Good news, good news. There is a confirmed released date for Stevie Wonder’s highly-anticipated (and that’s an understatment) new record A Time 2 Love. Yes, you read that correctly….There is finally a release date for Stevie Wonder’s new record. A Time 2 Love will be commercially available on October 18th. But there’s other good news. The new record was released digitally on September 27th. So for all those who have the capabilities (and don’t want to wait for the October 18th release date), you can get the album now!

So why was the record’s release date postponed so many times? In an interview with Billboard Magazine, Wonder says that he had to make sure the time was right for the release of his record. ‘”As an artist, you get anxious and excited — you want to show what you can do….A lot of what I do when I do an album is based on whether the timing is right.”‘ Okay, all is forgiven. I wish a lot of other artists in the game followed the same sense of thinking. Maybe Wonder can share this wisdom with some of his peers.

The 15-track set about love features many high-profile guests. Prince and EnVogue are featured on “So What the Fuss.” Bonnie Raitt plays slide guitar on “Tell Your Heart I Love You.” Kim Burrell and Doug E. Fresh are featured on “If Your Love Cannot Be Moved.” India. Arie and Paul McCartney are featured on the title track. And Wonder’s daughter Aisha Morris is featured on “How Will I Know” and “Positivity.” Also featured is a song Wonder wrote in honor of those affected by Hurricane Katrina. The proceeds from this song (to be released digitally on October 11th) will go towards relief efforts.

Tracklist for A Time 2 Love:

1. If Your Love Cannot Be Moved
2. Sweetest Somebody I Know
3. Moon Blue
4. From the Bottom of My Heart
5. Please Don’t Hurt My Baby
6. How Will I Know
7. My Love Is on Fire
8. Passionate Raindrops
9. Tell Your Heart I Love You
10. True Love
11. Shelter in the Rain
12. So What the Fuss
13. Can’t Imagine Love Without You
14. Positivity
15. A Time To Love

For more info:

http://www.steviewonder.net/

http://www.billboard.com/bb/daily/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1001181834

The ladies of R&B/Soul sure have been doing it up this year. Patti, Mariah, Jill, Fantasia, Alicia, Destiny’s Child, Faith, Vivian, Leela, Lina, Jaguar, Amerie, Keyshia…..Add one more name to that list–Syleena.

I had absolutely no idea that her record was coming out so soon. Yes, Syleena Johnson’s new record Chapter 3: The Flesh was released on Tuesday, September 13th. But I have one question, where was the promotion? Yes, there’s been a video in rotation since about June/July for “Hypnotic.” And “Another Relationship” has been receiving considerable airplay on urban adult contemporary stations. But other than that, who would’ve known that Syleena had blessed us with another masterpiece?

So how is the new record? Excellent. Superb. Chapter 3: The Flesh is her best album to date. It’s soul for every occasion. The Flesh finds Syleena in her sexiest and most adventurous mood yet–musically, vocally, and lyrically. But she keeps it tasteful on tracks like “Phone Sex” and “Slowly.” There’s no raunchfest here.

Fans will also be happy to know that her voice (a gritty, sexy, soulful, and emotional instrument) remains at the center of attention. Standouts include the funky, celebratory “He Makes Me Say,” an infectious duet with R.Kelly entitled “Special Occasion,” and a rousing duet with Anthony Hamilton entitled, “More.” Their voices, completely drenched in old school soul music (and gospel), meld beautifully together. Other notable tracks include “Time,” “Apartment For Rent,” and “Only A Woman.”

The Flesh also features several collaborations. Many of which are in sequential order. Besides those already mentioned, there’s “Bulls-Eye (Suddenly)” with Common, “Classic Love Song” with Jermaine Dupri, and “Phone Sex” with Twista.

Syleena has successfully brought old school soul sensibilities into a contemporary soul environment. Plus being the daughter of legendary Soul/Blues artist Syl Johnson she just can’t help herself. I’m sure with this latest effort she’s done her father and her predecessors proud. Now let’s see if we can get her a platinum record.

