... The voices are stronger, there are some unbeleivable harmonies, and the vibe is definately strong females with attitude!
There are some brilliant tracks on Masterpiece Theatre. My personal favourites are No, No, No (Can't come back), Latin Soul and Beat of Love, all of which are great feel-good, ... Read review
When En Vogue broke onto the scene (initially with "Hold on", in 1990, then with 1992's ... more
Funky Divas), they did it with a democratic blend of future-looking r&b: four powerful voices and a spare-no-expense production budget that updated classic r&b with...
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Advantages: Great funky beats, Harmony's that have to be heard to be beleived Disadvantages: Riddle is a touch repetitive. Don't buy this album if unless you don't mind hearing Rachmaninov and Tcheikovsky with a modern twist!
...are some brilliant tracks on Masterpiece Theatre. My personal favourites are No, No, No (Can't come back), Latin Soul and Beat of Love, all of which are great feel-good, get-up-and-dance tracks.
The other highlight for me is the group of four songs grouped together in the 'En Vogue Love Suite' in which they take classical pieces and put a Funky beat and some stunning vocals on top. Of course, the classical purists will absolutely ... ...and I think they're all done with tongue fimly in cheek.
There are no realy downsides to this album, although I feel that En Vogue sound much better when doing fast tracks than the ballads, but then I've never really been into love songs anyway. There are only two or three slow tracks on this album, the rest are great floor-fillers.
This album is a must for anyone who loved the Funky Diva's album, for anyone who loves ... more
When the En Vogue album 'Funky Diva's' came out in 1993 I was blown away by the hip-hop beats, exceptional singing and harmony, and attitude of the all-girl R&B group. With such great songs as 'My Lovin' (Never Gonna Get It)' and 'Whatta Man' I think Funky Diva's really is a classic album
It had been the first I had heard of the group, even though they had been on the music scene for a few years before then.
After 'Funky Diva's', however, one of the band member's (Dawn) left the group and they had a couple of years in silence.
Then came the album 'EV3' which I personally very disappointed with. It didn't have the same attitude and style as Funky Diva's and I thought there were very few stand-out tracks on EV3.
So, when I heard En Vogue were brining out a new album in 2000 I waited with baited breath to see if this album would be another let-down or a return to old form.
I am very pleased to say that this is as good as, and possibly even better, than Funky Diva's. The voices are stronger, there are some unbeleivable harmonies, and the vibe is definately strong females with attitude!
There are some brilliant tracks on Masterpiece Theatre. My personal favourites are No, No, No (Can't come back), Latin Soul and Beat of Love, all of which are great feel-good, get-up-and-dance tracks.
The other highlight for me is the group of four songs grouped together in the 'En Vogue Love Suite' in which they take classical pieces and put a Funky beat and some stunning vocals on top. Of course, the classical purists will absolutely hate these tracks, but I think they sound pretty hot and I think they're all done with tongue fimly in cheek.
There are no realy downsides to this album, although I feel that En Vogue sound much better when doing fast tracks than the ballads, but then I've never really been into love songs anyway. There are only two or three slow tracks on this album, the rest are great floor-fillers.
This album is a must for anyone who loved the Funky Diva's album, for anyone who loves music in the style of Destiny's Child and TLC, for all the soul fans out there!
Advantages: Perhaps considered a guilty pleasure... Disadvantages: Voices are nasal. Lyrics/music are standard.
Masterpiece theatre is pretty bland.
This album is forgettableand their voices are far too nasal for my comfort. Also I am sure that some collaborations with people who can actually sing would brighten the whole album up just a tad. If you haven't heard them at all before (like me up until i bought it) I wouldn't recommend getting this album. It's just so not enough from an album.
The songs are bland with no stand out tracks at all. The whole album ... ...of like Mariah Carey before "The Emancipation Of MimI" when she was trying too ahrd to be urban. Anyone remember "Charmbracelet" or "Glitter"?
The songs are lyrically non-descript. Pumping out what you'd expect from R&B. My guess is En Vogue are over
The album cover is really uninspiring but there's no doubt that these ladies are hot for their age.
