AALIYAH
ALBUMS
Age Ain’t Nothin’ But
a Number(1994) *** (3)
Highlights: At Your Best (You Are Love), Back & Forth, Age
Ain’t Nothin’ But a Number, Old School, I’m Down
One in a Million (1996) ***.5 (3.5 stars)
Highlights: If Your Girl Only Knew, A Girl Like You, Choosey
Lover, One in a Million, 4 Page Letter
Aaliyah (2001) **** (4 stars)
H: We Need a Resolution, Rock The Boat, More Than a Woman, I
Care For You, I Refuse
I Care 4 U (2002) *** (3 stars)
Ultimate Aaliyah
(2005) **** (4 stars)
Aaliyah arrived on the scene in
1994 scoring two top ten pop hits in “Back & Forth” and “At Your Best (You
Are Love)” and the accompanying album Age
Ain’t Nothin’ But a Number sold over 3 million copies in the United States
alone. Signed to a record deal at the age of 12 and recording her debut album
at all of 14, Age predictably relies
greatly on R. Kelly’s songwriting and production to carry much of the
recording. Aaliyah’s vocals are never less than silky and smooth and the
standout track “At Your Best” shows clearly her debt to Michael Jackson’s
ballad stylings. A promising debut that barely hints at just how good she’ll
be, Age is bogged down by a bit too
much filler, though it’s never exactly dull. Never one to deny her influences,
“Old School” showed her appreciation for those who paved the way.
For One In A Million, Aaliyah turned to producers Timbaland, Jermaine
Dupri and Missy Elliott. Surprisingly, the album wasn’t quite as commercially
successful as its predecessor (though it did sell over 2 million copies) but
the best tracks are more than equal to her debut’s best songs. Lead single “If
Your Girl Only Knew” was one of the first examples of Timbaland’s production
technique of wedding hip hop beats to a classic R&B sound. “One in a
Million” sounded even more unusual as Timbaland here took a nod from the
drum-n-bass movement sweeping Europe. As is often the case, the US wasn’t quite
ready for these sounds as both singles did respectably but failed to match the
highs that Age singles scaled. The
big pop hit was the power ballad “The One I Gave My Heart To” unlikely only in
that Aaliyah should record a Diane Warren song. It’s the one direct comparison
to Age (ballad against ballad “At
Your Best”) where this album doesn’t top the debut. Meanwhile, “Choosey Lover”
is a surprise; its smoky groove recalling haze filled lounges of a decadent
Europe complete with guitar solo and a mid-song funk-out (hence the old
school/new school subtitle). If there’s a knock against the album, at 73
minutes it feels a tad long with a bit too much filler near the end.
TRY AGAIN (the music video)
TRY AGAIN (the music video)
A full 5 years would pass before Aaliyah’s next full length album. In that interim, she’d star in a hit movie (Romeo Must Die) and contribute to the soundtrack including “Try Again.” Possibly her overall greatest song, this impossibly catchy ditty would climb all the way to the number 1 spot on the Hot 100 in 2000. Her self-titled 2001 release continued that maturity with her strongest set of songs to date. “We Need a Resolution” opens the album and Aaliyah has never sounded so confident. Things rarely slow down from here from the sensuality of “Rock The Boat” to the exuberance of “More Than a Woman” to the funked-up “Never No More”. Aaliyah revels in contemporary sounds as even when she slows things down for “I Care For You”, the sound is undeniably modern. And unlike her first two albums, there’s no real filler here. Sadly, this incredible album had been out just over a month when Aaliyah died in a plane crash after filming the video for “Rock the Boat.” Her early death seems especially tragic, considering she’d just released her greatest album. Where might she have gone next?
Naturally, when any artist dies,
record labels see dollar signs in continuing to release posthumous recordings.
Universal/Blackground have actually shown amazing restraint in this
regard. I Care 4 U came out in late 2002 and was a curious release. One
can’t fault the music within, but it’s a bizarre hybrid – half greatest hits
and half new recordings. Who among Aaliyah’s fans didn’t already have these hit
songs? And the casual fans who wanted a hits collection probably wanted more
hits and less new recordings? Perhaps an
actual hits collection and an EP of the new songs would’ve made more sense.
Whatever. The new songs are actually songs that didn’t make the cut for
previous releases, so it’s not as if we’re getting a sneak peak at a work in
progress that was interrupted. Still, “Erica Kane” and “Miss You” are both
worthy additions to the legacy.
ROCK THE BOAT (the music video)
ROCK THE BOAT (the music video)
There’s no doubt that Aaliyah has
enough great songs for a 5 star single disc compilation but Universal chose to
gift fans with a massive two disc set (in some territories, this came with a
bonus DVD) called Ultimate Aaliyah.
Rescuing a few stray tracks and containing highlights from all her albums, this
set will either delight or frustrate long-time fans (who may bemoan having to
spend so much $$ to get the few songs they don’t already own). Again, an artist
this vital deserves a single disc career compilation so that casual fans can
take the prize home, but this is a complaint lodged at Universal not the
artist. Disc 1 does serve as a hits collection but why is it imprisoned in this
set and not available on its own? Oh well, in today’s digital landscape, fans
can get the hit songs they want online if they’d rather pick and choose.
Aaliyah's natural talent led to her knowing when and where to place her vocals. She never over-sang, as so many of her contemporaries did. Of course, her producers and songwriters deserve much credit, but her work undeniably bears her own personal stamp and it remains a cornerstone for the modern urban and RnB landscape.