R&B Ballads - #7

#7

D'Angelo - Lady

1996

I swear you're the talk of the town
And everybody wants to know what's going down

Woo-hoo!: We must have some hot songs in the top six if this one is pushed back all the way to number seven. This is a great song for a number of reasons. D'Angelo allows the music to come through by not singing all that much. But when he does sing, he goes straight to the meat and tells the story. And what's that in the background? Clapping? Hey, I can do that too!

D'oh!: If curiosity killed the cat, what did repetition do? Must've killed the mountain lion. The chorus is "You're my lady" repeated four times. Come on now, D! I know you're better than that. He makes up for it by singing it differently everytime, so that saves him. I also wish he would enunciate better. It takes a couple of listenings to make sure you know what he's saying. Finally, although he does go straight to the story, there isn't much to tell. I could sum up this song in a short sentence: She's his lady and he wants the world to know.

The Deal: When I say I loved this song, I'm not joking. It was easily in my top five favorite songs (possibly top three) for a very long time. And now look at it. Number seven in a list of songs from a very particular genre. But, it's still a great song.

R&B Ballads - #8

#8

K-Ci & JoJo - Tell Me It's Real

1999

Don't let love come just to pass us by

Woo-hoo!: To talk about the good things in this song, you have to start by talking about the end. K-Ci and JoJo have been together for awhile. Earlier in their careers they were both part of Jodeci. And before that they were brothers! Actually, I guess they still are. But the point is, they have great chemistry. Their voices meld so well together and at the end of this song is where it's best represented. It's almost got an electronic metallic taste to it. But I'd drink it down anyday.

D'oh!: The rest of the song is good, no doubt, but it's nowhere near the level of quality of those last 45 seconds. In fact, it's almost too upbeat to make this list, but there was no way I was going to leave it off. They're also penalized because halfway through the song, JoJo (I think) does a little bit of singing when it's perfectly clear to anyone who hears the song he should have been talking. Deep-voiced talking will get you everywhere.

The Deal: And just to make sure you know what I'm talking about, here are the lyrics to the end of the song. These occur while the chorus is being repeated:

I'll be there for you, baby, if you'll be there for me, sweetheart
I thought that we were meant to be, for eternity, I thought you loved
me baby
And mama told me take it slow, boy, you just don't know anything about
love
If you and I were meant to be, then you would know, it was sure by the
end of this song...

PS I've read some lyrics which say the last line says "it would show" instead of "it was sure". I honestly don't know. But it's great either way.