I'm a Jill fan--unapologetically--so there's very little she could do that would sway me towards the negative in any way whatsoever. She can, honestly, do NO wrong.
That said, it took a couple of listens for me to embrace "Woman". There's a lot of old school here, and I anticipated that possibility when "You Don't Know" came out. That track was clearly Aretha-esque and gave a big hint that Jill was moving in the direction of Donny Hathaway, Aretha, Betty Wright (in some instances), and every other soulful artist from the 60's era. So, I was not surprised to hear this cd filled to the brim with tracks that infused R&B with a bit of funk (she was obviously digging in the crates for this one), and a lot of soul.
That said, if you walked into this album looking for something that would be top-to-bottom what "Closure" or "Cruisin" are—hot ish you can bob your head and dance to, then look elsewhere. This ain't that.
My favorite album by Jill is "Beautifully Human". That's an album that was from beginning to end phenomenal. This album isn't that, but neither was "Light of the Sun". Jill evolves, both poetically and musically. and I think you do her an injustice when you walk in expecting "hip-hop" or "neo-soul" or "pop" solely. That's never been Jill's bag, and it never will be. If that's what you want, "Woman" won't do it for you.
However, if you can open yourself up to the artist and understand that she's never one to release an album JUST for the mainstream recognition it can garner. then you can appreciate the brilliance of what she's done here and embrace it for what it is: a woman letting you into her world and taking you on a journey you'll never forget.
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