I thought long and hard for a redeeming feature to the album. I found one and that is the use of ...
moodring01 13.05.2004 (12.05.2006)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: somewhat helpful Review of Masterpiece Theater - En Vogue
Product Information for "Masterpiece Theater - En Vogue" »
Product details
Title
Masterpiece Theater
Performer
En Vogue
Genre
R&B
Sub Genre
Contemporary R&B
Release Date
22/05/2000
Recomended Retail Price
16.99 GBP
Original Release Year
2000
Label / Distributor
Elektra / Cinram Logistics
Engineer
Steve Counter
Producer
Denzil Foster; Thomas McElroy
Pieces in Set
1
Studio / Live
Studio
Stereo
Stereo
Format
Performer
EAN
75596241625
Catalogue Number
7559624162
Additional notes
Album Notes
En Vogue: Terry Ellis, Cindy Herron, Maxine Jones (vocals). Additional personnel: Kamil Marzette, Bobby McFerren (vocals); Mo Benjamin (various instruments, organ); Dave Meezy (various instruments); James Earley, Dwayne Wiggins, Marlon McClain (guitar); Michael J. Mani (piano, keyboards, programming); Denzil Foster, Thomas McElroy, Mark Lomax (keyboards, programming); Sundra Manning (keyboards); Jaime Brewer (bass); Sauce (programming). Eklypse: Michelle Woods, Robert Page, Tony Woods (vocals). Principally recorded at FM Studios, Emeryville, California. On this follow-up to 1997's EV3 and its panoply of producers that included schlockmeister David Foster and balladeer Babyface, En Vogue reunites with the acclaimed duo of Denzil Foster and Thomas McElroy. For its fourth studio album, the trio raises the bar of contemporary R&B by integrating unpredictable classical influences and Lambert, Hendricks & Ross harmonizing into its brand of uplifting soul. The vagaries of romance and relationships are the meat of this sumptuous aural feast, and vocal rounds and snappy arrangements are the driving force behind crackling numbers like "Riddle," and "No No No (Can't Come Back)." Elsewhere En Vogue bridges the gaping chasm between the classical and hip-hop worlds by turning to Bizet's Carmen and a rap from Sol Eklypse for inspiration on the modern urban love tale, "Those Dogs." MASTERPIECE THEATER's centerpiece is the impressive, uncredited "Love Suite," which traces the cycle of a relationship through infatuation, involvement and infidelity. Throughout this piece, Terry Ellis, Cindy Herron and Maxine Jones perform elaborate vocal gymnastics, cleverly invoking shades of Tchaikovsky ("Love You Crazy"), Beethoven ("Sad But True"), and Gilbert & Sullivan ("Love Won't Take Me Out").
Album Reviews
Rolling Stone (7/20/00, p.142) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...[They] lace smooth R&B tracks with feisty lyrics. The trio can be both polished and down-to-earth....En Vogue still put on one hell of an act." Spin (7/00, pp.150-1) - 6 out of 10 - "...Fulfills its campy designs....'Those Dogs' deliciously hints at the future in dinner theater this album is designed to postpone..." Q (7/00, p.114) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...Cleverly, they...have spotted that classical music is more versatile than George Clinton and James Brown interpolations....Magnificent." NME (5/27/00, p.41) - 7 out of 10 - "...Spectacular and deranged...and even once the bow-tie operatics are over they stay inventive....nobody can beat En Vogue for vocall technique, and the rhapsodic experiments are neo-camp genuis..."
Titles on disc 1
1.
Riddle
2.
No No No (Can't Come Back)
3.
Falling In Love
4.
Suite Intro
5.
Love You Crazy
6.
Sad But True
7.
Love Won't Take Me Out
8.
Que Sera Sera (Whatever Will Be Will Be)
9.
Suite Outro
10.
Beat Of Love
11.
Latin Soul
12.
Work It Out
13.
Those Dogs
14.
Number One Man
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Listed on Ciao since
15/06/2001
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