The Unskippable Albums (2)

This post concludes the list of unskippable albums started previously.

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11. George Michael Older (R&B/Soul/Pop, 1996).

The fear of aging is the beginning of all manner of bodily augmentations under the hot sun. But Micheal through this album presents Older and growth as indelible.

Imagine an Apple tree with growth stagnation! Would there be apples for harvest? And if the myriad crops hosted by the soil remained stuck in their early phase of development, wouldn’t that be a recipe for food shortages or famine? As such, aging and the acceptance thereof, should be viewed as a signifier of maturation. This is the idea behind the album.

Older is a double entendre connotative of Michael’s personal, and professional growth. Personally, it portrays Michael as an experienced man resolute in his conviction and choices. Musically, considering his blue-eyed soul roots (the bandwagon of British artistes immensely influenced by Black American music), Michael’s growth progresses from the teeny pop sounds of WHAM in the 1980s to a musical comfort zone which conglomerates Black R&B, Soul, Jazz, etc. This album is a musical message to the black community that he considered himself a part of them.

The opener, “Jesus to a Child” kicks off on a melancholic and sombre note. Encased in pain and sadness, the song is directed at a beloved deceased. It has the melancholic DNA akin to “Cowboys and Angels” showcased in his second album. “Fast Car” dissipates the solemnity of the opener with a brighter tempo. It signifies flings, one night stands, poppycock (or nonsensical, if you will) loving, etc. The song embodies two base chords and tempos with a mid-temporal start which morphs to a fast-paced reinterpretation of Patrice Rushen’s “Forget Me Not”.

This album is not for mental cowards, but the brave who are unafraid of maturating. After all, as Prince once sang”what’s the use of being young, if you’re never gonna grow old”.

12. Helen Baylor Highly Recommended (Gospel, 1990).

Baylor’s clearly rich and big voice captivates in her first gospel album. The story-telling factor in her songs weaves a cloak of resonance in the listener.

The album is a rich tapestry of jazz, rock, funk, etc which convey the uplifting gospel message. From the up-tempo rock-infused “Highly Recommended” to the bright and inspirational lyricism of “Victory” to the introspective ballad “Thank You Jesus” to the encouraging testimonial in “Fear Not My Child”, Baylor enthralls with a great set of pipes reminiscent of the amazing divas on the secular music scene.

13.Janelle Monáe The Electric Lady (Soul/Reggae/Rock/Jazz, Pop,Funk, 2013).

In this 16-Song and 3 interspaced radio-break interludes, Monáe’s multi-genre offering not only reveals Prince’s influence (also signaled by his looming guitar signature at the background) but showcases an impressive range and versatility.

Featuring collaborations with Prince, Erykah Badu, Miguel and Esperanza Spalding, Monáe positions herself as an artist to reckon with. The album promotes futuristic perspectives woven round the Metropolis, a 1927 film which underscores the android-as-saviour concept.

Endowed with an affable voice which penetrates the feminist inclination of songs like “Q.U.E.E.N”, “Ghetto Woman”- an ode highlighting the painful history of the black woman, and “Dorothy Dandridge Eyes” - a tribute to the sex symbol and Carmen Jones (1954) main character, Monáe is a highly intelligent, diminutive-sized musical giant that would be culturally relevant for a long time.

14. Kelly Price Mirror Mirror (R&B, 2000).

The criminally-underrated Price keeps the embers of R&B burning in this album as she navigates the rocky terrain of love relationships (“At-least-The Little Things”, “3 Strikes”,”She Wants You”), Love triangles, Infidelity and Illusions (“Married Man”, “As We Lay”, “All I Want is You”) and self-image/self-love (“You Should Have Told Me”, “Mirror Mirror”).

The album reflects the normative R&B/Hip-hop infusion characteristic of the 1990s with “Good Love” and “Like You Do”, and concludes with a gospel rendition, by now a familiar feature in most secular albums of Black American extraction. Price delivers and thrills! This album is compulsory for R&B aficionados.

15. Lauryn Hill The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (R&B/Neo-Soul/Hip-Hop,1998).

It is incredible how the sole album in an artist’s discography becomes their Magnum Opus. Miseducation is a template for the study of social consciousness and well-crafted for the purpose of igniting self-awareness.

A perfect blend of R&B, Neo-Soul, Hip-Hop/Rapping garnished with a sprinkle of Reggae, it is a social commentary on society offering musical emancipation from mental slavery and social/self-imposed repression.

It pays tribute to toxic struggle love (“Ex-Factor”, “When It Hurts So Bad”, “I Used To Love Him”), It honours the child (“To Zion”), It questions and challenges artistic contributions (“Superstar”), “Forgive Them Father” is one of the highlights of the album. The Reggae beat is nothing short of seductive.

Featuring collaborations with Mary J. Blige (“I Used To Love Him”) and D’Angelo (“Nothing Even Matters”), Hill successfully converges Hip-hop and Neo-Soul on one platform.

16. Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (R&B/Pop,1990).

