Music » Neo-Soul R&B Music

Release Date: 1990-04-20, Audio CD, Motown

Amel Larrieux, formerly of mellow duo Groove Theory, unleashes her wholesome musical and personal aspirations on her ear-catching solo debut, Infinite Possibilities. A fusion of hip-hop, groovy R&B, jazz, and Middle Eastern and African rhythms overlaid with the singer's soulful vocal meanderings, the album resonates with the influences of Sade, Innervisions-era Stevie Wonder, and Prince. All the while thoughtful and respectful to God, Larrieux's good-girl vibes are made less ordinary with a multilayered, proficient musical backdrop that deepens with each listen. The single "Get Up" reels the listener in with atmospheric synth notes and Larrieux's beguiling vocals, which spiral into a jazzy tone poem to close the track. "Sweet Misery" is another tune bolstered by her heartfelt vocal expressions, and "Infinite Possibilities" conveys the title's meaning as it builds to its climax of overlapping vocal rounds, dreamy keyboards, reverberating guitar chords, and plugging bass. "Down" is a striking funked-up variation on the piano-bar diva's usual melancholy mood. While not as gutsy as such contemporaries as Macy Gray and Angie Stone, Larrieux's vision for a modern, world-beat-savvy sound gains significance the longer it stays in the player. --Rebecca Robinson

It's hard to imagine two more talented hipsters than Floetry singer Marsha Ambrosius and emcee Natalie Stewart, a.k.a. the Songstress and Floacist. The U.K. duo's Floetic debut has it all--smooth R&B, soulful jazz, hip-hop, spoken word, supple ballads and a warmth that cradles the listener from beginning to end. In short, it's exquisitely, decidedly feminine. The pair occasional raise the roof with sizzling rhymes and beats, but they clearly place a premium on vibe, evident in Floetic's mostly chilled, after-dark feel. Jill Scott and Michael Jackson have already benefited from Floetry's deft songwriting; Jacko covered Floetry's "Butterflies" on his Invincible disc. A demo version of that song is included here, but that's the least of the bounty. "Hello" is pure honey with the women's silky voices braided in harmony while the dreamy, gently gurgling "Sunshine" is like a soundtrack to a daydream. Comparisons abound (Lauryn Hill-meets-Dionne Warwick as scored by a blunted De La Soul maybe?) but perhaps the best description of Floetic yet unearthed is "sass and soul." And, at almost 70 minutes long, it's a steal. --Kim Hughes

Sons of Soul is the third album from Tony! Toni! Tone! and one of 1993's best efforts from any quarter. The Oakland trio (which contains no one named Toni) drew its inspiration for this project from such childhood heroes as Smokey Robinson, Marvin Gaye, and Sly Stone, but they have transformed those materials with up-to-date hip-hop and Caribbean flavors. Much more important than the influences, old or new, is the high quality of Ray Wiggins' singing and songwriting, which marries rhythm, melody and meaning as effectively as his heroes once did. --Geoffrey Himes

No Description Available.
Genre: Soul/R&B
Media Format: Compact Disk
Rating:
Release Date: 16-SEP-2003

Like any other old-school R&B band trying to establish some street cred these days, Tony Toni Tone devotes one track on House of Music to a collaboration with a guest rapper. The track is the first single, "Let's Get Down," and the rap star is DJ Quik, but the results are not what you'd think. For one thing, the Oakland trio applies its trademark of relaxed self-assurance to the mix. While everyone else in hip-hop and R&B is flinging electronic beats, synth bleeps, and vocal beefs at the listener, Tony Toni Tone never hurries. Lead singer Raphael Saadiq, {cq} his brother Dwayne Wiggins and their cousin Timothy Christian Riley exude the confidence that they're in control, so they can take the time to let the beat sway and slide rather than slam all the time. --Geoffrey Himes

Release Date: 1997-11-04, Audio CD, Motown

N'dea Davenport started working on her debut solo recording in 1990; she finished eight years later. In between she spent six years traveling the world with British funk revivalists the Brand New Heavies. After four albums on which she sang lead, wrote songs, and produced, she took a hiatus to buy and restore a house in Louisiana, then resumed the solo project. N'dea Davenport was recorded in San Francisco, Atlanta, Nashville, and Los Angeles. It sounds less like a clever pastiche of an artist suffering from wanderlust than the travelogue of a woman who is fluent in many different languages. Her native tongue remains the saucy, '70s-inspired funk she honed with her former bandmates, and the sultry vibe of "Bring It On" and "Whatever You Want" pushes that sound forward. Elsewhere she's mixing it up with the Crescent City's Rebirth Brass Band on "Getaway," reviving the Southern torch tradition on "Save Your Love for Me," showing off her jazz chops on "In Wonder," and infusing Neil Young's "Old Man" with a heady dose of soul. Her lyrics range from social criticism to tender love themes, and her enthusiasm lifts every track. Her long-awaited debut makes an eloquent argument for broadening the narrow confines of contemporary R&B. --Martin Johnson

Release Date: 1990-10-25, Audio CD, Mca Special Products

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