If you haven’t already, please check out her previous records Chapter 1: Love, Pain & Forgiveness and Chapter 2: The Voice.

The ‘Ultimate’ Eurythmics
Good news for all Eurythmics fans. They have recently recorded two new songs as part of their retrospective Ultimate Collection to be released November 8th. The new songs are entitled “I’ve Got a Life” (1st single) and “Was It Just Another Love Affair.” This will mark the first time in almost six years that Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart have teamed up since the 1999 release Peace. This 19-track set has all of the favorites like “Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This),” “Here Comes The Rain Again,” “Would I Lie To You?,” “Demolition Man,” “I Need A Man,” “Who’s That Girl?” and “17 Again” to name a few. This is good enough to tie me down until the release of the next Eurythmics studio album or the next Annie Lennox studio album. Her last album, Bare, was breathtakingly beautiful. It’s been in my CD player for well over a year-and-a-half.

Alicia May Be ‘Unbreakable’ with Unplugged
Speaking of new releases, I’m really looking forward to the release of Alicia Keys Unplugged (10/11). It’s about time MTV brought the music back to the station. Less faux reality tv shows and more music please! Anyway, Alicia’s performance of her new single “Unbreakable” on the Fashion Rocks Awards got me hyped up. I’m really diggin’ it. Let’s see if radio takes to it the way they did her previous hits.

Toni Stop Teasing Us With ‘Libra’
I’m really getting tired of waiting for Toni Braxton’s upcoming release Libra. I’ve heard about four (maybe five) songs from it, those being “Take This Ring,” “Trippin,” “Supposed To Be” and “Please.” I love all of them. This album’s going to be hot! Quite possibly as good as or better than The Heat. Wouldn’t that be something? But I mean Toni, cut it with the teasing. I guess I’ll just have to wait until September 27th for the official release. And hope and pray that the record label doesn’t push it back (again).

Where The Hell Is Stevie Wonder’s ‘A Time 2 Love’? & What’s ‘India.Arie’s Song’ About?
And speaking of being pushed back, when is the Stevie Wonder album A Time 2 Love coming out? It’s been pushed back I don’t know how many times. It’s a shame. I really enjoyed “From The Bottom Of My Heart” and “So What The Fuss” (Stevie, Prince and EnVogue on one track–what more could you ask for? Be on the lookout for a new EnVogue record featuring the original members-Dawn, Max, Terry and Cindy). This album was supposed to have been out June 2004, then May 2005, June 2005, July 2005, now it’s just TBA. Last I’d heard, he’d gone back in to the studio to record additional tracks. The title track “A Time 2 Love” was co-written with India.Arie. For those wondering what India.Arie’s been working on lately–a two volume record. This two volume record is tentatively titled India.Arie’s Song. The first volume will feature songs about life and relationships while the second volume will feature songs about love and politics. Seems like this might be her most accomplished and most ambitious effort to date. And rightfully so after the release of Voyage To India some would say.

Be on the lookout for new singles by the Fugees “Take It Easy” and Deborah Cox “A House Is Not A Home” (available on iTunes).

And word on the street is Janet Jackson (my girl!) is in the studio working on something new. Hopefully this next release will be within the range of greatness as janet. and The Velvet Rope or possibly something even better. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see….