When Carey opened her mouth in the opener, “Vision of Love”, the world required little convincing that a new star had been born. The power and poise in her delivery, and that whistle-register creates an insatiability that “There’s Got To Be a Way” through its inherent conscious- message about racial bigotry and lamentation about the state of the world fills.

One of the best albums of the early 1990s, love and more love is the main focus. Carey presents a list of melodious ballads which include “I Don’t Wanna Cry”, “Love Takes Time”,”Vanishing”, “Alone In Love”, etc.

In popular culture, the release of Carey’s eponymous debut album historically fuelled a highly sensationalized imaginary rift between her and Whitney Houston.

The human society typically thrives on toxic drama- real or fabricated. Apparently, it was the expectation that Houston would be discomfited by Carey’s grand entry and superlative ability.

However, her duet “When You Believe” (1998) with Carey was a message to trouble makers and haters that the sky is vast enough for all birds to fly without collision.

Those were the days!

17. Mary J.Blige Stronger With Each Tear (R&B/Hip-Hop Soul, 2009).

The Queen of Hip-Hop Soul is reputed for candour and passion. She signifies the female voice through her vocalization of women’s relational tribulations. Her charismatic appeal emerges from her uncanny ability to transmute personal experiences into relatable and resonant songs. Call her a musical alchemist, and you would be right!

This album bears credence to personal growth and self-accountability. She navigates the characteristic up-tempo Hip-Hop terrain in the first five cuts and scintillates in the R&B trajectory with“We Got Hood Love” (featuring Trey Songz), “I Am”, “Each Tear” - with six consecutive versions (a solo rendition and collaborations with Jay Sean (England), K’naan (Canada), Tiziano Ferro (Italy), Vanessa Amorosi (Australia), and Rea Garvey (Germany) , thereby showcasing her massive international appeal.

“Kitchen” infuses a measure of humour into the mix. Blige recommends vigilance against scheming ‘frienemies’ - women whose stock-in-trade starts from their friend’s kitchen and culminates in her man’s bedroom.

Blige looks out for the women and her essence cannot be replicated for she plays in her own league!

18. Missy Elliot Supa Dupa Fly (Hip-Hop/Rap,1997).

In the predominantly male terrain of Hip-Hop/ Rap, the ascension of the erudite and multi-talented female rapper whose production signature adorned the records of Whitney Houston, SWV, Destiny’s Child and myriad artistes in the 1990s, was a breath of fresh air.

Following its release, Elliot’s debut album offered a lease of life and expanded the roster of female rappers in the field. Embellished with a fresh sound and style, at the time, Supa Dupa Fly lived up to its name.

With hit songs like “The Rain” and “Beep Me 911”, etc, Elliot ushered in a new dimension of hip-hoping. The album is evergreen and belongs to the best of the best in the genre’s history.

19. Mother’s Finest Black Radio Won't Play This Record (Heavy Metal/Rock/Funk/Rap,1992).

The album’s title piques interest and raises questions, doesn’t it? It reflects identity politics entanglement with music and how it engenders the imposition of standards by ethnic groups on music artistes whose primary goal is entertainment.

They are often expected to be representatives of their community through a strict affiliation with community-identified music genres. Failure of compliance always warrants name-calling, shame tactics, bullying and cancellation (Ask Jimi Hendrix, Tina Turner, Whitney “Whitey” Houston, etc).

Like the aforementioned, Mother’s Finest crime was their identification with rock and heavy metal which based on the Black community’s conceptualization is the White man’s music. And, yes you guessed correctly, their music adventure incurred communal wrath and cancellation.

The title encapsulates the overall career experience of the group, reputed as one of the best in the genre. The album offers social commentary on gender, racial and intra-communal issues.

Each song arrangement on the album starts modestly and seemingly lackluster, but be patient! As it slowly approaches the middle, the tempo acceleration jolts and loosens the chains of Heavy Metal razzmatazz. The listener is instantaneously catapulted into a re-enactment of Macaulay Culkin’s psychedelic dance moves in Michael Jackson’s “Black or White” video.

This is for the lovers of music diversity! This is for the open-minded! You have been warned!

20. Patra Scent of Attraction (Dancehall/Reggae,1995). Queen Patra was the real deal in the 1990s. She stepped on the scene and unleashed sexual liberalism like never before seen. Of course, she got the sexually-disconnected squirming . Unsurprisingly, she has been relegated to the background of history. Her fate is similar to Millie Jackson’s - another firebrand singer in the 1970s and 1980s, who drew the ire of society with her unapologetic and authentic exploration of sexuality.

Scent of Attraction embodies sexual innuendoes and metaphors as seen in songs like “Banana” and her reinterpretation of Grace Jones’ “Pull up to my Bumper”. The transnational collaborations with US artistes like the Rap group, Salt ‘n’ Pepa in “Hot Stuff” and Aaron Hall in “Scent of Attraction” accord currency and leverage to the album, and are significant reminders of the US/Caribbean musical partnership which thrived in the 1990s, and foreshadowed the current trend of US/African artistic collaborations.

