Ray Parker Jr. and Raydio were amidst a successful career when album number four, A Woman Need Love, hit stores in 1981. The album’s first single “is “A Woman Needs Love (Just Like You Do.) The song was written as a counterpoint to the group’s previous hit, “Jack and Jill.” That song was is written from “Jack’s” viewpoint of being neglected, just as “A Woman Needs Love” is written from “Jill’s” perspective, as the lyrics indicate: “by the time poor Jack returned up the hill, someone else had been loving Jill.”
“It’s Your Night” takes things to the dance floor and gives the band a chance to show off their instrumentation skills. “That Old Song” is a fan favorite that talks about a former love that anyone can relate to when you think about an ex before finding the right one. “All in the Way You Get Down” finds the group dabbling in a sound popularized by Heatwave and Rod Temperton. Honestly, hearing this song would feel right at home on Michael Jackson’s Off The Wall.
“You Can’t Fight What You Feel” and “Old Pro” are both solid album tracks, while “Still in the Groove,” a follow-up to the instrumental funk hit “For Those Who Like to Groove,” should gratify fans looking for a good time. The album closes out with the sappy ballad “So Into You.” As we all know, Parker would go onto a successful solo career, so maybe his heart wasn’t entirely in this project. Nevertheless, A Woman Need Love features enough likable material to close out the group’s brief four-album catalog.
Final Grade: B-
A Woman Need Love is available on all streaming platforms.
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.