Both 90's R&B babes TLC and the Twitter bird know there's no shame in my game. In the grand tradition of TLC's 1992 single "Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg," your 90's-ologist asks that you please follow her on Twitter, if you are so inclined. I just finally got my tuchis over there and signed up, and I recommend it to all my friends with short attention spans and/or lack of time. It can be quite amusing.
You don't even have to go anywhere to start following me...simply scroll down until you find "Twitter Updates" in the right sidebar, click on "Follow me on Twitter" and you will be transferred directly to my profile, where you can begin receiving the magic. For those of you following the blog from a directory like MyBlogLog, the address is http://twitter.com/Your90sologist. Hell, I'll follow you! I'll be your bff!
Thanks, gang. Please enjoy some love from TLC to you:
TLC - "Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg" from their 1992 album, "Ooooooohhh.... On the TLC Tip"
Meet Keisha Chante. She's a Canadian singer who's going to be portraying Damn The Man favorite and 90's R&B songstress Aaliyah in an upcoming Bill Condon-directed biopic (Condon also helmed "Dreamgirls" and a future Movies You Might Have Missed feature, "Gods and Monsters" (1998). I have to thank my favorite gossip site, Bossip, for tipping me off on this one. If you need a bit more reputable resource, BET can help you.
Here's what Bill has to say about preparing Miss Chante for the role:
“We are going to great extremities to make this movie perfect. We have (Keisha) Chante in extensive… …training studying, speaking with family members, watching personal footage and in choreography training with Aaliyah’s choreographer and dear friend Fatima Robinson. This movie will will be seamless the same way it was for Selena fans who enjoyed Jennifer Lopez.”
It kind of makes me chuckle that the 1997 film "Selena" is the yardstick for excellence with this thing, since I thought I was the only one who really liked that movie. One can, apparently, be wrong about such a thing. Future Shawshank Redemption of Mainstream Cinema feature here on Damn The Man, I promise!
Your 90's-ologist feels that this Keisha chick looks a'ight, I guess, but there is no replacement for the real thing:
Aaliyah - "The One I Gave My Heart To" from her 1996 album, "One In A Million"
NEW EDITION - "CAN YOU STAND THE RAIN" From their 1988 album, "Heart Break"
OK, I know that it says 1988. Not the 90's. But lots of songs that came out in the very late 80's enjoyed life in the early 90's, especially when they were created by a viable 80's pop group that was steadying itself for a 90's comeback, such as Boston's own New Edition.
New Edition, in my opinion, do not get their just due. These guys were doing the boy band thing way before those New Kids put on their first pair of British Knights and learned the white boy shuffle (after which they were first in line for former New Edition manager Maurice Starr's next Boston casting call; he would become their manager after he split with New Edition). "Cool It Now," "Mr. Telephone Man," "Candy Girl..." these were all sunny pop tunes that took some of the very heavy load off of Michael Jackson in the race to sufficiently entertain a modern R&B and pop audience in the 80's. By the end of the decade, the band sought to be seen less as boys and more as men (hence their 1991 single "Boys to Men," and subsequent bestowing of this name to their proteges and wildly successful 90's R&B act, Boyz II Men), and started pumping out suave jams like "Can You Stand The Rain."
Look at them in their suits...We had the 45" vinyl record of this song in my house, and this was the photo used on the sleeve. They were dead up serious about their new image and it worked for that moment which saw an upswing in smooth and elegant urban music. With the addition of non-Bostonian Johnny Gill (he's from D.C.) to the mix after the departure of Bobby Brown (who was pursuing his solo career), they were once again on their way to relevance. Success!
I love this song. I miss these types of sexy jams...You throw these on the stereo (in today's case you click open iTunes), dim the lights, light a few candles...you know the rest. I call these "Lay Lady Lay" songs...Bob Dylan, ironically, wrote the smoothest jam there is way back in 1969. All a swingin' guy has to do is throw "Lay Lady Lay" or "Can You Stand The Rain" on the Hi-Fi, turn the lights down low, pour his lady friend some Martini & Rossi, and let whatever happens happen, baby.
Here is New Edition performing "Can You Stand The Rain" on one of my favorite 90's shows, "The Arsenio Hall Show:"
"Just plain Ron, I guess..." I love the interview with Arsenio afterward. Damn The Man promises you more Arsenio in the future. Not to mention Bell Biv Devoe!