Other releases to look out for:
Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley Welcome to Jamrock (9/13)
Tracie Chapman Where You Live (9/13)
Bonnie Raitt Souls Alike (9/13)
B.B. King 80 (9/13)
Christión Project Plato (9/13)
So Amazing: All-Star Tribute to Luther Vandross (9/20)
Earth, Wind & Fire Illumination (9/20)
Miri Ben-Ari Hip-Hop Violinist (9/20)
Jamiroquai Dynamite (9/20)
Shaggy Clothes Drop (9/20)
Latoya London Love and Life (9/20)
Kindred The Family Soul In This Life Together (9/20)
Cissy Houston The Cissy Houston Collection (9/20)
Kim Waters All For Love (9/20)
Sean Paul The Trinity (9/27)
Lil’ Kim The Naked Truth (9/27)
Sheryl Crow Wildflower (9/27)
Fiona Apple Extraordinary Machine (10/04)
Dwele Some Kinda (10/04)
Trina The Glamourest Life (10/04)
Gerald Albright Voices (10/04)
Will Downing Soul Symphony (10/04)
Les Nubians Les Nubians Present Echos (10/04)
Kirk Whalum Performs the Babyface Songbook (10/04)
Kirk Franklin Hero (10/04)
Urban Knights The Best of Urban Knights (10/04)
Twista The Day After (10/04)
Jane Monheit The Monheit Collection (10/04)
Toshi Reagon Have You Heard (10/04)
Rose Royce Greatest Hits (10/04)
Anita Baker Christmas Fantasy (10/04)
Peabo Bryson Christmas With You (10/04)
Keith Sweat Welcome To The Sweat Hotel (10/18)
Destiny’s Child #1’s (10/25)
Santana All That I Am (11/01)
Mary J. Blige Reminisce (11/22)
Fugees TBA (12/27)
Outkast (TBA)

Amidst the moaning and groaning about the movie slump, reports have been surfacing about another slump. This time the slump deals with the music industry. You’re probably saying, “Oh no! Not them again!” Yes, it’s them again. Billboard.com’s weekly reports show that sales are down 8% from this time last year. This news comes after 2004 being a monumental year for the music industry. Sales were up tremendously after a three year decline. But at this point, should we really be concerned?

The music industry should really be happy that consumers are still buying music–period. If you ask me, a lot of crappy music has been released (the rise and fall of teen pop maybe?). Many releases not even worthy of browsing let alone purchasing. Thank god for a few stellar releases here and there. The current state of music could be a lot worse.

While talk about the music industry slump continues, label conglomerate Universal Music Group (UMG) is sitting pretty. With 36% of the music sales in the U.S., UMG is the leader amongst the four major labels. Three of this year’s best selling albums are by artists on the UMG roster (50 Cent, Mariah Carey and The Game). Like the movie industry, the music industry is looking towards fall releases by Outkast, Sheryl Crow, Alicia Keys, Kanye West, Santana, and Paul McCartney to name a few, to put a hike in sales. All I can say is these albums better be pretty damn good.

This discussion cannot go on without bringing up downloading. Industry leaders still point to piracy as one of the reasons for the slump. But this may not be as great of an issue as it was a few years ago. This due in large part to the industry cracking down on piracy with prosecution (and fines). All the while legal downloading has tripled this year. The International Federation of Phonograph Industries (IFPI) reports 180 million single tracks were downloaded in the first half of the year. Industry leaders also point to digital media (video games and DVDs in particular) as having adverse effects on music sales.

Regardless of this, the music industry might be in a better place if they had embraced mp3s much earlier on. The industry fell behind the technology and now they have to deal with the consequences. Consumers had been forced to buy CDs when they only desired a few singles. This came about as soon as the industry started cutting back on the release of radio singles to retail. If you liked the song or songs, you had to buy the entire CD. At least now with downloading you download and pay for only the songs you want. After all, there’s nothing worse than spending $15 – $20 on a CD where only 4 out of 12 or 15 songs are decent.

This also brings up the decline in the quality of music. It’s apparent that with many of the recent mergers, layoffs, and music being released, that the labels are only interested in making hits. They’re doesn’t seem to be an interest in helping artists maintain long-term recording careers. You’re only as good as you’re last hit. And if you haven’t had a hit in a while, you will probably be dropped quicker than a black show on primetime TV (yet another pertinent issue for another post).

I’m a lover of music. Good music at that. And much of what is being released isn’t all that great. So why waste my money? Contemporary music has been mediocre at best. If the focus was less on image and more so on the music and the talent, maybe the landscape wouldn’t be so barren. And let’s face facts–the CD has a limited shelf life. Music in a digital format is where it’s at. But in the meantime, take heed and pay attention industry leaders (and consumers). Just maybe, things will look up.

