Customer Reviews

6: Commitment

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Seal is one of the few artists that truly affected me over the course of my life. Seal 1 and 2 soundtracked my college years, Human Beings slowly grew to become one of my favorite albums, and his fourth release had it's share of wonderful songs. I've always held Seal up there with the best...unique, incredibly talented, and deeply emotional.

And despite the labeling of being an Adult Contemporary artist, Seal never seemed to fully deserve that much-derided categorization. His songs always had a hint of pathos, or political fire, or a greater love for all the world. His music (with great thanks to Trevor Horn) became the vehicle for his unique vision, and gave his voice a wonderful foundation to work within, and often, soar above to glorious results.

Yet, System (5) began to give me pause. "Wedding Day" (his duet with Heidi Klum) was an unlistenable track that took Seal from a musical world all his own into a mainstreamed reality...one of gentle touches, tender kisses, and romantic love for a single individual..the well-worn topics constantly spelled out in almost every song by lesser artists. I guess Seal grew "down"...down into a sensitive, everyday guy who just likes coming home after a long day, seeing his beautiful wife, and being happy with the life he's made for himself. No longer did he have the weight of the world on his shoulders, or tumultuous emotions in his heart. His focus has became his family...and honestly, I can't begrudge the man that.

BUT, I can bemoan the fact that with it, he's adopted a sense of "generic-ness" in his music that I can't ignore. He's finally become an Adult Contemporary artist. No longer blazing his own trail, he's following others who came before him - including himself. His songs, always layered with unique instrumentation and even more profound lyrics that could appeal to multiple individuals in many ways, are now reduced to generic Hallmark card statements like "I did it all for love" and "you bring out the best in me." Where's the "Colors", the "Prayer for the Dying", the "Future Love Paradise"'s, with lyrics that spoke to you personally on a deeper level without ever giving away their true intent? I understand artists mature, and they grow...but why into this?

It pains me to write this, because I consider Seal one of my favorite artists. And I'm sure many will have disagreements with my assessment. But Seal has officially crossed the line for me with this release, and joined other artists I love like Sting and Phil Collins. Artists who no longer push boundaries, but are content to coast, either by channeling (or covering) the hits of the past, or indulging in the cheesiness and sappiness of the present.

I guess everyone grows "down". I just didn't think it would happen to one of the best.

I've actually always thought of Seal as a duo instead of a solo artist. I gave producer Trevor Horn as much credit with Seal's sound as I did the singer himself.

Turns out, I was right to do so because all of Seal's post-Horn work has been mediocre and somewhat bland. The best things about Seal's early cds were the incredible songs, sounds, and the knowledge that you were going to hear brilliance that you wouldn't find anywhere else with any other artist.

Seal II and Human Being are two of the most original and incredibly sounding cds I've ever heard. Musically, these songs went to places I had never been to and it was amazing to take the muscial journey. Seal I and IV were also incredible.

While this cd isn't awful, it does not live up to the quality of the first four. Personally, I'd much rather hear his unreleased songs from 'Togetherland' which Seal scrapped before making Seal IV than I had any of his recent new material.

Seal's new CD, his seventh (despite the title being "Seal 6: Commitment" - I guess they aren't counting "Soul") is obviously a labour of love. Produced by David Foster who produced his covers album "Soul" from 2008, it comprises 11 lavish paeans to love, the lyrics obviously inspired by the missus (super model Heidi Klum) and their four children. The album has a similar quiet mien as his under rated "Human being" album.

Lead-off single is the delicate acoustic ballad "Secret", and similar is the waltz-like "Letting go" ("Baby, baby, why must you travel? four little faces, they need you home").

There are no dance anthems as found on his "System" album, or "Killer" from his eponymous debut, but stepping up the tempo a bit are the bouncy "Weight of my mistakes", the groovy "Best of me" (think Lenny Kravitz's "It ain't over till it's over"), "The way I lie", and the absolutely lovely tempo-shifting "Big time" alternating between pounding beats and a Jazzy swing.

Everything else comprises ballads which he excels at; "Silence", "All for love" and the chilling theatrical "I know what you did" the standouts.

