Sunday June 13th, 2004
New CD's this past week:
- George Benson – Irreplaceable
- Anita Baker – One night of rapture (Live)
- The Temptations – Legacy
- Val Watson – Urbal
- Portrait – Share my love
Music news stories this week:
Teena Marie Tops Urban AC Chart With "Still In Love"
Blue-eyed soul queen Teena Marie is burning up the charts with her first
single in ten years. The track, "Still In Love," has reached Number One on
the national urban adult airplay chart this week. The tune is from her new
album, La Dona, which stands at Number Four on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop
Albums chart.
Marie says that while she keeps a lot of the material extremely
contemporary on the new set, as with the appearance of Mannie Fresh on
"Still In Love," there's plenty on La Dona to satisfy hardcore fans who
made hits of such '80s tunes as "Lovergirl," "Ooh La La La," and "Behind
The Groove." The album includes the jazzy "Baby I'm Your Fiend"; the
"Woman To Woman" vibe of "I Love Him Too" featuring singer De De O'Neal;
and also features Gerald Levert on "A Rose By Any Other Name" and old
partner Rick James on "I Got You."
Marie says there's plenty of classic sounds for older fans to appreciate,
and she shares several album tracks "To me there's elements of all of it
in the CD. I mean, 'Baby I'm Your Fiend,' 'Black Rain,' that's straight
up, classic, jazzy stuff that I've always done. 'I Love Him Too' is
definitely a Teena Marie ballad. 'Baby I'm On Fire,' 'My Body's Hungry' --
you know, 'My Body's Hungry' is -- everybody's told me is just classic
Teena Marie. So I think there's things in there for everybody."
Teena Marie is currently on tour with Rick James and Morris Day & the
Time.
New Label, Album for Boyz II Men
R&B group Boyz II Men will issue an album of covers, including Michael
Jackson's "Human Nature" and Al Green's "Let's Stay Together," on Aug. 24.
"Throwback," the debut release on the group's MSM Music Group label, marks
its first album since 2002's "Full Circle" (Arista), which sold 345,000
copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
Pared down to a trio following the retirement of founding member Michael
"Bass" McCary, Boyz II Men now consists of Nathan Morris, Shawn Stockman
and Wanya Morris, whose surname initials make up the MSM moniker.
A version of Bobby Caldwell's "What You Won't Do for Love" featuring a
guest appearance by rapper MC Lyte will be the 11-track set's first radio
single. Other songs the group tackles on "Throwback" include Hall & Oates'
"Sara Smile" and the Dazz Band's "Let It Whip."
"This is our chance for creative expression, considering we've been tied
to major record labels for our first 12 years in the business," Morris
says. "The labels would think that an album like this wouldn't be
financially viable for them. But we decided that our first album back
would be something that we wanted to do."
First signed to Motown, Boyz II Men released four albums on the venerable
imprint before a corporate reshuffle found them on Universal Records for
two releases. "Full Circle" was its sole Arista release.
Luther Vandross Might Be Ready To Sing Again
R&B legend Luther Vandross might be ready to sing again after suffering
from a serious stroke more than a year ago, which forced him into physical
therapy and vocal coaching sessions. According to Fox News, if he feels up
to it, Vandross may contribute vocals to disco-group Chic's new album.
Chic led the disco-era of the 1970s with hits that include "Le Freak,"
"Good Times," and "Dance Dance Dance." Talk of the collaboration was made
public at a fundraiser Vandross attended Monday night (June 7th), which
was hosted by the disco-group's creator, Nile Rodgers, and held at New
York City 's Studio 54. Chic's new album, with or without Vandross' voice,
is slated for a late fall release.
Despite his recovery from the stroke, Vandross has a new single titled
"The Closer I Get To You," that will grace the airwaves Monday, June 14th.
Whitney Houston Says Her Marriage is Fine
Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown are still together and still in love.
Although Brown suggested that the he needed to return to work so that the
couple could have some much-needed time apart during an interview with
Dateline in April, it appears the duo are as inseparable as ever these
days.
Houston told the New York Post, "We are together. We love each other. I
know me and I know the bulls**t. They can talk all they want and write all
they want. I know the truth."
Houston and Brown are currently filming their new reality show, Me and
Bobby. The duo were filming last week in Los Angeles and took in a
performance of the Pussycat Dolls at the Argyle Hotel.
In related news, Brown is scheduled to turn himself in to authorities in
Atlanta next month for fingerprinting in his simple battery case. The
singer will then be released on a $2,000 bond.
The charge stems from a domestic dispute at the couple's home in suburban
Atlanta on December 7th, 2003, when Fulton County police were called by
Houston, who had allegedly been struck on the left side of her face by
Brown and left the residence before the police arrived.
If convicted of simple battery, Brown faces up to a year in jail and a
$1,000 fine. No trial date has been set.
Eric Benet Seeking To Nix Pre-Nup
Will Oscar-winning actress Halle Berry have to pay soon-to-be ex-husband
Eric Benet spousal support? And does this mean that the pair's pre-nuptial
agreement will now be null and void? These questions will have to be
answered by a judge, now that Benet has filed his own petition for divorce
in Los Angeles Superior Court, challenging the validity of the couple's
prenuptial agreement and asking for spousal support.
The petition, which says that the extent of the couples' assets would be
determined at a later date, was filed June 1st. After listing the cause
for the split as "irreconcilable differences," no other details are given
in Benet's filing.
Though once seen as a promising R&B artist, the 33-year-old born Eric
Benet Jordan has become more famous as Berry 's philandering mate. Berry
and Benet, who met backstage at a concert in 2000, were married in January
2001. After a much-publicized separation initiated by Berry in October of
2003 after Benet's admission of and treatment for sex addiction, Berry
filed for divorce in April 2004.
Berry will be seen in the forthcoming film Catwoman, which opens
nationwide on July 23rd.
News 2004