Soul & Inspiration

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
No matter how many hundreds of incarnations they've taken on--from the Righteous Brothers to the Ramones--Barry Mann's songs combine solid craftsmanship with, at their best, irresistible magic that has ensured a permanent spot in the American Songbook. Soul & Inspiration gives us a chance to hear these classics from the horse's mouth, along with help from such friends as Carole King, Bryan Adams, and Peabo Bryson in harmony vocals. Actually, given the unaffected honesty of Mann's vocal delivery, it might have been preferable to keep the production bare bones, with just the voices and the songwriter's vivid piano accompaniments. Kitschy effects occasionally intrude into producer Fred Mollin's textures, though there are also some inspired touches, such as the sitar on "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'." But as Mann pours himself into each song, it's a treat to imagine what it must have felt like the first time this cornerstone of the Brill Building triumphed over formula, knocking out a brilliant bridge here or an unforgettable turn there, all resulting in something that can only now sound inevitable in retrospect. --Thomas May

Tracks:

Rehab
You Know I'm No Good
Me & Mr. Jones
Just Friends
Back To Black
Love Is A Losing Game
Tears Dry On Their Own
Wake Up Alone
Some Unholy War
He Can Only Hold Her
Bonus Track 1

From Amazon.co.uk

Amy Winehouse's second album, Back to Black, is one of the finest soul albums, British or otherwise, to come out for years. Frank, her first album, was a sparse and stripped-down affair; Back to Black, meanwhile, is neither of these things. This time around, she's taken her inspiration from some of the classic 1960's girl groups like the Supremes and the Shangri-Las, a sound particularly suited to her textured vocal delivery, while adding a contemporary songwriting sensibility. With the help of producers Mark Ronson and Salaam Remi, "Rehab" becomes a gospel-tinged stomp, while the title track (and album highlight) is a heartbreaking musical tribute to Phil Spector, with it's echoey bass drum, rhythmic piano, chimes, saxophone and close harmonies. Best of all, though, is the fact that Back to Black bucks the current trend in R&B by being unabashedly grown-up in both style and content. Winehouse's lyrics deal with relationships from a grown-up perspective, and are honest, direct and, often, complicated: on "You Know I'm No Good", she's unapologetic about her unfaithfulness. But she can also be witty, as on "Me & Mrs Jones" when she berates a boyfriend with "You made me miss the Slick Rick gig". Back to Black is a refreshingly mature soul album, the best of its kind for years. --Ted Kord

Album Description

Hailed by Newsweek Magazine as a cross between Billie Holiday and Lauryn Hill, British soul singer Amy Winehouse's U.S. debut, Back To Black hits the US amid a flurry of accolades, radio and TV buzz unprecedented in recent years for a young siren.

Her brassy mix of emotive vocals tinged with 60's girl-group stylings, sly funk, and anguished jazz, sparked the New York Daily News to crown Back To Black a "marvelous debut that would do Etta James proud" while New Yorker Magazine called her "a fierce English performer whose voice combines the smoky depths of a jazz chanteuse with the heated passion of a soul singer," and Spin Magazine affirming "there's never been A British star quite like her."

Back To Black smolders with a bristling fusion of old school doo-wop/soul inflected uprisings, (the charismatic singer/songwriter wrote or co-wrote all of the songs on the album) brewing instant classics such as the Shirley Ellis influenced "Rehab," the Supremes tinged title song "Back To Black," the aching "Wake Up Alone," and the album's closer, "Addicted."

Album Details

Ivor Novello Award Winner, Mercury Music Prize and Triple Brit Nominee Amy Winehouse, Follows the Release of her New Single "rehab" and Recent Sell-out Mini-uk Tour, with the Hugely Anticipated Release on October 30th of her New Album "back to Black". On "back to Black", the Follow-up to her Platinum Debut "frank" which Established her as One of the Most Exciting and Challenging Artists in Pop Music, Amy Confirms, Beyond Any Reasonable Or Unreasonable Doubt, What a Truly Remarkable Talent She Is.

