Customer Reviews

Secrets

5 star:		(87)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I bought this album back in 1997 and actually I don't know why i bought it I think that was that I saw on cable the "you're making me high" video and I saw in a store and bought it.
This album is amazing the lyrics are beautiful, there's no a song that I don't like, the rhythms are very good also and besides that I like this album it was one of the biggest hits of 1997 with song such as: "you're making me high" (my own favorite) the song did it to #1 in the Hot 100, Hot R&B song and Club dance charts another hit and maybe Toni's biggest song "un-break my heart" is also in this album "Un-break" became also a #1, another great song is the soft "how could an angel break my heart" were features Kenny G.
Here's also one song from the 1996 hit soundtrack "waiting to exhaale" the song is "let it flow". Actually I love all the ssongs in this album from the first one "come on over here" until "I the late of night".
This album won 3 or 4 Grammy awards (I'm not sure about the amount)and sold over 10 million copies worldwide.

I remember buying this CD the day it came out. Her first CD was already a classic so I expected the same from her sophomore release. On her first CD, Toni had a combination of slow songs, midtempo grooves, and uptempo grooves. After hearing the single, "You're Makin' Me High" I expected the album to be more of the same just like her first CD. After the CD was over, I was impressed by the way Toni Braxton presented different tales of slow jams. On "Secrets" Toni Braxton had a lot more producers than she did on the first CD. Babyface and L.A. Reid did most of the work on the first CD, but on "Secrets" there's more of a variety, which doesn't hurt the CD at all. Babyface, this time around is actually working by himself, without his business partner L.A. Reid. The best examples of Toni's slow jam presentation are "There's No Me Without You" which is produced by Babyface, "Talking in his Sleep", "I Don't Want To", and "Un-Break My Heart". This is a great CD for anyone that likes slow jams or ballads. If you are a fan of more uptempo and midtempo songs this might not be the CD for you. Her first CD might be a better recommendation.

After a sultry and stylish debut album that helped earn her a Best New Artist Grammy, Toni Braxton steps up to the follow-up plate and hits anything but a sophomore slump. Full of warm musical backdrops and Toni's trademark sexy alto, "Secrets" lives up to the expectations her debut set in place.

Every now and again you'll find a singer whose interpretative gifts mesh perfectly with the producer or songwriter at hand. Such magic can be found when Toni takes on one of Babyface's acoustic-based, almost-folky pop tunes. "Let it Flow," "There's No Me Without You," and "Why Should I Care" are all gorgeous ballads with acoustic guitars in the forefront and the heat set on slow-burn, and Toni more than rises to the challenge. Of course, these songs were all solely written and produced by Babyface, so the argument may be made that the artistic vision isn't truly Toni's. The final audio result, however, is truly fantastic.

Unfortunately, R. Kelly doesn't serve Braxton as well; Babyface and Toni often seem two halves of the same whole, while R. Kelly's composition "I Don't Want To," which he also produced, merely sounds like Toni singing along to an R. Kelly karaoke tape. And even Babyface can fall short now and then, proven on the sleepy ballad appropriately titled "In the Late of Night." "Unbreak My Heart," however, is one of the rare moments in R&B that manages to build a bridge to pop and still maintain soul in the recording. No shock that this soaring ballad sealed Toni's then-pending true crossover success.

Even more of a payoff comes when Toni tries something new, as is found on "You're Makin Me High," a hardcore-esque number that boasts lyrics as hard as its groove, and "Talking in My Sleep," a scorcher of a ballad that finds Toni purring her verses in spoken word form. But the main focus here is on achieving classic, romantic soul moments, and in that sense Toni Braxton's "Secrets" is a home-run.

I bought this album sometime after Unbreak My Heart was released, I was about 13. I thought it was one of the best albums I owned and it's aged really nicely too. I still listen to it time to time when relaxing. She may have played it safe with her sophomore album by working with hot r&b producers like babyface, r.kelly and tony rich, but it really works. The ballads are beautiful and smoky hot and her voice blends into the music so beautifully. A lot of singles were released from this album from 1996 through 1997, some of which were just released to radio while others had music videos. I remember her getting a lot of billboard, ama and grammy awards at the time in her revealing dresses, and her being the talk of the award shows the next day at school. Another memory is the remix of you're making me high that had a reggae/hip hop vibe to it. Just be warned that this CD doesn't really have any fast tracks, it's mostly soft, jazzy r&b ballads.

When it comes to modern music I'm a hard sell...I much prefer older music (sixties/seventies/eighties--I'm 21 at the time of this review) but there are some exceptions. Toni Braxton is one of those.

I saw the music video for "You're Makin' Me High" in 1996 when I was thirteen. I became intrigued. Then "Un-break my Heart" came out on music video, and I loved the song. Emotional, expressive, poetic...the exact characteristics I look for in music.

