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28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Next time try a gorgeous duet with Regina Belle...you won't be disappointed !, April 29, 2006
I always liked his music , he's one of the best on the market.
Lately he has made some wrong choices , looking for an easier success...The Anita Baker's story should teach him something....
I like this CD , but don't think that it's spectacular...
It's very much 'Babyface' , which is OK .
He needs some pure inspiration , some new excellent musicians , to try a new , a little more adventurous path and sing a song with Regina Belle , the most consistent and brilliant vocalist available nowadays...Just check her terrific latest 'Lazy Afternoon' out...
And most of all , he needs to forget the glitz and glamour and... the charts...
At 48 , he can't make more mistakes.What we're expecting from him next time is some really fresh , different , QUALITY contemporary music , which can stand the test of time.
If he is truly inspired , success will follow !
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47 of 57 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Okay, but could have been so much more, July 28, 2005
Before anyone gives me a 'not helpful' rating simply because you disagree with my rating, at least hear the reasons why I give this album only three stars rather than the maximum 5.
I have been a Babyface fan for a long time now. Growing up in the 90s, Babyface's influence on my musical tastes is a profound one. Initially hearing about him through his stellar songwriting for Boyz II Men's 'End of the Road', I would became a fan of his own work through 'For The Cool in You'. With his 1996 release 'The Day', Babyface not only became simply a favourite artist of mine, but an important part of my childhood as the album became the soundtrack to my Summer holiday out in the country. 'Face2Face' was a highly anticipated album, and I was happy with the Curtis Mayfield-esue neo-soul/funk experiment that the album represented, though it was of course a very different album to what one would expect from the master of the R&B ballad. But I guess people have criticised 'Face for writing the same song a million times, so he showed them that he could do up-tempo as well as the best of them.
Which brings us to the album that was to follow Face2Face, 'A Love Story'; an album that was never officially released, but heavily bootlegged. The album had a definite sound about it; very jazzy, with acoustic piano and jazzy guitar licks and plenty of lush, beautiful ballads. What's more; it was a concept album that followed the story of a relationship from the giddy anticipation of that first night out together on 'Red Dress' through separation with 'The Loneliness' to the relationships continuation on 'Still My Boo'. It was an extremely interesting album that stuck to the ballad form that 'Face is master of, while also stretching beyond the standard R&B ballad format by incorporating jazz elements. Thus, this album struck a nice balance between the smoother style of 'The Day' while allowing him to stretch out to newer sounds without alienating listeners the way 'Face2Face' seems to have done to many.
'Grown and Sexy' was the result of what quite likely was due to major label politics over the release of 'A Love Story' which was supposed to be released in 2004. Containing a few songs from what was to be 'A Love Story' (some given a very different feel), 'Grown and Sexy' fits into the mould of the standard R&B slow jam R&B album, and has a sound that seems less like the Babyface of 'The Day' and 'For the Cool of You' and has songs that feel like they belong on a Joe album (Mad, Sexy, Cool) or an R. Kelly album (Can't Stop Now). Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, it just lacks originality. Most of the songs on this album sound like songs Babyface could write in his sleep, which is disappointing seeing how he pushed himself to do something completely different with 'Face2Face' and something more palatable to his fans with 'A Love Story'. Plus, 'Grown and Sexy' lacks the overall cohesivenss of albums like 'The Day', 'Face2Face' and 'A Love Story' and ends up sounding generic, and frankly, less 'grown' than anything on 'The Day'; an album nearly 10 years its junior.
Thus, while even sub-par Babyface is better than most and I'd recommend this to his fans who were disappointed with 'Face2Face', I know what this album could have been and what context the carried-over songs like 'God Must Love You' and 'Gettin' To Know U' originally had. It is a shame if 'A Love Story' was deemed non-commercial and that was the reason why it wasn't released, as 'Grown and Sexy' may sell better than 'A Love Story' would have had it been released, it is sad to see commerce interfere so greatly with the art of fantastic music.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
sexy and cool sans the crazy..., March 27, 2006
To put is simply, this album is as cool as the other side of the pillow. I mean, cool, sultry melodies with a gorgeous tenor or falsetto voice laid down on top of them, simply smooth all the way through. I'll tell you, whether you're looking for something to set the mood or something to just chill and relax to after a long, hard day, this one will definitely hit the spot.
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is Babyface's 