Customer Reviews:

Fantastic.......2007-07-17

Winehouse is awesome. Her voice, cool look, and great songs are fantastic. I love that she doesn't sound how you would expect her to. Her voice is so mature and seemingly from another time. I am totally into this cd.

GREAT Music. Very Creative. .......2007-07-16

If you like REAL music then you have to get this CD. This girl rocks. She is a refreshing change from the Bubble Gum sound that is out and so popular right now. She took a chance on being an artist and it paid off. She has beats from so many different cultures, eras, etc. I can listen to this wole CD all the way through. Good for riding and makes good club dance music. A must have for your CD collection.

Unique sound.......2007-07-16

This CD has a mixture of sounds. The singers voice fits the music perfectly. It is like a mixture of old time blues and early rock and tells it like it is.

Great Album.......2007-07-16

There is not one song on this album I skip over. It has earned a permanent place in my disc changer.

Go to rehab!.......2007-07-15

I'm so sick of Amy Winehouse. Why do we have to put up with her average voice? The only amusing part of the "Rehab" remix is Jay rapping about Britney, Whitney, Bobby and Betty Ford. That was hilarious. But unfortunately her album isn't as good as "Rehab." Wow one good song. Not good. All of the songs on here sound the same. Not enough diversity. Buy something from Mariah Carey or Christina Aguilera instead.

Average customer rating:

The CD from a rap band with no words...
Actually, There is a "Mix-Up" Here...
three sets of listeners, three sets of reviews
Listen to The Music not the critics.
Play this CD anytime.

The Mix-Up
Beastie Boys
Manufacturer: Capitol
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000PY32CE
Release Date: 2007-06-26

Tracks:

B For My Name
14th St. Break
Suco De Tangerina
The Gala Event
Electric Worm
Freaky Hijiki
Off The Grid
The Rat Cage
The Melee
Dramastically Different
The Cousin Of Death
The Kangaroo Rat

Amazon.com

Having long since shed their image as hip-hop's clown princes, the Beastie Boys now bring what feels like their emeritus recording, a celebratory instrumental memoir of all of the influences (except punk) that brought them to their secure place among hip-hop's fickle elite. The party opens with the aptly titled "B for My Name," its plodding bounce staking claim to the mid-tempo path the album treads almost throughout. "14th St. Break" picks up the pace, especially in the auxiliary percussion breakdown, complete with rally whistle. Then, beginning with "Suco de Tangerina," the album drops into a deep groove cut from dub- and dancehall-tinged ostinati that carry through a full third of its tracks. Among these, "The Gala Event" suffers from a lack of developmental motion that characterizes many of these tracks, but highlights still abound. "Off the Grid," for example, departs from the otherwise unbreakable chill and rips the proceedings wide open, blooming again and again in a series of pulsing riffs that celebrate the very institution of the instrumental groove. More than 20 years since Licensed to Ill took a long, irreverent piss into the mainstream, it seems you can still fight for your right to party. --Jason Kirk

Amazon.com

The Mix-Up is Beastie Boys' first-ever full album of all-new instrumental material. The follow-up to 2004's To The 5 Boroughs, The Mix-Up features Diamond, Horovitz and Yauch back on drums, guitar and bass, with able assistance from Keyboard Money Mark and percussionist Alfredo Ortiz, on 12 brand new wordless, sample-less, scratchless originals. Sure to please fans of the instrumental cuts from Check Your Head and Ill Communication and the cult hit compilation album made up largely of those tracks, The In Sound From Way Out!, The Mix-Up finds NYC's favorite sons drawing on one of their arsenal's primary strengths and pushing it into bold new directions.

Beastie Boys Photos

More from Beastie Boys

Paul's Boutique
Check Your Head
Ill Communication

Licensed to Ill
Awesome, I Shot That
DVD Video Anthology - Criterion Collection

Customer Reviews:

The CD from a rap band with no words..........2007-07-16

The Beasties have done it again. This is the album a lot of fans wanted- after hearing tastes of the band's musicianship on songs included in previous albums, one can finally hear the funky stylings of what has been one of the most progressive and influential bands of the last 20 years. Casual fans may not get it- for them, I suggest using it as background music for other activities. In that setting, the hooks may draw you in, or, at worst, you create a non-obtrusive atmosphere of funk driven by vintage street cred.

