Over a decade-long career, crossover jazz artist Kim Waters had built a comfortable, quiet storm and R&B covers niche when his thirteenth album From the Heart hit stores on April 10, 2011.
Waters’s saxophone skills had paid tribute to Boyz II Men, Maxwell, and Anita Baker on his previous albums. However, for From the Heart, Waters took it back to the seventies with an elegant cover of The Spinners’ hit “Love Don’t Love Nobody.” While Waters’s musicianship alone could have done the song justice, the sax man brought in Jazz from Dru Hill for the vocals.
Arguably, the best singer in the Baltimore-based group, Jazz never tries to imitate Phillipe Wynn, the song’s original singer. Instead, Jazz makes the song his own and allows the listener to feel his emotions as he croons:
“Sometimes a girl will come and go
You reach for love, but life won’t let ya know
That in the end, you’ll still be lovin’ her
But then she’s gone, you’re all alone”.
Waters and Jazz’s chemistry comes across so natural if Jazz ever had the chance to have his solo career, I would have loved to see Waters as his musical director on tour. My only complaint about the song is that we do not get a chance to hear the song’s spoken word.
Final Grade: A
“Love Don’t Love Nobody” from From the Heart is available on all streaming platforms.
Nineties R&B fans had an exciting moment last week when rumors began circulating that vocal powerhouses Brandy and Monica are reportedly embarking on “The Boy Is Mine Tour” this fall. While no official announcement has been made yet, with Monica’s debut album “Miss Thang” celebrating its 30th anniversary next month, I thought it would be the perfect pick for this week’s Second Listen Sunday.
As Black Music Month 2025 continues, I wanted to give flowers to “The Queen of Funk,” Ms. Chaka Khan, for this week’s Slow Jam Saturday. The song I decided to highlight is “Through the Fire.”
If there were ever a question on Jeopardy with a category about R&B bands and the question centered on Cameo, I’m sure it would be on one of their signature songs, “Candy” or “Word Up!”