"Secrets" is an awesome album. My fave songs in order are "You're Makin' Me High," "Un-break My Heart, "Let It Flow", "Come Over Here", and "How Could An Angel Break My Heart." If you're a Braxton fan, get this CD. It's awesome.

chocked full of slow ballads, toni's sophomore set is a real treat on the ears. diane warren, babyface, kenny g, r kelly, among others, have contributed to this amazing album.

this album gets all 5 stars because its the only cd I have that I can play without cringing or wanting/having to skip to the next song. if you just want to lay down and relax after a hard day's work, this is the album to play.

favorites of mine include the hit "unbreak my heart", "how could an angel break my heart", and "I don't want to". but as I previously stated, her whole album is enjoyable.

ms. braxton's songs are all beautiful and soul enriching. they take you away from all the chaos and turmoils of one's hectic day.

as the cd came to an end in my player, I realized one of toni's secrets. when she sings ballads, she sings from her heart. any musician that can do that transcends their artform and into our lives.

I bought this album when it first came out in '96. I bought it 'cos of 'You're makin' me high' which is such a funky/classic song. I was not disappointed at all. This album is fabulous! I've got many CD's and I can't say that I like any other as much as this. It has mellow numbers such as 'Come on over here' & 'Let it flow' to the ballads of 'Un-Break my heart' and 'How could an angel break my heart' all in all this is a must album for anyone! Nice work Toni!

Just about all of this is produced by Babyface which ensures plenty of pop appeal. Indeed, "Un-break my Heart" was a huge hit and "How Could an Angel Break my Heart?" and "I Don't Want To" still garner AC radio airplay. Braxton is possessed of a lovely voice, but too often it's tethered to the syrup...not really allowed to shine.

HIGHLIGHTS:
Single "You're Makin' Me High" is the sound of passion on low smoulder with a high quavering Moog-like synth that oozes sex. Despite my fervent dislike of Diane Warren, Toni Braxton so beautifully sings "Un-break my Heart" that I like it despite myself..truly classy. "Talking in his Sleep"'s infidelity tale is slinky and memorable. "I Don't Want To" is a little rawer musically and it lets the song breathe, though I would have liked it to be even further stripped back...perhaps just a piano and Braxton. "In the Late of Night" is where Babyface departs a bit from the formula. The song manages to stand out from the tunes around it with even Kenny G's presence handled well (he's mixed in such a way that his alto sax sounds almost like an oboe..it's actually a welcome addition).

LOWS:
The presence of schlock merchant Kenny G dooms "How Could an Angel Break my heart?", Outside of those, there's a general sameness of sound to most of Babyface's tracks...mid-tempo, acoustic guitar mixed high, that digital effect that sounds like a rimshot, and some keyboards playing very soft chords for atmosphere.

BOTTOM LINE:
The persistent slickness of Babyface's production tends to make this all sound a bit too adult contemporary for my tastes. (read: all edges smoothed off) All of these love songs seem curiously dispassionate turning into so much aural wallpaper. It's not the worst thing you'll ever hear but taken as a whole it's far from inspiring.

Well not quite. Toni definitly sounds sexier here and a couple songs are frankly sexual and even a bit racy. "You're makin' me high" is the best example. Her trademark broken- hearted sigh is still here and five of the songs are about sad love songs. Then again, aren't everybody's? The music is full and crisp and Toni has a pouporri of producers to choose from-The elegant Tony Rich gives "Come on over" the slow jam-acoustic favorite Babyface with "You're makin' me high", "There's no me without you", "How could an angel break my heart" "Find me a man", "Let it flow", "Why should I care", "In the late of night"(God, that's a lot of songs by him, isn't there?) new jack swingman R. Kelly with "I don't want to" the soulful team of Soulshock & Karlin with "I love me some him" power pop balladeer Diane Warren with "Unbreak my heart" and producer for Brandy Keith Crouch with "Talkin' in his sleep". The last one deals with adultery but not the he-did-me-wrong-i'm walkin'-out-that-door-boy type. Instead she tells you in a random stream of consiousness sort of way, asking a friend for advice girl-to-girl. One of the best songs, "In the late of night" feels like a setting in a lonely mansion in the woods. Toni is one of the best singers in the WORLD! Secrets is definite proof of that.

When any artist's first album is so on fire as Toni Braxton's debut was, it's a pretty safe assumption that subsequent releases will have a hard time living up to it, and that, to a moderate extent, is the case here. She still had some fire left in her, as evidenced on the hip-hoppish but respectable hit "You're Makin' Me High" and the emotional ballad "Unbreak My Heart". Also good are the ballad "Let It Flow" and the sultry, teasing ditty "Talking In His Sleep." Unfortunately, before she had a chance to make a third album, the bankruptcy set in, and since then she has been just a shell of her former self on every album she's made after this one.