The record has been on my “to purchase” list since its release in December ‘07; damn, it’s been months. But I still have an issue with dropping $19US on a new record (on sale at that); however for a genuine high-quality record it is worth it. I knew I would not be disappointed with The...

A masterpiece record can be enjoyed from beginning to end; set to auto-repeat and you would not even notice that you have listed to it like three times straight. Additionally, the test of time will always prove its worth. Babyface’s second album, Tender Lover, is a masterpiece and definitely a classic that should be in...

A few years before she was blonde, the brunette beauty of Colombian and Lebanese blend wrote and sang completely in her native tongue – Spanish. Her imagination and style were rooted in the mixture of Spanish worlds – both old and new hemispheres. This was years before her Pepsi commercial and introduction to the American...

This is one of the most supreme downtempo, chill-out records you could ever rotate in your CD player. Dropped back in the last century the end of 1998, it remains one of the best of its genre. The K&D Sessions feels right at home anytime, but is perfect for this hibernation-awaking season; spring rainy days,...

The lyrical, soothing soundtrack of Foxbase Alpha has returned to heavy rotation on the iPod rescuing me from crowded subway trains and elevating me from a dense urban jungle to wide-open landscapes attached only to the distant horizon. Visions of green grass fields, late evening sunsets reflecting golden rays on my blank walls. This debut...

Ma, guess who’s coming home for dinner? China Forbes. If I bring her will you give her a chance? Actually, in addition to her, we would have to set at least fourteen more place settings at the dinner table. China is backed and fronted with a fourteen piece band. This is Pink Martini. The introduction...

The mighty Mos Def has finally returned to the masses or a least to the aficionados of hip-hop. It has been years since the Black on Both Sides record dropped and we rocked to Ms. Fat Booty (“Ass so fat you can see it from the front!”) or vibed to the beautiful Umi Says even...

Chances are you have this. This is one of those modern, sexy, soul classics records that need to be in your collection; otherwise they will revoke your ghetto pass. The legend is that Maxwell’s Urban Hang Suite was conceived during one of those New York City nights; one of his nights. This is a personal...

The Streets is Mike Skinner, a Brit geezer that crossed the Atlantic and injected a new flavor and dimension to this thing called hip hop. My introduction to Mike was while I was working hard on one of the computers, had the electronica music channel on the tele (wired to the input of the stereo,...

Sweetback resurfaced at Sounds on St. Marks, NYC; not the small one, but the larger store upstairs. I was curious about replacing a CD and came across the latest Sweetback album. I was like when did this drop? (June 22, 2004) Where have I been? (Sleeping) It was one of those instant purchases that did...

You know about the ground breaking, but under appreciated 3T (Tony Toni Tone) – It Never Rains in Southern California, Little Walter. And you should know about the short lived, but awesomely original Lucy Pearl – Dance Tonight. And if you were down about two years ago you knew about Raphael’s solo debut record, Instant...