Actually, There is a "Mix-Up" Here..........2007-07-16

...somebody replaced the new Beastie Boys disc with a 1960's cheesy lounge record!

At least that's what it sounds like to this Beastie fan. I've bought all of their albums, but after one listen to the "Mix-Up," I'm going to have to leave this one on the shelf. The "5 Burroughs" album wasn't perfect but it was a step in the right direction (from the bizarre "Hello Nasty"), but this new "all instrumental" album is a bore to listen to. I think that some people will really like it--perhaps I'm just missing their sense of "irony".

three sets of listeners, three sets of reviews.......2007-07-14

More than likely you will fit into one of these three categories, each with a different take on this album:

1. You like the BB's as hip hop artists, especially the funny lyrics, and enjoy the old school beats. You like Hello Nasty and To the Five Boroughs more than Check Your Head. Chances are good that you won't care for this album---don't buy it.

2. Your favorite album is Check Your Head and you really like the funky instrumental interludes on that and other albums of that era. BUT, you are not an avid listener of funk/acid jazz and are not familiar with Medeski, Martin, and Wood, etc. You will probably like this album and should buy it.

3. You fit into Category 2 EXCEPT that you ARE familiar with MMW, recent collaborations by John Scofield, Grey Boy Allstars, etc. You will be disappointed in this album because it just doesn't measure up. Frankly, this album comes off as very amateurish and shows that, though the BB's have developed some chops, they can't pull off a full album of instrumentals. The interludes in Check Your Head were just that---interludes---and you can't support a full album on interlude music. Not being a hater---I love the BB's too---but check out any of Stanton Moore's albums and you will see exactly what I mean.

Listen to The Music not the critics........2007-07-10

Wow. Some of the reviews on this page leave my mouth agape with wonder. What in the world is so very wrong with this album? There are a few that are saying there's "no fun' in this record or the 'dynamic is gone'(whatever that means).What record are you listening to? To all of you naysayers I say Fooey and double Fooey! THIS ALBUM IS GREAT. It's a groovy little record period. But that's all it is. It doesn't have to be the next Sgt. Peppers or Paul's Boutique or whatever. You have to take a look at it on it's own. I will say this for this album, no other band is making music like this right now. This is completly original music. Why aren't these guys given the chance to grow and expand? If you don't like this album fine, whatever. Go listen to your 12" of Brass Monkey until your parents kick you out of the basement.
For those of you out there who want something a little groovy and different, get it. Meanwhile I'm going to mix myself a gimlet and listen to a great little combo called the Beastie Boys. Their new album is cool as hell.

Play this CD anytime........2007-07-10

Just put this CD on when you're not specifically trying to listen to music. Just let it play. It's fun, but can't be the center of attention like the Beastie's cds that you're used to. It's not all that entertaining to sit down and listen to (like when driving) even for a fan of jambands like myself, but it's the perfect album for anytime.

Average customer rating:

The girl has funk and soul!
First, but not the last!
I like this girl, and this album is good from 1st track to the last
Great for a Summer Drive
Stone Love!

Introducing Joss Stone
Joss Stone
Manufacturer: Virgin Records Us
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Back to Black
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The Soul Sessions

ASIN: B000MTPAGI
Release Date: 2007-03-20

Tracks:

Change (Vinnie Jones Intro)
Girl They Won't Believe It
Headturner
Tell Me `Bout It
Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now feat. Common
Put Your Hands On Me
Music feat. Lauryn Hill
Arms Of My Baby
Bad Habit
Proper Nice
Bruised But Not Broken
Baby Baby Baby
What Were We Thinking
Music Outro