Say what you will about singer/songwriter/producer Mariah Carey, but she is one of the most successful and influential musical artists of the last 15 years. (Looking at the last few years of American Idol hopefuls during try-outs is enough to confirm this.) Actually, with her sales and chart history, Carey is one of the most successful artists of all time. If The Emancipation of Mimi is any indication, her reign will continue.

Mimi is Carey’s best and most consistent album since Butterfly. Mimi is not a pop record; it’s very much a R&B/Soul record. Carey and her team of producers (Jermaine Dupri, the Neptunes, Kanye West, and James Poyser to name a few) have crafted great songs that linger with you long after their conclusion. There’s a familiarity about this album that reminds you of old school 70s (and possibly 80s) R&B/Soul music. The ballads like “We Belong Together,” “Mine Again” and “I Wish You Knew” are heartfelt, touching and beautiful. Up-tempo tracks like “Say Somethin’,” “Shake It Off” and “Get Your Number” are hypnotic, catchy and lyrically clever.

Besides the music and production, Mimi reminds listeners what drew them to Carey initially—the voice. The passion and emotion in Carey’s voice draws you in, making each and every song convincing. Mimi is an excellent showcase of Carey’s artistic growth. Carey should be commended. Mimi is gearing up to be not only one of the best selling albums of the year, but one of the best selling albums of her career as well. It’s nice to see Carey back on the top—where she belongs.

2003 marked the music world’s introduction to Lizz Wright with the release of her first album entitled Salt. Reviewers and listeners confirmed that Wright was the next big jazz vocalist of note. But is it safe to call Wright a jazz singer? Probably not. Salt had a jazzy vibe, but also showcased Wright’s soul, gospel, folk, and blues leanings. Wright, like vocalists Cassandra Wilson and Dianne Reeves, is likely to defy categorization. Salt was the perfect segway to Dreaming Wide Awake.

Dreaming is a great collection of songs, mostly guitar driven, with more of a folk and blues appeal. The sparse production of Craig Street puts Wright’s voice center stage. The listener cannot help but be mesmerized by her vocal storytelling. She gets inside of each and every song. Her vocalizing is sincere and honest, never showy or overdone. She breathes new life into such classics like Neil Young’s “Old Man” and Youngbloods’ “Get Together.” Wright also leaves you wanting more with her originals like “Trouble” and the title track.

Regardless of what genre of music Wright is singing, nothing can take away from the soul, richness, resonance, and versatility of her voice. Dreaming may not be jazz, but it’s great music—period.

I’ve been listening to a lot of music this summer. Much of it has been very good. In no particular order, here what’s been on my frequently played list for the last few months:

1. Mariah Carey The Emancipation of Mimi
2. Jill Scott Beautifully Human: Words & Sounds, Vol. II
3. Lizz Wright Dreaming Wide Awake
4. Raul Midon State of Mind
5. Faith Evans The First Lady
6. Zero 7 When It Falls
7. Esthero We R In Need of a Musical Revolution!
8. Amerie Touch
9. Tweet It’s Me Again
10. Janet Jackson Control
11. Shakira Laundry Service
12. Brian McKnight Gemini
13. Annie Lennox Bare
14. Seal Seal IV
15. John Legend Get Lifted
16. Gwen Stefani Love.Angel.Music.Baby
17. George Michael Patience
18. Sweet Back Stage (2)
19. Smokie Norful Nothing Without You
20. Brandy Afrodisiac
21. Anita Baker My Everything
22. Lizz Wright Salt
23. Floetry Floetic
24. Alicia Keys The Diary of Alicia Keys
25. Kem Kemistry

And Classics:

1. The Best of Al Jarreau
2. The Best of George Benson
3. Dinah Washington The Diva Series
4. Marvin Gaye Let’s Get It On
5. Marvin Gaye What’s Goin’ On
6. The Best of Etta James
7. Anything by Luther Vandross