Brian McKnight was already a force in R&B music when his seventh album, U-Turn, hit stores in March 2003. The album took inspiration from McKnight’s separation from his wife, evident in the first single, “Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda,” where McKnight points out his flaws.
The CD finds McKnight teetering between regret for his former love and enjoying the single life. However, for this week’s Slow Jam Saturday, I wanted to show kudos to one of U-Turn’s album tracks, “Good Enough.”
Brian decided to craft a sensual posse cut for the song. Fellow R&B crooners Carl Thomas, Joe, Tank, & Tyrese join Brian on the song. The singer’s voices all mesh well together throughout the tune’s nearly five-minute run time, with no one trying to outshine his counterpart. I’ve always enjoyed this particular song because it creates a sexy vibe, but it never goes into crass territory or vulgarity to set the mood. It still boggles my mind why the record label didn’t push this one as a single, as the numbers would have been crazy.
Final Grade: B+
“Good Enough” from Brian McKnight’s U-Turn is available on all streaming platforms.
For this week’s Second Listen Sunday, I want to revisit 2004 and highlight Romeo’s debut solo album, formerly of Immature. Titled “Food for Thought” and released on June 22nd, this project marked the singer’s change of name to Young Rome in an effort to distance himself from the youthful sound of his group, much like his bandmate Marques Houston had done a year earlier.
In the nineties, Hip-Hop reigned supreme, and every label CEO wanted a share of the lucrative R&B market. One strategy was to keep singers on their roster who could deliver catchy hooks, keeping everything in-house and saving money. Bad Boy had Carl Thomas, Death Row had Danny Boy, and Roc-A-Fella had Rell, our featured artist for this week’s Slow Jam Saturday
Growing up in the eighties, I was surrounded by incredibly talented male R&B singers who could deliver unforgettable love songs. Artists like Luther Vandross, Jeffrey Osborne, and Peabo Bryson dominated the airwaves, but Freddie Jackson was another voice that truly deserved recognition.