R&B lover man Keith Sweat already had an impressive three-album discography to his credit when he released his fourth album Get Up On It in June of 994. The lead single was the up-tempo “How Do You Like It”, which featured Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes of TLC. While I can understand where R&B was at the time, it actually made sense for the lead single to be an up-tempo number.
However, after his breakthrough first album, Keith’s strong point for me are in his ballads and slow jams. Thus, the second single from Get Up On It titled “When I Give My Love” still ranks high in my personal playlist of Keith Sweat slow jams. Sweat wrote and produced the song with Fitzgerald Scott and Joe Jefferson. The song starts with an intro that slowly creeps up on the listener before beginning with the chorus and then transitioning into the first verse.
From the moment Sweat croons the first verse “Hush, my baby, baby, don’t say a word, I got so much love for you, girl, haven’t you heard. Now I’m on a mission, girl, my intuition says you should be mine, I should be yours”, you know you have a classic on your hands. The album version of the song clocks in at over six minutes, yet Sweat never over sings the song or becomes repetitive with his delivery of the lyrics.
I also enjoyed the video for the song as it pays homage to the seventies classic film Cooley High. I have had the pleasure of seeing Keith Sweat live in concert twice, and even own his live DVD, Keith Sweat, The Sweat Hotel Live. However, much to my dismay, I have never heard the song live, nor is there a remix for it.
Nevertheless, “When I Give My Love” is as forgotten gem in Keith’s already impressive catalog.
Final Grade: A
Get Up On It is available on all streaming platforms
As music fans mourn the loss of the iconic Angie Stone, we will continue paying tribute to the songstress. After getting her start in Hip-Hop with the group The Sequence, she transitioned into R&B with her second group, Vertical Hold. However, her 1999 debut, “Black Diamond,” and this week’s Second Listen Sunday pick allowed Stone to break through to the masses.
Music fans were shocked when we learned last week that the legendary Angie Stone had been called home to join the heavenly choir. I had planned to feature Ms. Stone on Slow Jam Saturday for a while and hoped to interview her. I went back and forth about which song to feature, but when I thought about the state of the world, the only choice was “Brotha.”
Heaven gained another angelic voice last weekend when the iconic Roberta Flack made her transition. I kept Ms. Flack’s music in regular rotation, particularly her cover of Stephen Bishop’s “It Might Be You.” However, for this week’s Slow Jam Saturday, I wanted to highlight another one of her covers, “Set the Night to Music.”
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