Customer Reviews

1st Born Second

5 star:		(81)
4 star:		(24)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Philadelphia native Bilal really came correct on this, his debut LP. He originally lept into spotlight with his performance of "International Lover" at NYC's 1999 tribute concert with Philly combo The Roots.

He's the most exciting talent to emerge since D'Angelo in my eyes. Although forget what you've been told the two artist's are not that similar. Bilal is far more jazz based with Miles Davis being massive influence on his music school training. They do share clear influences in Marvin Gaye and Prince which may be where comparisons stem from. Bilal also has done backing vocal chores for D'Angelo concerts.

With production credits like Jay Dee, Raphael Saadiq, Dr. Dre, Mike City, Soulquarians etc one would expect quality and you're right to.

Forget accusations of some tracks here being "too mainstream", the Dr. Dre joints ("Sally" and "Fast Lane") are tight, with the later bringing Curtis Mayfield-like reporting on society's ills.

Mike City's "Love It" also is a great jam with infectious chanted chorus. Mike has also produced hits for Sunshine Anderson and Dave Hollister.

The haunting "When Will You Call" and "Queen Of Sanity" are back to back spine tingling, beautiful ballads.

Other highlights on an album with no weak tracks are: the sparse affecting Soulquarian produced groove of "Sometimes", in which Bilal analyses his imperfections, "Soul Sista", the Raphael Saadiq produced ballad (Originally found on "Love & Basketball OST") and the self produced jazzy mid-tempo songs "All That I Am" and "Love Poems". Bilal even covers reggae in the Marley-ish "Home" and Funkadelic grooves on "Second Child".

Common and Mos Def assist on the laidback groove of "Reminisce" but aside from that it's Bilal all the way. For further Bilal collaborations check: "Certified" with Guru, Common's "Like Water For Chocolate" album, "I Can't Wait" on Jaguar Wright's debut, "Best Friend" on Tweet's "Southern Humming Bird" as well as work with Cherokee, Jermaine Dupri and DJ Scratch.

He also appears on "The Ali" and "The Wash" soundtracks.

Sadly the singles "Soul Sista", "Fast Lane" and "Love It" didn't really propel him into public consciousness. This album however is highly slept on, one of 2001's clear highlights and great things will be expected from his sophomore set.

For all the latest news and tour-info, check Bilal's official site: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Bilal/

First it was "Soul Sista" that shook me up because there was nothing else out like it. Then I heard "Sometimes", it had me saying to myself "this man got issues" but I still love the song. "Love It" came next and of course NYC didn't give it that much love on the radio, but I fell for it and then came the WNBA commercials. THE MAN IS HOT YALL........ All of these factors had me waiting outside of the record store for it to open, so that I could have it listen to on my way to work. LOVE THIS CD. "For You" must of replayed 3 times before I even went to the next track "Fast Lane". Bilal, Jadakis and Dr. Dre, who would've imagine that trio working together on one of the tightest jams on the disc.

Don't take my word on how good the CD is. Ask one of your friends who was smart enough to get before you.

This cd is the cream of the crop for NeoSoul. This Bilal Cd is one of the Years Best. It is a very soulful and emotional experience.With the guest appearances on Common, Guru, Love&Basketball Sndtrk and the Soul Sista single, Bilal was greatly anticipated. Now he is out, there is no dissappointment. Love Poems is a very beautiful ballad filled with love and emotions.This album builds on different emotional boundaries for instance, Fast Lane, All that I am, Sometimes deal with growing up and feelings perspective of life and thought. While Soul Sista, Love it and love Poems make you want to engage in love making especially Queen of Sanity. This cd is everything you need for a evening,ride or picnic with your significant. For all lovers and lovers of Neosoul this is a must have. One of the best Cds of the year. New artist of the year by far. Get this now. One. Peace.

