Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Landmark album!!!!, April 27, 1999
By A Customer
Larger Than Life is the only cohesive, intelligent album to come out of the dreck of 80's dance-pop. That is due in part to the skillful production of Andre Cymone, but it is mostly a testament to the fabulousity of Jody Watley. From the ruins of Shalamar, Miss Watley rose to a fame as a solo artist that far exceeded her previous success as 1/3 of her former group. None of her contemporaries (i.e. Janet Jackson, Paula Abdul, Pebbles, Taylor Dayne, etc.) could touch Miss Watley for sheer diva attitude. Down to earth in real life, Watley was very convincing as the imperious diva on vinyl. While Miss Jackson was just playing around with "What Have You Done For Me Lately", Watley was dead serious when she took it a step further and asked "What'cha Gonna Do For Me". The majestic introduction of "Lifestyle" does little to prepare you for the pulsating, wildly infectious beat that overtakes you seconds later. "Friends" was one of the first pairings of a singer and a rapper, and it is no less a rapper than Rakim, the godfather of east coast rap. Though today a pairing such as this is common, when I first heard Jody's sultry croon meshed with Rakim's blistering flow, it was a revelation. Jody gets down and funky on the midtempo "For Love's Sake", its slow groove caressing her surprisingly soulful vocal. "Once You Leave" (. . . you can't come back!) finds Jody once again artfully dismissing a wayward lover. All of this just served as a prelude for the true masterpiece in this collection: throwing down the gauntlet on the mind-blowing "Real Love" (i.e. "Gotta have the real thing!"). The unrelenting beat, the easy-to-learn chorus and a whole heap of Jody Watley attitude were the makings of a classic. It didn't hurt that the stunningly beautiful Watley came up with a video as compelling as the song. While she has grown substantially as a musician and vocalist, Jody has not managed to recapture the magic of this CD. However, she did manage to cap the decade of greed with a genre-defining moment in pop history.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Jody's Best moment, October 14, 2003
Jody Watley was one of the most popular singers in the late 80s. "Larger Than Life" was her sophomore solo album, and it was just as good, if not better, than her debut album. Watley was at her best with funky, R&B dance grooves. This album had a number of killer grooves, including "Real Love", "Whatcha Gonna Do For Me", "Lifestyle", and "Once You Leave". Her pairing with rappers Eric B and Rakim set the standard for R&B singer/rapper pairings (ie. Beyonce and Jay-Z on "Crazy In Love") and her ballad, "Everything" was the sole ballad hit in Watley's career. Unlike many other 80s artists, Watley's music has aged well. If you are interested in checking out her catalogue, I recommend trying this first.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
L.I.F.E.S.T.Y.L.E., September 1, 2008
Jody Watley's 2nd release is in my oppinion, her most powerful and consistant albums, solidifiying her as the grand diva extrodinaire. "Larger than Life" has Jody in true form, singin' about the things we all dream of, Love, Money and Hapiness. Things we are not gonna give up for any man tryin' to play us. This cd is perfect for strong black females and gay men if that makes any sense. You can play the cd from start to finish and relate to every song in some way. The production value is suberb, it's recorded loud so you can blast out every emotion as you drive along the coast while the sun is setting, hopefully getting ready for a romantic interlude with a hot man. My fave tracks are Real Luv, Friendz, Everything, What u Gonna Do 4 Me, Come N2 My World, Something New, hey practically the whole cd! Just like Jody says, "gotta have the real thing" and "Larger Than Life" is it.
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by Jody Watley 
