Get Familiar: Christion "Ghetto Cyrano"

This is one of the greatest R&B/soul albums I have ever heard.

I could almost leave this posting with just that sentence to express just how good it is. The first song I heard off of this was the single "Full of Smoke", a soulful hustler's anthem that recalls the work of Marvin Gaye and Curtis Mayfield. I bought the CD (it dropped in 1997) and was blown away. Christion, originally from my native Bay Area, were signed to Roc-A-Fella Records, a label which was good at marketing rap acts, but maybe didn't do Christion much justice in that department.

After "Full Of Smoke" and the smoothed-out gangster musings of "Pull It", Christion kicks off the best part of the album with the song "Midnight Ecstasy"..."Welcome home/ unplug the phone/ tonight's the night for me we're all alone/ forget about the bedroom dear/ lay down I'm gonna do you right here..." Just to let you know they mean business, in case you didn't know what this music was designed for! In the same vein, the self-explanatory tracks "Take Off Your Clothes" and "Anything Goes" are also baby-makers.

Christion covers the classic "I Wanna Get Next To You" flawlessly as they segue into the ballad portion of the album. "Bring Back Your Love" is the quintessential please-baby-please song, with one of the guys talking to a woman's answering machine throughout the song, at one point saying "I wish I could climb through this telephone line and kiss your lips". God-damn. "Come To Me" is a masterpiece, plain and simple. "Soon" is easily the crowning glory of the album, with minimalist production and solid vocals.

Every review I have read about this album has been positive, and for good reason. Christion brings to mind classic acts like The Stylistics, Smokey Robinson, and the Dramatics while maintatining their originality. Even minus the vocals, the instrumentation on the album would stand on its own. This is the kind of effort that is lacking in a lot of music these days, particularly in the R&B world. Do yourself a favor and get this album!

Get Familiar: Bilal's "First Born Second"

Music lovers everywhere are always looking for that album that is the perfect masterpiece, one that plays from start to finish without touching your player. Bilal's First Born Second is one such album that speaks to every possible emotion that one might have, not only in relationships but in life in general. Bilal puts the extra effort in to make life songs instead of just love songs, with enough soul, jazz, and rock infused to please the most eccentric of musical tastes.

"For You," "Fast Lane" and "All That I Am" are those songs you put on in the morning to get you through the first part of your day. "Reminisce" and "Sometimes" make you wanna spark a li'l somethin', burn some incense and have a glass of wine and reflect. "You Are", "Love Poems", "Love It", and "Soul Sista" are equally satisfying, but standard love songs that are unconventional in their written approach.

The ballad "Queen of Sanity" deserves its own paragraph, so here goes. This song is easily the best song on the album, starting out at almost a whisper and building into a controlled roar. Bilal has a Prince-like mastery of his vocals and goes from very high to very deep at a moment's notice, giving his music considerable texture. His musical backing is always on point as well.

I saw Bilal at the 9:30 club in DC, which also makes me somewhat biased in this review, because he was excellent in his live show, just as he was on the album. He was an hour late, but nobody cared because Bilal and his band came out hard and didn't stop killing it until the set was over. Great vocals, great band, great show, great album. And for the underground 'heads, Bilal's "Love for Sale" is hard to find but worth the effort, with tracks like "Get Out Of My Hair" and "White Turns to Gray" making it another perfect album. Buy the albums, buy the tickets, and support real music by supporting this artist!