are so sticky and infectious they refuse to not be acknowledged. Glacial wonders such as "Palomino" and "Too Late Marlene" are flip sides to those previously mentioned dance oriented tracks.

It is the sprawl and layout of Big Thing that continually gives it such a special spot in Duran's Duran's work. Beautifully paced, one song is never out of place, and features several inventive instrumental interludes such as "Interlude One" and "Flute Interlude." This type of layout see's the group flexing their conceptual muscles with poise and grace. Here, comfortable in their new line-up, Duran Duran was aware of exactly what they needed to convey musically.

Notorious
Released: 11/18/86 on Capitol/EMI
Production: Duran Duran, Niles Rodgers
Singles: "Notorious," "Skin Trade," "Meet El Presidente"

Duran Duran's first effort as a trio (with a then ghosting Warren Cuccurullo on guitar), they bravely delivered the first album of original material since the immaculate Seven and the Ragged Tiger (1983). Partnering with Niles Rodgers, one of their self-confessed idols, this former Chic member had quite a resume. Already established with his own group Chic, he also had been behind defining work for David Bowie, Deborah Harry (of Blondie), Madonna, Sister Sledge, and Diana Ross amongst many.

Rodgers brought a decidedly "urban" taste to the assembly of songs on Notorious, which is blatantly apparent on the voracious horn breaks and arrangements throughout the long player. Duran Duran would continue to dabble, explicitly, with black music turns throughout their career from this point forward.

A sturdy offering, Notorious was home to the glistening sexiness of "American Science" (one of Le Bon's finest hours ever) and ingeniously written "Skin Trade." The title song would become immortalized in hip hop culture forever in Notorious B.I.G.'s hit 1999 single "Notorious B.I.G." which Le Bon's clipped vocal stutter is instantly recognizable.

The ambitious, heavier experimental tones on "Vertigo (Do the Demolition)" showed Duran Duran were definitely not resting on their laurels of past works. Notorious was a brassy start to several promising chapters in Duran Duran's backlog.

"White Lines" circa 1995
Directed By: Nick Egan

Of all these albums, praise tends to fall squarely on the shoulders of 1993's The Wedding Album, due to it resurrecting their commercial fortunes before they were sharply halted by Thank You in 1995.

Notorious and Big Thing are sadly only recognized for the clutch of hit singles they are home to, while Liberty, Medazzaland, and Pop Trash often remain unexamined outside of critical revisionism and snarkiness.This period cannot be forsaken and is in dire need of being revisited. Evidenced by these selections, Duran Duran dared to dare, beating their own hype, while at the same time streamlining their sound as unique unto themselves. More than mere MTV thralls or '80's nostalgia, Duran Duran is about progress, a progression still running strongly today.

[Editor's Note: *TV Mania refers to the brief production unit/side project of Nick Rhodes and Warren Cuccurullo who paired together. An album of their own material was due to materialize but never did after his departure from Duran Duran. Only Notorious, Big Thing, and The Wedding Album are readily in print, the former two due to be reissued on 9/27/10. The other albums featured are out of print, but easily found in indie, used, or online music retailers for affordable prices. For more current information on Duran Duran, visit http://www.duranduran.com/-QH]

The QH Blend's Ten Dance LPs

2010-08-12T21:00:00.007-04:00

What is a "dance record?" Is it molded and refined by an ambitious DJ, or an assemblage of shrewd music industry insiders in a boardroom? Are its origins drawn from pre-disco Motown singles? Or has it transformed into something else completely, like the current white washed neo-'80's synthesizer styles that contemporary Top 40 radio is submerged in?

The answer is an amalgam of yes and no to those questions, and many other ones when it comes to what a dance record is or is not. Dance recordings span and touch on each major musical movement, linking to some more than others throughout history.

The inspiration for this piece came from being someone who enjoys music that makes me move. This motley crew of artists and their respective albums are tunes that I would want to be tripping the light fantastic to if I had to request something to a DJ.

The choices for this were difficult to make, many records that easily could have made the cut. Yet, I based my selections on my requirements of what makes an excellent dance long player for me. Those requirements: a relentless, restless energy that propels one section of the album, and a necessary "cool down" area for refreshment. Albums like these cross genres, demonstrating that "dance" is not just strictly an electronic medium, but born differently in each sound.

I hope you enjoy what I have picked.

