After 3 Jodeci CDs and 2 K-Ci & Jo Jo CDs under their belt, the Hailey brothers are back with their third CD, "X". This CD follows the same formula as the other two K Ci & Jo Jo CDs have: Slow jams, midtempo grooves and an upbeat song or two to balance everything out. I have enjoyed past K Ci & Jo Jo songs like "Last Night's Letter", "How Many Times...", "Just For Your Love", "Fee Fi Fo Fum", "Hello Darlin", etc. "X" starts off with two nice ballads that are in contention for best song on the CD. Jo Jo is looking for an "Honest Lover" and K Ci wants to do right. The song "Wanna Do You Right" is produced by Teddy Riley & Roy Hamilton and is an interpolation of the Luther Ingram classic "If Lovin' You Is Wrong, I Don't Want To Be Right". The first single, "Crazy" is also featured on the "Save The Last Dance" soundtrack and is the best slow song on the CD. On the uptempo track, "Thug N U Thug N Me", the late Tupac Shakur joins K Ci & Jo Jo in a "Toss It Up" jamboree and has the Hailey brothers going back to their Jodeci days, which isn't bad. Timbaland produces "Game Face", another uptempo track that will remind people of Jodeci back in the day as well. However, K Ci & Jo Jo are at their best when they stick to the slower songs. "All The Things I Should Have Known" is produced by Babyface and has K Ci & Jo Jo showing their true colors on this song. They should do more songs with Babyface in the future. Other gems are "I Can't Find The Words", and "Something Inside Of Me". Anyone that liked K Ci & Jo Jo's previous CDs will enjoy "X". You can also find a bonus Jodeci track on the CD as well.
Actually, this album is really good. It starts off strong with a very beautiful ballad entitled "Honest Lover", and quite honestly (pun intended), this might be one of my favorite K-Ci and Jojo songs of all time. It is so smooth...(trust me).The next two songs are okay, and then we come to "Crazy"...and I will always think of Julia Stiles and Sean Patrick Thomas whenever this song comes on. It was a pretty decent movie (Save The Last Dance), but this is a great song - right?
Next up is "Game Face", and this track is pretty cool. Timbaland and Static produced it, but I think it needs a rap break. Oh well...but my thirst for hip-hop gets answered on the next track, "Thug N U, Thug N Me" featuring the late great Tupac Shakur. This track is devilishly funky, and I love it.
I absolutely dig "If It's Going To Work"...this is a Jojo song all the way (the one with the smoother voice), and it just flows; I think it would sound absolutely fantastic on the radio. Next is their second single, "All The Things I Should Have Known", and this is a Babyface track (and it shows). It's excellent, and I predict it will be a moderate hit with pop radio.
The next few songs build up to track #11, "One Last Time", which is a very, very pretty song. Eventually we work our way up to "Ooh Yeah", the last song. I like this one a lot too, because it addresses the fact that a lot of singers have copied signature vocal 'runs' (also known as 'riffs') that Jodeci (K-Ci in particular) originated. Everyone from Dru Hill to the Backstreet Boys have done some of K-Ci's runs.
(Example: In the middle of BSB's "Get Another Boyfriend", A.J. Maclean lets off a signature K-Ci riff: "Yay-ah-ee-ah-hay"...I couldn't believe my ears)
Anyhow, "Ooh Yeah" is a great song, and it reminds me of Jodeci. Speaking of Jodeci, I couldn't find the "hidden" track on my version of this CD, and I'm a bit irritated because of this. Can anyone help me?
Thanks for reading...
Knyte.
Being a huge music fan, i can guarantee that you fill find it difficult to find a cd that comes close to this. Maybe with the exception of One twelve-part 3, which i am also obsessed with. This album has inspired me in aspects of my life. I often find that waking up listening to this sensational music not only gets me thinking back on great times and experiences i have had but also gives me a feeling of satisfaction. What i have found through listening to it is the more you listen to it and give it a chance the more you will understand where i am coming from. I originally had heard just 'crazy' and 'thuggin you thuggin me' but for all the songs to be at a similar standard to this was quite surreal. Track number 8 is called 'all the things i should have known' and has turned out to be my favourite, each word sung is sensational and has made a positive impact on my life. I believe that this is an essential must have cd in every RNB fans collection. I am devoting my life to try and find a concert in England that Kci and jojo will attend.
marks the spot for the Hailey brothers.
i think the group slipped even further after the 3rd release. the 1st was the best, the 2nd one wasnt so great, the 3rd was no better. an appearance by 2pac in "thug in u", plus the popular "crazy." but the rest isnt worth it.
Not bad at all...
I think the album "X" should stand for the unknown, as in, what unknown force could have caused some of the top producers in this here game to pump out D-Grade material for the Hailey Bros?
After using mostly unknown producers on their first two albums, the brothers finally decide to flex their muscles with the some of the best producers, like Timbaland, Teddy Riley, Babyface, and DeVante Swing. Even the late 2pac's (R.I.P) vocals are reunited with the Haileys on this album. However, what could have been the musically defining album in the Hailey Bros discography is instead a medicore afterthought as all the songs came off as regrettably unforgettable. Considering what could have been, it's a shame that this album turned out to be very uninspiring.
The only tracks that stopped the heart for a few precious moments is the Jodeci hidden track "Slip N Fall" and the bonus track "I Just Can't Leave" found on the Japanese CD. "Slip N Fall" simply oozes wicked attitude as listening to it conjures up memories of days long gone when you could say Jodeci and get a reply like, "Those thugs can sure sing the panties off those song!". "I Just Can't Leave" starts off with a fan inquiring about K-Ci past relationships (i.e Mary J. Blige), to which good ole' K-Ci takes the high ground and tells them to leave it alone "cause she done all told you one time". After that humorous intro, K-Ci does his best "I B Goin' Solo Won't U Come and See Me" impression and belts out one nutty song that has him singing to his a) stalker on why he can't leave his girl then b) declaring his love forever, to his lady and finally c) sanging to the both of them at the same time. A nice little ditty from K-Ci that leaves you wanting more. Heck, after listening to both bonus tracks one is left wondering why they even bothered with the album "X" when a new Jodeci album or a K-Ci solo album sounds more appealing.
Whereas Jodeci (the four-man ensemble that spawned this spin-off project) were known for their grinding-the-stage gyrations and afterparty aspirations, K-Ci & JoJo, often besuited in tuxes and tails, are a duo known more for their semidignified balladry. Each of their two previous albums (Love Always and It's Real) spawned an anodyne megahit: "All My Life" and "Tell Me It's Real," respectively. X promises nothing less. "Crazy" has that formula feel to it; "Baby, I apologize for all the things that I've done," JoJo croons at the outset, before giving way to a vocoded chorus so tinny it almost collapses. Nevertheless, its moody blue tenor is just what urban radio ordered. The pair keep up the serenades throughout X, hitting high points on "One Last Time" and the Marvin Gaye-ish "I Can't Find the Words." K-Ci and JoJo only go uptempo on the banal "Game Face" and the bubbly, aggressively sexy "Thug in Me, Thug in You." The latter features yet another lost 2Pac verse, and it's the only track where the two don't appear to stand on ceremony--hinting that freaks still lurk under those tuxedos. --Jon Caramanica
Includes Exclusive Bonus Track 'tell Me It's Real (Club Steppers Mix)'. Track Sequencing is Slightly Different Than USA Version.
