I am having a really hard time finding something positive to say about R Kelly's album Love Letters.
Most of the knowledgeable and accepted mainstream media critics and fans are certainly impressed with this effort from one of Chicago's Most famous soul balladeers. I bought this album the other day and I really wasn't impressed. I guess I was influenced by the thread about great soul albums of 2010 and I couldn't even list ten albums of new music that I bought in 2010. Maybe I'm just getting to the point where I'm just tired of the same shhh being recycled over and over, maybe I've just grown up and out of this particular artist. Whatever that feeling is I don't like it and I really don't like this CD. I'll try to tell you why and if I fail to convey those feelings feel free to jump in and help me out with your own observations. I know what bothers me and I shall try to elaborate.....
1. The album cover, No, no, no, R Kelly you are not Stevie Wonder.
2. You are not Raphael Saadiq, he dressed and went retro a couple of years ago with a smoking CD that sounded quite fresh and invigorating but original.
3. Even though there were several people here at SDF who posted your video of When a Woman Loves and extolled its virtues, you are not Jackie Wilson or Percy Sledge.
4. You, Mr. Kelly are not Marvin Gaye ! and you should be sued for remaking "Just To Keep You Satisfied" as "Music Must be a Lady".......thats really low class.....including those half azz backgrounds.....a total rip off........
4a. Didn't I say that you were not Marvin Gaye ? What part of that sentence didn't you understand ? Oh I get it, you go get a Tammi Terrell sound a like and make a record called "Love Is", that tries to capture what Marvin and Tammi did ....I don't think so.......
5. Ok so you dedicated a record to your mentor and hero Michael Jackson, "You are not Alone".......but did you have to put those insidious and annoying MJ hiccups into another record on the album ? Wasn't one enough ?
Dam dog you even had some copious and encoded liner notes that said:
Dear Ladies, Dear Ladies, Its your boy January
And I would like to welcome all of you to the Love Letter Album
Now this album is dedicated to the "girls" who stood beside me
And even all the bootleggers who couldn't afford to buy me
Even the ones that want to have my baby
This is my Love Letter to You.....
Nope folks I ain't touching that one.........and yes he sings it on the album too!
Now there are a couple of R Kelly songs that are instantly identifiable and forgettable....and they sound pretty good in a Step In The Name of love sort of way.
Then again Maybe I'm just getting old, or maybe he's gotten to the point where he really don't give a dam and after getting rid of the braids and thugz [[ Jahiem did too! ), he's trying to be a singer...oh well what the hell do I know ? Guess he called the image police. He is after all a very talented singer and writer, I just wish he'd do something along the lines of Stevie, Jackie or Marvin that we could discuss and debate the greatness that lies within........oh well.....what the hell do I know ?
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