Here's the studio track for those of you who have never heard the song before:
MINT CONDITION - "BREAKIN' MY HEART (PRETTY BROWN EYES)" From the 1991 album, "Meant To Be Mint"
I have to thank my favorite gossip site, Bossip, for jumpstarting the ol' memory on this song. Mint Condition was a contemporary R&B group that fell under the same umbrella as other "New Jack Swing" groups of the early Nineties like Jodeci, Guy, Blackstreet, LeVert, Brownstone and K-Ci & JoJo. 1991's "Breakin' My Heart (Pretty Brown Eyes)" was one of those junior high school dance jams for New York kids...hearing this or any other hit single by one of these groups and I am instantly 12 again. It is fun, however, to go back and hear how these guys could SANG. Back then, talent was actually enough to get quite a few folks by, and we are all better for it.
Here is a live video of "Pretty Brown Eyes..." Put on a Hypercolor shirt and enjoy!
Your 90's-ologist misses Aaliyah. Great contemporary R&B singer, Brooklyn native and true child of the 90's, Aaliyah would have turned 30 years old yesterday. Aaliyah died in a plane crash on August 25, 2001. Her plane malfunctioned and went down shortly after attempting to leave the Bahamas (where she had just shot the video for her wonderful 2001 single "Rock The Boat") for New York. She is buried at Ferncliff Cemetery located in Hartsdale, NY (the town where I went to high school, incidentally).
She was famous for many things, including being secretly married to mentor R. Kelly when she was only 15 years old, but above all she was an innovative artist who reflected the times she lived in by being open-minded and interested in other types of music outside of her own genre, including metal (she was a fan of bands like Korn), incorporating those styles into her own music (with the help of famed R&B/Hip-Hop/rock producer Timbaland and songwriter Missy Elliot). I really enjoyed this creative aspect of her sophisticated and modern songs. BabyGirl was an original, adventurous spirit who continues to influence scores of young pop and R&B artists today (I'm talking to you, Rihanna!).
Though she had only three albums to her credit upon her death, "Age Ain't Nothing But A Number (1994), "One In A Million (1996) and "Aaliyah" (2001), it feels as if Aaliyah had countless songs that struck emotional gold and stick with you even now. She was beautiful, inside and out, and it's a shame more pop stars don't follow suit. Here are videos for songs off of each of her albums:
AGE AIN'T NOTHING BUT A NUMBER (1994)
Aaliyah - Back and Forth
No matter what you may think of R. Kelly and his neverending embarrassment of riches, he is responsible for nurturing Aaliyah's talent in the early years, and was lead songwriter and producer of her debut record.
ONE IN A MILLION (1996) (My personal fave!)
Aaliyah - One In A Million
Aaliyah - If Your Girl Only Knew
Aaliyah - 4 Page Letter
AALIYAH (2001)
Aaliyah - Rock The Boat
Aaliyah - More Than a Woman
Aaliyah - We Need A Resolution
Aaliyah - Try Again
This is a track from the 1998 "Dr. Dolittle" soundtrack:
In a way, I wish all R&B could float as effervescent and light as the UK's Brand New Heavies. Like Soul II Soul before them, listening to their music feels inspiring and motivational...something a cynic like me needs every so often. Though singer N'Dea Davenport's vocals weren't as technically wowing as some of her American counterparts, there's just something really sophisticated about the pairing of her voice with this incredibly adept acid jazz/funk music. These songs would take me away to my second life on the French Riveria, wearing big black sunglasses and a Diane Von Furstenberg wrap dress, waiting for my foreign lover (Italian, Greek, whatever--he doesn't speak English and I don't care) on his Vespa. Enough of my Continental fantasies, here are the songs:
Brand New Heavies - "Dream On Dreamer" (1994)
Brand New Heavies - "Never Stop" (1991)
The image at the top of the post is from their 2006 record, "Get Used to It," which has recently been remixed by the legendary Tom Moulton (American originator of the remix and the 12-inch single), and is available as "Get Used To It - The Tom Moulton Mixes" (2008).
I like this picture of Mary because this is what I think of when I think of this fellow Yonkers, NY native and her music: raw, unmitigated power and emotion. My friends and I listened to Mary J. Blige right alongside our Hatebreed and Notorious B.I.G. I would be incredibly remiss as your 90's-ologist if I did not mention that Mary J. will be playing Universal Citywalk's Gibson Ampitheatre, Universal City, CA, on Sunday, October 19th at 7:30pm. If you are in CA, please do try and check her out.
I leave you with a gem of a video: Mary performing "Real Love" from her 1992 album, "What's the 411?" (a milestone record not just for Mary herself, but for hip-hop and R&B as musical genres; this record saw more traditional R&B singing style mixed with hip-hop beats and attitude in a way that had not been so effective before), on "Showtime at The Apollo." Check old-school Rosie Perez introducing Ms. Blige:
P.S. She's appearing at the Gibson Ampitheatre with Robin Thicke in tow. I love Robin Thicke, but he ain't 90's, so check him out here, if you will. His music is alot cooler than the video makes it out to be.
