Welcome back to Slow Jam Saturday. We are continuing to pay homage to this month’s artist Jon B. This week, we are looking at what many consider Jon’s best album, Cool Relax. For his second album, Jon had more creative control and it shows in the music. “Don’t Say,” “They Don’t Know,” “I Do (Whatcha Say Boo),” and “Are U Still Down” (featuring 2Pac) were the singles from the album. Any one of these would have been a fine choice to highlight Jon’s talent, however, I had to go with an album track.
Initially, I wanted to go with “I Ain’t Going Out.” The reason being, I could relate to the lyrics of the song, particularly when it comes to the newness of a relationship. We all know when you find the right one that your friends then take a back seat. However, I decided on track #13, the sultry slow jam, “Can We Get Down.”
The song’s production is smooth as an aged cognac, and the lyrics can set a mood without ever crossing into the crass territory. We have all been in a situation where you want to be intimate with someone you may be living with. Sometimes, it is hard to find the exact words to say in your youth, and with “Can We Get Down,” Jon provides the lyrics for you. “What do I have to do/what do I have to say/to get you to come over girl/and let me have my way tonight.” For me, the song’s strength is that while Jon wants sex, he knows that it’s not a guarantee just because you are coming over.
Of the 93 songs in my Jon B. iTunes playlist, “Can We Get Down” has the most plays at twenty-eight. Now, if I could hear live just once, I can cross it off the songs to hear live.
Final Grade: A
Cool Relax is available on all streaming platforms.
For my DMV readers, I highly encourage you to check out Jon B. later this month when he performs at The Birchmere. Tickets are available for purchase at The Venue’s Box Office and Ticketmaster.com
One of the great things about buying a soundtrack when I was in my DJ prime was discovering a slow jam that I could put on my mix CDs. For this week’s Slow Jam Saturday, I wanted to highlight one of the songs: Jagged Edge’s cover of Air Supply’s, “All Out of Love.”
After twenty-six years in the game, Atlanta-based quartet Jagged Edge is currently on the road celebrating the anniversary of their magnum opus sophomore album, “J.E. Heartbreak,” with a tour titled “An Intimate Evening With Jagged Edge.” To kick off our seventh wedding anniversary celebration, my wife and I will be the D.C. date on the tour this coming Wednesday.
For this week’s Second Listen Sunday, I wanted to travel back to 1999 and show some love to R&B group Amyth, which was initially signed to LL Cool J Rock the Bells Records. Hailing from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the group was formed in 1995 while the members were students at Southern University.