#10 Emerald City
Circa 1986, as performed by Teena Marie

Hot off the win of 1984's Starchild, that recording was rendered tame compared to the dark and steamy brew that Teena Marie served on Emerald City. Still bearing all of the Marie hallmarks (songwriting & vocals), a focus on the guitar and heavier dance material which lined the first half of the album was heard. The atmospheric story telling on "Emerald City," the caustic pull of "Lips to Find You," and the explicit evening grind of "Shangri-La" saw Teena Marie in full effect.

#9 Secrets
Circa 2001, as performed by The Human League

The nucleic trio of Phillip Oakley, Susan Sulley, and Joanne Catherall behind the era definer "Don't You Want Me?" have had troubles escaping that song's velvet reach, despite recording other hits and unknown beauties. A look at their last effort of original material, Secrets is ingeniously crafted as any Human League '80's effort. With delectable instrumental vignettes tying together the other nine vocal tracks, Secrets' cool and irresistibly British flavors are fine musical art.

#8 I Feel For You
Circa 1984, as performed by Chaka Khan

One of the few records to highlight the oncoming onslaught of hip-hop's influence on overall popular music, I Feel For You was a pre-"New Jack Swing" collision of hip-hop & R&B production technique hybrids. Bold, exciting, if sometimes jarring, I Feel For You (named for Prince's minor hit), found Khan steering her unmistakable voice through the interesting curves and bends on the album.

#7 Bring Ya to the Brink
Circa 2008, as performed by Cyndi Lauper

Lauper's first journey into the glitterati realm of dance music wasn't an exercise in creative contentment. Enlisting a long list of reputable collaborators in the fields of electronica and dance (Basement Jaxx, Dragonette, Kleerup, et al.), Lauper built shimmering sonic structures to house her vocalizing and lyrical bodies. The result? Brink is a dense, beating, living behemoth of an album that indulges whims without coming across as over indulgent.

#6 A Funk Odyssey
Circa 2001, as performed by Jamiroquai

Resisting the notion of disco's bastardization at the hands of crueler critics and revisionists, Jay Kay & Co. pull out all the tricks that made groups from Tavares to Earth, Wind & Fire great. The only difference is that they aligned those classicist grooves with a burning modernity that is equally symphonic ("Corner of the World") and electronic ("Twenty Zero One"). Jay Kay pumps vitality as a vocalist into his band's arrangements with ease and poise, bringing further life to A Funk Odyssey.

#5 Gloria!
Circa 1998, as performed by Gloria Estefan

Estefan's first two major international crossover hits "Dr. Beat" (1984) and "Conga" (1985) professed Estefan's love of dancefloor phonics despite her later, successful Spanish language and adult contemporary forays. Marketed as her official return to dance music, Gloria! brilliantly embraced neo and old school disco, Latin, and several other musical pit stops. Even its packaging with custom remixes, smashing ones at that, at the end of the album keep the unending, segued head rush of the album going.

#4 Off the Wall
Circa 1979, as performed by Michael Jackson

Seminal black dance record of all time, or appetizer to the all-conquering Thriller (1982)? Most would say, I'd hope, the first one over the latter. Off the Wall was Michael Jackson at the peak and joy of his creative powers, and that joy permeates the entire album. Split into two movements, the footloose funk ("Rock With You," "Get on the Floor") and the handsome chill ("I Can't Help It," "Burn This Disco Out"), Jackson's Off the Wall remains his definitive statement and enduring masterstroke of artistry.

#3 Night Work
Circa 2010, as performed by Scissor Sisters

Jake Shears, Ana Matronic, Del Marquis, Real Randy, and Babydaddy. New York pop hedonists, resurrectionists, and culprits behind the best dance outing of 2010 returned with glam fist swinging. Night Work is an album that balances the influences of the Scissor Sisters (there are too many between 1976-1982 to mention), and their own unique presence has been attained. A glowing, if at times smutty but intelligently coifed view into current European and vintage American dance music is found here.

#2 Four Seasons of Love
Circa 1976, as performed by Donna Summer

Cinematic. Lush. Conceptually piloted. One of many masterpieces in Donna Summer's vast discography, Four Seasons of Love is a special record due to its sheer scope. Based in the idea of four seasons, the songs created for long term dancing and play, glide by in various moods. From the breathy vocalizing and orchestral shades of "Spring Affair," to the sweaty and tempered passion in "Summer Fever." Summer also guides the aching tempo shuffler "Autumn Changes" into the crisp and cool "Winter Melody," before bringing back in the "Spring Affair Reprise" as the natural seasons would.