Amazon.com

In the run-up to this, her third album, Joss Stone told a phalanx of glossy magazines that the difference between this disc and the two that preceded it was a newfound clarity of vision. Whereas the other records--their gold status notwithstanding--represented the fumblings of a huge-voiced kid being bossed around by experienced music-biz types, this one, she promised, would reveal the real her. Thus, the titular "introduction." To which anybody who spins the 14 groovy and fully unbuttoned tracks herein will wish to reply not "nice to meet you"--far too lame a sentiment for so fully realized a disc--but "Where have you been all my life?" As good as Joss Stone's previous efforts are, Introducing Joss Stone represents a giant step forward: there's a freshness to these songs that suits her age (19 as of the album's release) and a funkiness that suits modern pop sensibilities. There's also a cross-hatching of visions with artists like Lauryn Hill and Common that will rightly advance her reputation as an artist who can sling disco, R&B, and rock almost as convincingly as soul. Splicing girl-group harmonies with blaxploitation-style funk with Joplin-esque and, at times, Shelby Lynne-reminiscent vocals, Stone works these Raphael Saadiq-produced beats with the stealth and steadiness of a '70s-era legend who's still going strong. "Girl They Won't Believe It," she wails against the tight hoo-hoo harmonizing of talented backup singers on the opening track; get a load of how much she's accomplished in the space of three albums, and you won't believe it, either. --Tammy La Gorce

Amazon.com

Joss Stone Photos

More from Joss Stone

Mind, Body, & Soul
The Soul Sessions
Mind, Body, & Soul Sessions [DVD]

Customer Reviews:

The girl has funk and soul!.......2007-07-17

I put the CD on at work and declined to tell anyone who was singing until it was over. They had never heard of her but they were fans now. They were all dancing in their seats and wanted to buy the CD! They did not imagine a 19 year old British girl singing with so much funk and soul.

This an ALBUM. You truly can listen and enjoy from beginning to end. It wasn't created to just release one or 2 hit singles. She just keeps getting better and better. Cant wait to see her in concert!

First, but not the last!.......2007-07-12

This is my first Joss stone album, but I0m sure it won't be the last.
Excellent music, warm voice, the right rithm to dance all the night.
Thanks Joss

I like this girl, and this album is good from 1st track to the last.......2007-07-09

The thing about amazon reviews is that in the end you'll never really know a CD, book or anything else until you listen to or read it for yourself. Though most of the reviews for this CD are positive, as is mine, I understand everyone doesn't have the same taste. With that said, I cannot believe some of the cruel and blatantly racists negative reviews. One guy seems more upset about her having a picture with a black guy on her album than any of the music. Others say she's "trying to be black". The white/black thing is obsurd. No matter how many stereotypes get blown away people still hold onto them. Jimi Hendrix, Eminem anyone. Someone else talked about her face not being as cute as Norah Jones??? Review the music will ya. This girl can sing, period. Maybe some of her lyrics aren't the deepest but she's only 20. Comparing her to Amy Winehouse makes no sense. Amy is Amy, Joss is Joss. I own both and think they're both good collections of songs, just different, because they are DIFFERENT PEOPLE! This CD is smooth, enjoyable, has great production and I look forward to more from her.

Great for a Summer Drive.......2007-06-27

Roll your windows down and crank this one up, because Ms. Stone hit the spot on this one. The summer hits were lighting up my town these past few weeks cuz I can't get enough of Joss's new album!!!