After a smashin' debut on the Love And Basketball soundtrack with the Raphael Saadiq produced "Soul Sista" and his guest appearance on Common's hit, "The Light", Bilal finally gets his chance to shine on his own with "1st Born Second" R&B fans have been waiting for Bilal's CD just like rap fans have been waiting for Jadakiss' solo CD to drop. The 2nd single "Love It" was released and just like reviewer "Deldrick" mentioned, it's like the song never even came out. Urban radio of today will not play the song unless someone is cheating on the other, somebody has ice on or somebody is beggin' like Keith Sweat back in the day. "Love It" is a nice song and hopefully Bilal will get the recognition and airplay that he deserves. Ladies and gentlemen, this CD was well worth the wait. Eventhough Bilal is compared to D'Angelo and other artists, you will be able to tell the difference between him and them after you hear his debut CD. After the intro, Bilal comes with some sounds that I would not even expect from him. The song "For You" sounds like it would be something that Prince would do but at the same time he has that nice street soul edge to the track. "Fast Lane" is a Dr. Dre produced track featuring Jadakiss and it's explaining a tale about what happens if you get caught up in the street life. This should definitely be the next single. The Soulquarinas produced "Sometimes" has Bilal in the way that you would almost expect the CD. I like the way that the track chnages pace and it it still able to keep your attention. This is a very diverse CD. Just when you think Bilal has settled on one style, he switches is up on you again. He even adds some reggae flavor with "Home". Other songs worth noting are "Reminisce" w/Mos Def & Common, "Love Poems", the hilarious "Sally" produced by Dr. Dre, "You Are" and the nice slow jam "When Will You Call". "When Will You Call" is my favorite song on the CD and even people that don't feel Bilal's sound overall will enjoy this song. Overall, this is a nice debut CD. When I think of debut CDs, Jill Scott, Maxwell, Musiq, Erykah Badu, Jazzyfatnastees and Alicia Keys come to mind. This CD is definitely worth your money and your time. People who can appreciate real music will enjoy this CD.

First i'd like to tell you some things about Bilal you might not know. You might think this album is very strange and experimental, but you probably did not know about some of the musicians Bilal runs with. He has appeared on recordings by some immensely talented members of the youngest stratus of the New York jazz underground, lending vocal talents to the likes of piano phenom Robert Glasper and the ebullient John Ellis. He moans, mumbles, often resembling a pained old black woman mourning a recent violent death. He's crazy like that. When I realized the inventive and vocally acrobatic weirdo on my friends' jazz cds was the same guy I had seen on BET once, I was anxious to see what this daring young musician with jazz sensibility would do to modern R&B.

I wrote a review of this a while ago and wasn't sure what to think but then I bought it and gave it a really good listen. It is excellent. Stylistically, Bilal is sort of in his own vein, although it could be perceived as striking some sort of balance between D'Angelo and Prince i guess.

The production is great, starting out with the measured funk of the hip hop style For You. Bilal rides the beat so well, laying behind the beat like a gospel preacher, and layering is voice so that falsetto accentuates his half singing half talking macho hip hop-isms. Reminisce has another great vibe and Bilal takes his time a little bit while getting some help from Mos Def and Common. He goes from bitter (Sally) to regretful/irresistibly soulful (Sometimes, which has an awesome gospel vibe). There is excellent songrwriting (When Will You Call), and excellent musicianship (Second Child). There is everything. The varied production is one thing, but Bilal has such command over both his voice, the beat, and a full range of emotions, that he breathes an unpredictable vitality into r&b. In an era where people have been dropping unforgettable vocals over bland and mass produced tracks, Bilal brings an energetic mastery to this music. There are still vocalists that are willing to stretch a little, but always with respect for the music.

The only problem is people are sleeping on this. I think if he got a chance to make another album he could do even more with getting the tracks to follow the contours of his voice. Please check this out; I realize this might not be for everyone, but it is important to modern soul/r&b that people give it a chance.

What is "neo-soul" anyway? The idea of labeling soul is as ridiculous as Britney Spears doing Billie Holiday. The bottom line? Either you have it or you don't. Bilal has it, and brothaman has it on a level alot of people simply will not understand. (hence the low ratings/negative feedback) Comparisons are to be expected (D'angelo, Prince, etc) but one only has to scoop this joint up and come to their own conclusion. With that said...

I've had 1st Born 2nd since it came out but it wasn't until recently that I sat down and really let the music flow uninterrupted. And what a journey! Each song presents a kaleidescope of mood and energy to the table. Favorites include:

*Love Poems - a slick, mid-tempo groove featuring head-nodding rimshots, crisp snares and light cymbal splashes over a smooth melody. Bilal's voice glides with ease as he ponders taking friendship to a new level. "...if we label this just picture what we might lose..." I personally could have done without the spoken word towards the end, but I'm sure it is meant to add to the theme of "Love Poems". The vocals are enough to drive the message home. Very well.