”Going to the Chapel” is a cover of Sade’s “Sweetest Taboo” without the text. Overall, the album mesmerizes and fascinates underscored by exceptionally polished vocals. It is a reference point for the lovers of dance.

21. Quincy Jones Q's Jook Joint (R&B,1995).

The legendary Jazz arranger/conductor and Show-Biz Impresario is best known for his production of Michael Jackson’s first three albums and the charity song “We Are the World” contained in the USA for Africa album.

Q’s Jook Joint is an assembly of the finest singers from multiple genres and musical timelines like Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Bono, Barry White, Charlie Wilson, Babyface, Tamia, Brandy, etc.

The album is rich, sophisticated, passionate, captivating and offers an orientation on the depths of Black music. The music list is a well-crafted and balanced menu containing Jazz, R&B, Soul, Hip-Hop/Rap, etc.

Every song is superb and even Naomi Campbell gets to fleetingly exercise her vocal cords (Check her out in “Heaven’s Girl”). Fantabulous!

22. Ricky Martin Ricky Martin (Latin Pop,1999).

In the Puerto Rican’s first English album following four Spanish albums, Martin generously transmits the spiciness and contagiousness of Latin Pop onto the English domain.

The 14-track album contains ballads, dance and mid-tempo songs which evoke passion, sultriness, fun, happiness, humour such as hit-songs like “Livin’ La Vida Loca” (which means living the crazy life), “Shake Your Bon-Bon”, “Private Emotion”, etc.

Another jewel is the duet with Madonna, “Be Careful” ( an underplayed cut based on one’s awareness). “The Cup of Life” is a bombastically energizing anthem adopted as the official song of the World Cup in France (1998).

The beauty of this album lies in the multi-textural genres and sounds. There is something for everyone- salsa, ska, samba, flamenco,rock, mambo, R&B, etc. It blends metal, Latin percussion, piano, horns, guitar to create an unforgettable musical experience.

23. Ron Kenoly God Is Able (Gospel, 1994).

This is gospel music extravaganza performed and recorded before a live audience. If you desire musical invigoration, excitement and inspiration- listen to this!

Kenoly belongs to the upper echelon of gospel music singers. His superlative performance is accompanied by the assemblage of vocalists and instrumentalists from multifarious backgrounds.

God Is Able supplies a taste of Heaven on earth by mirroring the richness and gratifying beauty of diversity within the musical platform with notable instrumentalists like Alex Acuna (Drum) and Abraham Laboriel (Acoustic Guitar).

It is the template of authentic gospel music - inclusive, ecstatic, engaging, interactive, rewarding, enduring and memorable!

24. Toni Braxton & Babyface "Love, Marriage and Divorce" (R&B, 2014).

Following the duo’s collaborative effort in “Give You My Heart” (1992), released as the soundtrack to the Eddie Murphy film Boomerang, the creation of a collaborative album was pretty much foreshadowed. The question was “When?”. Twenty-two years later, it materialized and one began to wonder why despite the palpable chemistry between the musical twin flames, there is no news report about a romantic involvement between them. These two are a match made in heaven!

The album navigates the topsy-turvy marital terrain- the butterfly-in-the-stomach stage of “love”, the awakening stage of “marriage”, and the reality phase of “divorce”. It is characterized by a sincerity of purpose, compassion, pettiness, vindictiveness, etc.

Music mirrors reality, and it doesn’t get realer than wishing that an ex-husband contracts a disease or gets broke. Just listen to Braxton’s rendition “I Wish”. The song is astounding, authentic, hilarious and contemptible.

The duo’s contribution follow in the well-established tradition of music collaborations reminiscent of Tammi Terrell and Marvin Gaye, Dionne Warwick and Burt Bucharach, Ashford and Simpson, Peaches and Herbs, Rene and Angela, etc.

From the opener “Roller Coaster”, to “Hurt You” to “I Hope That You Are Okay”, every song packs a punch. Every song touches the heart, imparts meaning, and encourages self-examination. The duo delivers a stellar quality album deserving of the accolades received.

25. Whitney Houston The Preacher's Wife (Gospel,1996).

Houston’s early years on the music landscape were mired by accusations of “Whiteness” and “Selling Out”. Many viewed her “too- Pop” debut album as a betrayal of her R&B and gospel roots, specifically and the Black community, generally. It was a subject of constant discussion until the release of I’m Your Baby Tonight in the early 1990s, an appeasement to the R&B gods and The Preacher’s Wife Soundtrack Album, an offering to the gospel overlords.

This album merges the sacred and secular. Songs like “Joy”, “I Love The Lord”, “Hold on Help Is on the Way” betray her unceasing flair for gospel. Her breathtaking Gospel/ Hip-Hop cover of Mahalia Jackson’s “Somebody Bigger than You and I” (featuring Bobby Brown, Johnny Gill, Faith Evans, Ralph Tresvant, and Monica) enchants.

Typically, Houston inspires in “Step by Step”,“You Were Loved” and “I Believe In You And I”. Her regal and euphonious vocal delivery belongs to the treasure chest of music history. One that would always be loved, remembered and revered!