Stone Love!.......2007-06-26

Soul music comes in different shapes and sizes, appealing to either a small population of listeners or a large cross section of R&B fans. But when a new soulful talent comes out of left field and they aren't black, people pay attention. Look at Jon B, Lisa Stansfield, Teena Marie, and other non-blacks who have made great strides for R&B and soulful Pop music. Fast forward to today, and you'll see people like Amy Winehouse, Christina Aguilera, and the strikingly soulful Joss Stone continuing that trend. Joss Stone started off covering old soul classics with The Soul Sessions and eventually released her first original album in 2004 called Mind, Body & Soul. But with dissipating buzz, Joss Stone and company felt it was necessary to re-up and try again with Introducing Joss Stone. She reportedly had more control over the sound and direction of her latest effort. And frankly, it's just as good as when mentors and more experienced personnel helped out on her previous work. The album starts off very strong with the organic, old school sound of "Girl They Won't Believe It," the infectious "Headturner," and the funky "Tell Me About It." Common pops up on "Tell Me What We're Gonna Do Now" and the 'feel good' nature of "Arms Of My Baby" puts that song over as well. But the monster ballad (and a no brainer for a future single) has to be the liberating "Bruised But Not Broken," a song that has the potential to inspire many people through any tough times they may be experiencing. There are a few questionable moments on this album, namely the odd offering from Lauryn Hill on "Music" and the occasional over-singing on some of the songs. But Introducing Joss Stone is actually a good album from Miss Stone. The flow from song to song is rather seamless, giving the indication that Joss Stone either learned from previous mentors what to do...or what not to do when making an album. Now she has to seriously get her grind on because there are a lot of women in Soul Music who have those same aspirations...no matter if they are White, African-American, or Latina.

Average customer rating:

Great selection
Continuing writers block
The Legend Continues...
Rock the gypsy in your soul
Ancient Highway

The Best of Van Morrison Volume 3
Van Morrison
Manufacturer: Manhattan/EMI
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B000IY0FDA
Release Date: 2007-06-19

Tracks:

Cry For Home
Too Long In Exile
Gloria
Help Me
Medley: Lonely Avenue/4 O'Clock In the Morning
Days Like This
Ancient Highway
Raincheck
Moondance
Centerpiece
That's Life
Benediction
The Healing Game
I Don't Want To Go On Without You

Tracks:

Shenandoah
Precious Time
Back On Top
When the Leaves Come Falling Down
Lost John
Tupelo Honey
Meet Me In the Indian Summer
Georgia On My Mind
Hey Mr. DJ
Steal My Heart Away
Crazy Love
Once In a Blue Moon
Little Village
Blue And Green
Sitting On Top Of the Wolrd
Early In the Morning
Stranded

Amazon.com

Navigating Van Morrison's extensive catalog since 1993 is a formidable task even diehard fans might not want to attempt. The Irish icon has flirted with blues, jazz, country, pop, Celtic, and his own style of indescribable into-the-mystic spiritually-oriented poetic folk on his numerous releases, making for quite a thorny culling assignment. So the EMI brass were probably ecstatic when the singer took the job himself. He weeds through a dozen or so albums released since Volume 2's mile-marker, and adds a clutch of previously unavailable mixes, rarities, and live tracks. The result: a nearly two-and-a-half-hour, 31-track double-disc set as sprawling, eclectic, and tenacious as Morrison's vision and discography. From occasionally rambling but spirited duets with veterans Bobby "Blue" Bland, Junior Wells, Georgie Fame, Lonnie Donegan, B.B. King, the Chieftains, Ray Charles, and even Tom Jones to concert versions of hits such as "Moondance" and an impressive take on Sinatra's classic "That's Life," along with hidden gems like "Steal My Heart Away," this is a beautifully assembled and sequenced collection. It presents most of this multitalented auteur's facets and softens his often crusty exterior by showing his appreciation for the journeymen that helped develop the trail that Morrison then blazed in his own distinctive style. --Hal Horowitz

Album Description

The new 2-CD collection, compiled by Morrison himself, offers a comprehensive overview of his later material. The set's 31 tracks include previously unreleased collaborations with Tom Jones and Bobby Bland, as well as duets with John Lee Hooker, B.B. King and Ray Charles.

Customer Reviews:

Great selection.......2007-07-12

I won't call this definitive, but the collection's got some previously unreleased and seldom heard numbers that merit the price and hype. This is a very listenable CD that's something you can just stick in the changer and let it play. Definitely worth the money.

Continuing writers block.......2007-07-10

Despite having most of this already I paid out my money and what did I get? A reasonable overview with some obscurities, one of which "Blue and Green" is worth the cost on its own. While the music is all first class the compiling has created some jarring between tracks. I've always loved The Skiffle Sessions album but Lost John between Leaves Come Falling Down and Tupelo Honey sounds bizarre. Nearly all the tracks he has re-recorded are done better in their original incarnation and one gets the feeling that with this, the movie "best of" and the country abomination Pay The Devil before them that he has nothing to say at present. I love Morrison's music and sincerely hope there is more of it to come, its now been a fair number of years since there has been an album of original material and he is overdue for his muse to return.