*When Will You Call - an utterly AMAZING piece that hooks you with its frustrated intro and churchy moan, then takes you on a jazz-flavored lament of love suddenly up and leaving without a trace. What starts off slow gradually increases into a powerful explosion of emotional turmoil before Bilal finally accepts his situation "now we're through, what to do, gotta start a new life without you.." Very intense track, indeed.

*Queen of Sanity - poetic & passionate ballad on which his range goes from soft to earth-shaking wails and ad libs laid over screaming electric guitars.

* SOMETIMES - "This is a song that makes me spill out my guts," he starts before unloading a verbalized diary entry over a hypnotic bassline and funky rythym arrangement. The passion and raw emotion in his ranting, raging and reasoning is surreal yet universal. If you aren't raising a hand in the air and waving it by the fade, I can't help ya. I love this track!

These are but a few of the gems on this album. Hip-hop, rap and reggae make slick cameos with "Reminise", "Fast Lane" and "Home".
Another favorite is "You Are". It is truly gorgeous lyrically, vocally and musically with a mellow groove. It is poetic and profound.

In closing, this "Soul Sista"s wish is for Bilal to press on through the raging storms that come his way and try to destroy his mind, body & spirit, so he may continue to bless the world with this God-given voice and presence for years to come. Keep it flowing, honey because we "Love It!" Peace. CLB.

Like many Internet junkies out there, some of you may already have had the majority of this CD downloaded, bootlegged or copied in some fashion. I'm here to testify to you that there is nothing like having the real thing. I admit that I had some downloaded myself, but never did it change my mind on purchasing the CD when it released. It just took a long time (very long time) for it to drop. I'm a music lover first and a music collector for hobby, second. The CD and actual CD cover is a must have for me when it come to collecting. This man was a desired collection piece long before the marvelous, soulful joint "soul sista". This man brings true energy to writing, singing and performing which hasn't been done nor came close by any male artist lately outside of D'Angelo. "Love It", his second release was a beautiful song in my ears, but once again radio ignored talent for trend and decided to play industry B.S. "Love Poems" (man! , what a tight track) at the moment, is my favorite track on the CD but that could change by tomorrow or next week. "Sometimes" takes me into the mind of Bilal to explore his thoughts and wishes of being "drug free", "seeing the exit sign", and "wishing his eyes wasn't so red"...... Additional vocals by Common, Jadakiss and Mos Def, production by Amir ?uestlove Thompson, Dr. Dre and others. If there was one wish to God before he took you off this earth, ask him for a 20 spot to purchase this CD and 3 hours to enjoy it and die in a soulful bliss.

oNe

"What does my kiss mean to you, are we just friends or is this more to you?" These are my feelings...how can you read my soul Bilal? WoW this cd is not gettin the praise it deserves! And people want to compare him to D'angelo? I love dee too but that's kinda like saying tap water and sparkletts taste the same.(sorry best discription I have right now)From beginning to end the whole cd is bangin' but i normally start at "Love it" and work my way down. Stil cant decide on a favorite song.....It's between "love poems", "Queen of sanity" and "when will you call". Everyday I'm feeling a different track. Today it when will you call....(we won't ask why). He even got a lil reggae track on it....I'm not really feeling that one but I still dont skip because of the beat. Now the last song is strictly for those who know good music...you have to feel his fustrations through music not so much the words. That takes talent to understand this song.To the average untrained ear after a while it sound like noise. I think I'm getting too deep....I want you to buy the cd. but that just my thoughts.

I had heard that this album would be awesome, but I didn't expect this! Yes, I heard that Bilal was part of the neo-soul movement and similar to D'Angelo.

Yes, he is similar to D'Angelo but more like if George Clinton took D'Angelo and pee-ed all over him, then produced his next record. There is hard-core FUNK here, people, in addition to the soul ballads.

Highlights of the album for me are "For You", "Fast Lane", "Soul Sista" and the incredibly memorable "Sally".

Get this album!!

Bilal's 1st Born Second to some may be a different spin of some of D'Angelo's works. However, the brother delivers well on his own. There are definitely some influences from D'Angelo. But the collection of neo-soul as it's being heralded as is worth the buy. My favorite track is "Home" with its reggae flavored delivery. Other notable tracks include "You Are", "Love It", "Soul Sista", "Reminisce" which features Mos Def & Common, and "All That I Am." Don't get me wrong, ALL the songs on the cd are tight. The beats hit also. But don't take my word for it....go on and check out Bilal.