His raspy voice still soars and stretches like it did on "Kiss from a rose". As much as I enjoyed "Soul", it's great getting new songs penned by Seal. This might not initially grab you (and one can't help but feel Trevor Horn would have done a better job at adding subtle but vital nuances and flourishes) but it slowly grows on you.

Like many of those writing reviews on here, I am a lifelong Seal fan and have all of his work to date. Another caveat: I really liked "System" (his 5th album), at least after a couple times listening-through.

I am thoroughly impressed by "Commitment." Several songs jumped-out at first listen:

- "If I'm Any Closer" (a strong, upbeat pop song, bringing to mind "I'm Alive" and "Heavenly" at times)
- "Weight of My Mistakes" (my personal favorite from the album -- another catchy pop song with great orchestration in the background)
- "I Know What You Did" (a simple, soft, heartfelt piano-driven song of betrayal and parting)
- "The Way I Lie" (somewhere in-between mood-wise, but a good R&B song with a mix of Seal's stronger and softer deliveries)

All of them have Seal's always-strong vocals, deep lyrics, and an evocative side that few artists can rival. The CD is definitely less dance-heavy than System was, which is neither a good or bad thing. It's different. Some of the songs are akin to those on "Human Being," others are more mainstream like "Seal IV" or "System." I'd say it's closest to "Seal (1994)" overall, which is high praise.

I wasn't a huge fan of "Secret" or "You Get Me," but I have a feeling they will grow on me over time.

Overall, I highly recommend the album to anyone who likes good, varied music genres with Seal's incredible voice throughout!

Wow.

Seal is absolutely one of my favorite artists. He's had highs (his debut, System) and not-so-highs (Human Beings and 4). But 6 is a whole new arena. It's dreadful.

I'm not sure what was going on here, but I can only imagine he experienced some kind of financial stress or panic, and met with a bunch of suits to strategize on making lots of money with a quickness. Sad to say, that's not how art works.

So, what's the result? One song that sounds like classic Seal (The Way I Lie), another song with a killer intro (If I'm Any Closer), and a reasonable b-side (The Weight of My Mistakes). Otherwise, it's 100% ballads that suck, the musical equivalent of tofu. And Seal knows it - in the video of the making of the album, he says this is his best album yet (every artist says that every time) and you can just see his nose growing.

Seal wants to more exotic travel, buy some new luxury cars, and live like a rock star. That's the sole purpose of this album. But the eclectic creativity of System is long gone, and the song writing is below that of the worst elevator music. This is just aural filler for CPAs and yuppies to host baby showers and provide inoffensive background music for staid corporate events. Even the lyrics suck (?!) because they are so direct. Direct isn't interesting, it's boring and talentless. The best lyrics are veiled and open to interpretation, as Seal has done so well in the past.

But Seal did this on purpose. System proved he can still write great melodies, and is (was?) willing to dare to grow and try new collaborators. That album was 'amazing', start to finish (well, except that duet with this wife). If 6 had been his debut album, it would have tanked and been his last.

But since this album sold well, at least in some 'markets,' we might get more of this tripe. But I hope on 7, Seal re-COMMITS to being an artist, does his great work, and is confident the money will follow.

It happens all the time--an artist gets married, has kids, settles down, and, well, becomes boring and ordinary. I'm afraid this is what has happened to Seal. 2008's "Soul" was his weakest effort to date, but now it has company with "Commitment" being even more saccharine and banal. Harsh? I think not. I went back and listened to each of Seal's albums in sequential order, and it is evident that producer David Foster has literally killed Seal. Foster has accomplished stripping Seal of all his eccentricities which producer Trevor Horn enhanced and turned into soul gold in the 1990's.

"Commitment" is Seal's love-letter to his wife, model Heidi Klum, but it fails to inspire or even elicit a passionate response from this fan and listener. Even my wife said, "How sappy is this?" But, as always, I've listened to "Commitment" all week long, giving a fair shake. And it still comes up as three stars (which is better than half, which would be two and a half stars). I'm sorry fans and neighbors, but I liked 2007's "System". I felt it was a return to form, and producer Stuart Price did a fairly good job.