The Legend Continues..........2007-07-04

This 'Best Of' is a must for any Vanatic (Van fan)... but more importantly it is a must for anyone who thinks Van's career ended in the 1970s... all the tracks on "Vol. 3" are from 1993-2005 - Van's later writing and singing are well represented on this compilation and with a superb supporting cast of John Lee Hooker, Ray Charles, Tom Jones, Carl Perkins, Lonnie Donegan, Bobby "Blue" Bland and the great Georgie Fame as they come along for the journey...

Van is still a mighty force in a world that needs more soul and less pop.

www.vanmorrisonnews.blogspot.com

Rock the gypsy in your soul.......2007-07-03

An amazing compilation of Van Morrison's enchanting and haunting melodies. Although I am not a big jazz or blues fan, he has managed to put those two elements together in a way that is a lyrical treat. The melodies are addictive and very catchy. As he has matured, his renditions of some of his earlier works are performed now with more conviction, passion, and confidence than ever before. Van is an extremely talented musician and lyricist that successfully impacts music for the ages. I could listen to Van Morrison 24/7.

Ancient Highway.......2007-06-29

Van is his element, you won't hear this almost 9 min track on
any broadcast radio station in the US.
I have quite a few of the tracks on other albums over 60% but
didn't hesitate on this purchase.

Average customer rating:

Soothing love music
Robin Thicke's Evolution CD - Only Liked Half
I'm Surprised.
Play it over & over again
Real smoothe CD

Evolution of Robin Thicke
Robin Thicke
Manufacturer: Interscope Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Introducing Joss Stone

ASIN: B000M8NMV4
Release Date: 2007-02-09

Tracks:

Got 2 Be Down
Complicated
Would That Make U Love Me
Lost Without U
Ask Myself
All Night Long
Everything I Can't Have
Teach U A Lesson
I Need Love
Wanna Love U Girl
Can U Believe
Shooter - Lil' Wayne
Cocaine
2 The Sky
Lonely World
Angels

Amazon.com

R&B with tempo: Justin Timberlake resurrected it, and it's proving way more influential than that other lost commodity--sexy--he claimed to be bringing back in 2006 on FutureSex/LoveSounds. Timberlake is to Robin Thicke what 'N Sync and Backstreet Boys were to a band like O-Town, in fact: he pretty much made it all possible. But even though it took one blue-eyed soulster with a hot look and an achy falsetto to bang down the door for another, Thicke presents a convincing case here that he had the goods to get us grooving all along: Evolution is a classy disc that tiptoes up to its listeners, first with an elegant duet with Faith Evans ("Got 2 Be Down"), next with a slick lament that wouldn't sound out of place on a Boyz II Men disc ("Complicated"), and then with a sweet plea that commands a finger-snap ("Would That Make U Love Me"). By the time we reach the long, sweeping lullaby that is the final track, "Angels," we've also had a taste of Thicke's swaggering side ("I Need Love," "Cocaine"), his hip-hop loving side ("All Night Long" and "Shooter," both with Lil Wayne), and the side that fantasizes about 1950s Latin ballrooms ("Everything I Can't Have," a hot tamale of a number that commands a visual if ever there was one: it's impossible to hear this song without imagining a raven-haired woman with a red rose between her teeth). Despite the range of moods on display, they're all in service to Thicke's inner R&B smoothie, and they all brush up against the ear with something like affection. Hard as it will be for listeners of a certain age to get past knowing that Thicke is the son of Alan Thicke, the actor who did his part to cheese up 1980s TV with the sitcom Growing Pains, they're going to have to: with his fan base swelling by the second, the evolution of Robin Thicke is going to be a deservedly loud one. --Tammy La Gorce

Album Description

NOTE: This deluxe edition features a ringtone of "Lost Without U," an autographed poster, and cell-phone wallpaper.