#1 Neon Nights
Circa 2003, as performed by Dannii Minogue

No record in the last ten years has so perfectly blended the post-'70's, early '80's dance music shifts, mixed with all the now European and American toppings. This record captures the space between mainstream pop polish, and underground nightclub grittiness and paints a defining picture of the artist presenting it in the process. Dannii Minogue, Kylie Minogue's sister, did just that with Neon Nights. Paced perfectly, performed with just enough sex and charm, it's a record that is at home in a club, the car, or at home, carrying dance music's effortless energy with poise and grace.

Visiting "The House" with Katie Melua

2010-08-08T08:36:00.003-04:00

Taking the concept of "the grass is greener" closer to home, is Georgian born, British reared vocalist and instrumentalist Katie Melua. One of the most commercially successful singers of the last decade in England and throughout Europe, Melua was signed at 18 to the indie label Dramatico by her producer/mentor Mike Batt. Stylistically she could be linked to the likes of our Norah Jones, but with a far more reaching range than Jones vocally and musically speaking.

Her 2003 debut Call Off Search would successfully blaze a trail leaving two additional platinum winners such as Piece By Piece (2005), Pictures (2007), and her first career spanning (thus far) retrospective in its awake. America, of course, remains a immune to her charms, though her albums always eventually receive a release here.

Much is being made of her lauded fourth long player, The House, released worldwide on May 24th earlier in the year, and finally in the States on August 3rd. The first effort to not be directed by her mentor Mike Batt, outside of one co-write credit and string arrangements. The album was conceived by Melua, Guy Chambers (Robbie Williams, Melanie C, Kylie Minogue), and William Orbit. Orbit has moved in music circles for sometime, but is most known for producing Ray of Light (1998) album that defined Madonna's late '90's period. Orbit came out of semi-retirement to help Melua work over the project.

So what exactly makes The House anymore bewitching than her previous albums? Simple. Melua, like any pop artist worth their salt, understands change is at the forefront of pop music. While she is a rare breed who has a specific contact base (i.e.-jazz, lounge, etc.) that she touches on, Melua is still open to shifting her sands.

The House is a darker portrait into Melua's style evidenced on the opening confessional murder ballad "I'd Love to Kill You," delivered in her genteel vocal. A soft, plodding gem where Melua is accompanied only by the strum of an acoustic guitar, her voice fills the song with beautiful and haunting life.

Throughout the moody masterpiece, Melua touches lyrically on love as a point of interest, whether as a disease on "The Plague of Love," or on the fairy tale spun "Red Balloons." "Red Balloons" paints a fragile allegory for where broken hearts are placed and where they travel once broken. In the wrong hands, this would come off as ridiculous, but Melua carries off the softness and vulnerability like a professional.

The previously mentioned musical switches take place on the pulsing ebb of the lead single "The Flood," which surges forward with Eastern flourishes before dropping into an electronic tempo switch and back again. "A Happy Place" blends the quirk of past endeavors on the rapidly delivered verses, the chorus is a blooming seed that plants itself in the ears of its audiences. "A Moment of Madness" chugs along a Tori Amos "Happy Phantom" trail, and will assuredly draw comparisons though both singers couldn't be further from each other.

"The Flood"
Directed By: Kevin Godley

The package is sewn together with care due to Katie Melua's unmistakable pastel voice, which is engaged and delicate on every track present, The House benefits from her equal amounts of restraint and embellishment when necessary. She dresses the story telling "Tiny Alien" with warmth, charges "God on the Drums, Devil on the Bass" with sexiness not smut, and appears brave when facing the puzzle of romance on "No Fear of Heights."

Tragically, this type of pop record will go unheard Stateside, and while it is assured commercial success in England and beyond, critics are praising the album as Melua's first effort to truly allow her creative space to stretch. The House is rare pop album today, at least in America, where the singer presents a project that's commercial, but daring, sensitive and beautifully constructed for repeated listens to reveal each song has a life of its own. Five stars.-QH

[Editor's Note: For more information on Katie Melua, visit: http://www.katiemelua.com-QH]