Coolin' at the Playground Ya Know
Artist: Another Bad Creation
Community Score: 7.83

The formula is all too painfully simple, and equally successful: take young boys and have them singing pop songs with catchy hooks targeted at a pre-teen audience. It's worked since the early evolution of the teen idol. But in the 1980s, Maurice Starr re-ignited the formula and remains unparalleled by anyone in history, brining to the forefront... Read More

Born to Sing
Artist: En Vogue
Community Score: 6.33

The '80s produced countless "three girl and a drum machine"-type acts, but 1990 produced the trendsetting quartet En Vogue (courtesy of producers Thomas McElroy and Denzil Foster), who, with their individual vocal skills, sophisticated sense of fashion, sultry videos, and smart singles, went on to become one of the decade's most successful and... Read More

Just for You
Artist: Barry White

With 1970s nostalgia being quite the rage in the early '90s, Mercury set out to cash in on the trend with this three-CD box set by one of the top soul/disco men of that decade. Though three CDs is a bit much for novices (who would be better off with the 1995 single-CD anthology All Time Greatest Hits), more seasoned White devotees will find that... Read More

Always in the Mood
Artist: Gerald Alston

Former Manhattans lead vocalist Gerald Alston has emerged as one of the 1990s' best soul and love singers. His passionate, intense leads never lose their steam or conviction, he wisely avoids doing songs with rappers, and he doesn't let production gimmicks and studio trappings overwhelm his vocals. ~ Ron Wynn, All Music Guide Read More

Womanchild
Artist: Bemshi
Community Score: 10.00

Is she urban contemporary, pop/rock, or world music? Very hard to categorize, Bemshi's debut album, Womanchild, didn't make the playlists of either pop or R&B stations in the U.S. -- and that's a shame because this neglected CD has a lot to offer. To be sure, Womanchild doesn't fit neatly into any one category. The music of Bemshi, an expressive... Read More

Funky Divas
Artist: En Vogue
Community Score: 6.58

The 1990s was a time when hip-hop infused with R&B became pop music, and at the forefront of this movement was En Vogue. Their most commercially and critically successful album, Funky Divas, stands as one of the best pop/R&B albums to emerge from that time, incorporating soul, hip-hop, pop, dance, and rock to create one of the era's most... Read More

I'll Give All My Love to You
Artist: Keith Sweat
Community Score: 8.57

The glut of faceless, interchangeable new jack swing artists plaguing urban contemporary radio in the early '90s served one useful purpose: they reminded you how exciting the originators of the style (Guy, Bobby Brown, and Keith Sweat, among others) could be. When Sweat's overdue sophomore effort, I'll Give All My Love to You, was released in... Read More

Take It to the Floor
Artist: Special Generation

The debut album from the MC Hammer protégés Special Generation produced three single releases. The initial release "Love Me Just for Me" is an easy-flowing single with crossover appeal; however, it rode the Billboard R&B charts for 21 weeks, peaking at number eight. The second release "Spark of Love" is probably the best track from the project.... Read More

Greatest Hits, Vol. 1
Artist: New Edition
Community Score: 8.00

For anyone who missed New Edition in either its Jackson 5 imitation phase or final days as a funkier, more aggressive urban contemporary vocal group with a slight dance influence, this collection contains examples of both incarnations. Kiddie-pop hits such as "Candy Girl," "Cool It Now," and "Mr. Telephone Man" are included, along with their... Read More

I Feel for You
Artist: Chaka Khan
Community Score: 10.00
The Greatest Hits: The Power of Great Music
Artist: James Ingram

James Ingram racked up a number of adult contemporary-styled R&B pop hits in the 1980s, many of them duets, and the bulk of those hits are collected on this 12-track 1991 compilation. His music may at times seem somewhat melodramatic, registering on the pop spectrum somewhere between Michael Bolton and Billy Ocean, but nonetheless exemplifies... Read More

Lalah Hathaway
Artist: Lalah Hathaway
Community Score: 6.83

When Lalah Hathaway's self-titled debut album came out in 1990, there was reason to believe that she might evolve into one of the top female R&B singers of the 1990s. Donny Hathaway's daughter certainly had a lot going for her -- not only a big vocal range, but also plenty of charisma, passion, and charm to go with it. The material on this CD... Read More

T.E.V.I.N.
Artist: Tevin Campbell
Community Score: 7.00

If T.E.V.I.N. had been recorded by an adult instead of a teenager, the album would still be impressive, but the fact that Tevin Campbell was only 14 years old when this was made makes it all the more amazing. Campbell's voice is remarkably expressive, able to handle both ballads and up-tempo dance tracks without losing confidence. When he has... Read More

Every Home Should Have One
Artist: Patti Austin

The talented Patti Austin launched a successful jazz album career on CTI by the mid-'70s. Working with Quincy Jones since 1976, Every Home Should Have One was her long-awaited solo album with Jones as a producer. The hit singles "Do You Love Me" and "Every Home Should Have One" are polished -- pleasing but derivative. Rod Temperton -- who did... Read More

The Best of D Train - UNIDISC
Artist: D Train
Community Score: 8.00

The most irritating thing about D Train's best-of is that it favors a remix of "You're the One for Me" over the superior, original album version. Most people have that exact song pop immediately into her or his head whenever the name D Train is brought up, so it's a shame to not have its definitive version available on something designed as a... Read More