The Evolution of Robin Thicke is the second solo album from the critically acclaimed, Grammy award winning songwriter and producer of records for such artists as Michael Jackson and Christina Aguilera. The album is a timeless work of art. With a voice of purity, passion and soulfulness, Robin brings to life the stories and emotions of the last two years of his life.

The album is filled with incandescent magic. It is an album that tells the tales of love, loss, temptation, redemption and finding hope when all the odds are against you. "My greatest desire with this album was to write songs that were completely honest and sing them with the emotion I was feeling when I wrote them, so that whoever listens to my music is brought as close to my experiences and life as possible."

Reflective, redemptive, passionate and etched with a soulfulness that is undeniable, The Evolution of Robin Thicke is an imaginative and heart-felt album that you cannot help but be moved by, bob your head to and smile throughout.

FEATURING GUEST APPEARANCES BY Faith Evans, Pharrell, and Lil' Wayne PRODUCTION BY The Neptunes

Customer Reviews:

Soothing love music.......2007-07-15

I absolutely loved one or two of the songs but I found the album as a whole a bit bland. I did not really see the evolution but I do not know his earlier music.

Robin Thicke's Evolution CD - Only Liked Half.......2007-07-12

Robin Thicke is talented vocally and lyrically, unlike other people who sell CDs but cannot sing or people who write songs with incredibly boring, repetitive lyrics (i.e., Justin Timberlake). I like Robin's voice, but didn't like about half of this CD. Also, I thought the track about the "school girl" was in poor taste, given the focus on pedophiles and inappropriate advances by teachers toward students that have hit the news in the last five years. Would recommend CD to others with "conditions." Even so, I do like Robin Thicke and hope his fronting on tour for Beyonce goes well.

I'm Surprised........2007-07-11

I didn't expect much from this CD. I purchased it on the strength of the beautiful' Lost Without u'. I've normally found that these days, this would be the stand out song on the CD, with all the rest failing to meet my expectations. Well on this CD, I have been pleasantly surprised. Things start off with: 'Got 2 be Down, with Faith Evans. This has a Marvin Gaye vein going through it, and positive love lyrics to boot. 'Complicated' follows, which has a piano foundation to it. My, it's so good to hear a melodic song with a structure, with real (sounding) instruments to boot.' Would that make u love me' follows, with a lovely sung 'Marvinish' hook. Infectious. 'Lost without U', to me, is the perfect example of a great love song that is not TOO sugary. Really Uplifting ( with a great video) Ask Myself, Everything I Can't Have, Teach U A Lesson, I Need Love, Can U Believe, are tunes that I can let play without skipping, and show cases his beautiful falsetto voice. The worst moments are the songs featuring Lil' Wayne, and Pharrell, which sound horrendous, especially 'Wanna Love you Girl' with Pharrell. For me the minimalistic, less is more approach to the majority of the songs on here, help to highlight Mr. Thicke's voice, and have resulted in a great overall product. All-in all a good CD which is one of the best I have purchased this year.

Play it over & over again.......2007-07-11

Saw the video "lost without u" video early 2007 and liked the song right away. Then I found out he was Alan Thicke's son and I didn't know whether to take him seriously or not and forgot about him for a few months.

By accident, found him again on Amazon, checked out few tracks on Amazon, but still was not motivated enough to buy CD until I was channel surfing and watched another one of his music video for another song...and enjoyed it also.

Ok, "perhaps Alan Thicke's son" got some talent, price for CD was great so finally bought it a few weeks ago and it hasn't stopped playing & so far it's my favorite CD for 2007. Vocals, lyrics, music, recording quality all excellent. Every track has a different theme, emotion not just run-of-the-mill "formula" song writing.

Perhaps my favorite track is the last track "angels" where you think the song/CD is finished & then 10 secs later he starts jamming again...too cool.

You can listen to this CD, drink beer, wine, whiskey or some cocktails and it'll sound just right.

Real smoothe CD.......2007-07-05

This has to be Robin's best CD to date. It has several top artists and the melody is still smooth. Worth the money.