Rick James - Wonderful '1988/2014

Tracks list

Tracklist
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01. Wonderful
02. Judy
03. Looseys Rap
04. So Tight
05. Sexual Luv Affair
06. Loves Fire
07. I Believe in U
08. In the Girls Room
09. Hypnotize
10. Sherry Baby
11. Hot Summer Nights


After an eight-year stay at Motown, Rick James moved to Reprise/Warner Bros.
with 1988s Wonderful. By that time, the funkster wasnt nearly as popular as he
had been in the late 70s and early 80s, and he hoped to make a major comeback
with this album. Reprise was delighted when the single Looseys Rap (which
features rapper Roxanne Shanté) went to number one on Billboards R&B singles
chart, but Wonderful didnt contain any other major hits -- and it isnt hard to
understand why. This is a very uneven effort that usually misses the mark,
although it has its moments. To James credit, he doesnt spend the entire album
trying to recycle Street Songs, and he doesnt inundate listeners with pale
imitations of Super Freak and Give It to Me Baby. The singer tries different
things, sometimes incorporating pop/rock, synth funk, and hip-hop elements.
However, only a few of the songs are memorable -- most notably, the
above-mentioned Looseys Rap, the Cameo-minded So Tight, and the dramatic ballad
I Believe in U. Wonderful (which was James only album for Reprise) was an
improvement over 1986s The Flag, but that isnt saying much because The Flag was
the weakest album of James career. Hardly essential, Wonderful is only
recommended to completists.

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