"Commitment" has a few good songs like "Weight Of My Mistakes" or the bonus track, a duet version of "You Get Me" with TinkaBelle. Too often, "Commitment" falls into syrupy ballads and fails to ignite. The ballads have a way of blending, one into the next with not lasting impression. I guess I would choose "I Know What You Did" and "Secret" and "Big Time" as other decent songs, but let me just say, this is far from Seal's best work and you know it. Don't lie to yourself. There's no "Crazy", "Prayer For The Dying", "Human Beings", "Love's Divine" or "Amazing".

I like David Foster. I mean I have many albums from many different artists that he produced, but he is not producing gold with Seal.

Here is how "Commitment" compares with Seal's previous work:

1991 Seal: Five Stars
1994 Seal: Five Stars
1998 Human Being: Five Stars
2001 Togetherland: (I guess we'll never know, will we?)
2003 IV: Four Stars
2007 System: Four Stars
2008 Soul: Two and a Half Stars
2010 Commitment: Three Stars

I'm still not really sure where I stand on this album. I see all these reviews where people talk about how he's back, or back to the sounds from the beginning, and while that's true, I still feel something missing compared to the first two albums.

The sound is back, but it seems some of the passion and excitement still isn't there.

When I think of Seal, I still think of songs like Deep Water, Future Love Paradise, Don't Cry, Fast Changes, and such. Powerful, driven songs, things you just have to crank when you're driving in your car because there's so much energy and passion in them. And other than the Human Being title track, I haven't really felt the same about any of his later works.

So I agree these SOUND more like the "Seal of old" so to speak, but I still don't have any songs on this new album that, for me, compare to those on the first two. They're slow, ballad-like, except for Big Time. And even that one isn't as driving as the ones I miss.

If you're a Seal fan, this is definitely an album worth getting again, especially if you like his slower songs. As usual, his use of bridges, key changes and jumping from majors to minors, are outstanding. And his voice sounds as good as ever.

Reminds me very much of Martin Page's second album, where all the "power" seems to be missing despite sounding alright.

Like others have said in their reviews, you can tell he's in a happy part of his life, since his albums invariably reflect where he is in his walk through life... So I'm happy for him, but still somewhat saddened for the fans, although not as sad for the fans as I've been with most of the album releases after the first two...

Remember that terrible awful duet, "wedding day" on his awesome previous album??? That is this album.. slow, sappy, boring-we've heard the beats, the same background singer sounds (which he doesn't need), same lyrics. Yawn* ... come on! There are 2 good songs, which are unique and layered with awesome instruments. "weight of my mistakes" and "big time".
I've loved all Seals albums; this is such a huge disappointment.. DO OVER

Unfortunately this is the lamest SEAL cd to date. Not bad but nothing here really grabs you like his early work. I wouldn't say Foster is a bad producer and you need Trevor back but I CAN say I enjoyed his work with Trevor more than his later, 5 minute song, commercial feeling cd's. I just enjoy his song writing about other things in life than his personal love stories, which are fine. I just won't listen to this cd as much as the others.

Seal has always been one of my favorite artists but like others I loved the Trevor Horn produced work most. This album succeeds in that Seal is re-exploring the sonic formulas and rhythms that made his 1994 album so deeply impactful. Back are the complex, multi-layered harmonies and jazzy key changes and the noble attempt to bring an emotional coherence to the work as a whole. One cannot help but feel that he strays into formulaic repetitiveness in some songs but given the romantic and heart-oriented intent for this album it doesn't warn me off. I would ask him to try and avoid anymore overtly disco thumper beats but If this is a harbinger of what is to come from Seal then I will keep an ear tuned; I do long for him to explore some more hard-edged songs though. (I loved his Hendrix covers). Please lets hope that fabulous wealth and running with the world class elite hasn't dulled his rock edges entirely. I am happy for him and his love affair with 'her'. Nice to have a family that loves you.

1/9/11 - This has become my 2 year old daughter's favorite CD. Whenever we get in the car, she starts screaming for this music; she just yells "SONG!" and we know what she wants. This album does really grow on you, it's very uplifting.

9/30/11 - I have upgraded my review to 5 stars. This CD has not left mine or my wife's car since it's release. The more I listen to it, the more addictive the songs become. They are really under my skin now and run through my head all the time. This is still my 2 year old's favorite music.