The late R&B singer Aaliyah (Haughton) was seen to make great progression as she moved on with her second album as after the troubles which involved her relationship with R. Kelly, Kells no longer worked with her musically, and so on “One In A Million”, the 1996 album found her on this occasion finding the Virginia producer Timbaland to help her out and advance from her past as a Post-New Jack Swinger.
1. “Beats 4 Da Streets” (Intro)
2. “Hot Like Fire”
After having Timbo lay down some freaky beats to give some sort of indication of what he could possibly bring with this album (as he would soon after with the release of Ginuwine’s debut album) you get that here she s guided right into a smooth R&B tune where she is able to show off the new sound of her material and how she had been able to advance without Kells on her side. It is a tune which eases you in and gives you a chance to slowly work your way in.
**Four Stars**
3. “One In A Million”
This was one of the biggest singles to come off the album, which is perhaps why it was chosen as the name of the record, and it sees her riding the erratic percussion and smooth synth of Timbaland better than just about all who had had the opportunity to do so at this point. It sees her coming hard with one of the most gentle songs form the collection and makes a massive impact in spite of its low pace and calming effect.
**Five Stars**
4. “A Girl Like You”
Naughty By Nature’s Treach is seen to join her here as she shows that she is still capable of some Hip Hop-influenced R&B as she is with the more traditional stuff and so after he has had the chance to set up the mood for the piece, you see that here she is able to show how she is able to
work off this new groove at a time when New Jack Swing had completely phased out (as even its innovator, Teddy Riley, had stopped using it within work from his group BLACKstreet at this point) and so it sounds to be even ahead of the time (as Kay-Gee of the New Jersy-based Naughty camp odes the beats).
**Four Stars**
5. “If Your Girl Only Knew”
Strangely picked up as one of the most popular tunes on the beatboxing seen, this is a soft and gentle song from the singer and one which has her perform a remake of an Aretha Franklin song with a massive twist as you have some of the funkiest grooves heard in Timbo’s composition to support her along the way. It is a killer tune from her and gets her doing things in a composed many as she sings an emotive song which has lots of power in its lyrics.
**Five Stars**
6. “Choosey Lover”
This lengthy one gets her showing off great originality as she gets down to one where she is able to show how the influence of big players in the seventies Soul game led to what you see with her here as she does one which has her starting by singing in a style which fits right in with the times which she grew up on before she switches up things for a more contemporary sound to leave you on a high from this great concept piece.
**Four Stars**
7. “Got To Give It Up”
Here you get even more Old School flavour coming through, but here it works on so many levels as here one instance of this comes from the simple fact that she is singing a classic jam from Marvin Gaye, but it does stop here as you fin that she is joined by one of the Hip Hop game’s greats as Slick Rick gets on top of the production at the start (and midway through) to lay down flows which take from his “Children’s Story”, and this is all topped off by getting her on the beats from the late great Michael Jackson’s timeless “Billie Jean”.
This is a powerful song form her and a single which really deserved the attention it received as with it you find that Timbo gets back on the beats and lays down something calm, yet engaging for her to work off as she writes a powerful ballad which really does the job as she sings of how she has written a letter for her partner. It is a song which you can’t really ignore the power of and one which is bound to hit you form the first time you here it.
**Five Stars**
9. “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright”
Darkchild is on the beats here, and as he was another who promoted and utilised the sort of beats which really peaked in popularity when Timbo Kandi Burress and himself were dropping hit after hit in the late nineties and ‘00s for the top names in R&B it means that it was really far ahead of the time and does big things as she does a mid-tempo re-make of Kool & The Gang’s “Ladies Night” to a nice effect.
**Four Stars**
10. “Giving You More”
The Funk that comes from the J. Dibbs production here is simply too much for it and takes things to new highs as you find that with this one, the matured singer is able to lay down a seductive song, in which she is able to show the quality in her vocal abilities and how well she is able to implement this in such a freaky, yet soothing tune such as what you get in this case. It is done well and sits as one of the best non-singles on the album.
**Five Stars**
11. “I Gotcha’ Back”
With this one it is Jermaine Dupri who gets on the beats here and in expected fashion you find that Atlanta’s JD chooses to take things towards the mid-tempo material where she is able to get into the much more soulful R&B material. It is one which does big things on the album, but one which you could easily overlook due to it being a song which doesn’t really stand out, but does get some excitement through the same sample which Dre used for his classic “Nuthin’ But A ‘G’ Thang”.
**Four Stars**
12. “Never Givin’ Up”
With this you find that she chooses to move her music towards the ballad material to show off the range of things that she is able to come up with on her sophomore release, and so with this one she causes there to be a massive change in the general feel of the music and its effect upon the listeners as she gets into another which doesn’t really sit as a memorable song, but is one which you will be taken over by as you listen through it.
**Four Stars**
13. “Heartbroken”
With this one I felt hat the music sounded as if it had made a transition towards a bit more of a soulful R&B style and so here you see that in it Timbaland is able to come with some cold beats to back her as she comes with vocals which contrasts greatly from this and cause you to be drawn right in by them to get you to feel the full effects of what her voice is able to do to you without the production being an influence upon this.
**Four Stars**
14. “Never Comin’ Back”
Here the tempo seems to be altered as it ups a gear with this one and becomes a lot more appealing as you find that with it she is able to really get you going and liven up the atmosphere to some degree i order to really get you going and feel the full effects of her talent and what it is capable of. Timbo’s innovative beats are strange in the fact that they don’t really guide the way for her, and instead she seems to bring about the speed herself to a nice effect as she splits from her partner.
**Five Stars**
15. “Ladies In Da House”
As the title indicates, this one has her sticking to the more street-friendly material and so after Timbo and the singer hype things up with a little call-and-response, it is seen that things progress as she does one which isn’t really tied down by any real subject matter, instead she is just bale to let things flow out and just have fun with it so that she can just let down her guard (as far as the song writing goes) and do something to just let loose to.
**Five Stars**
16. “The One I Gave My Heart To”
In the final track we find that she returns to the traditional ballad format in order to leave things on a high and to show just how successful she can be at both writing and singing her own stuff. It is an emotive song and one which has her making he most out of her talent in order to make for a song which rounds off the album in a way to make you feel satisfied from a release which doesn’t slip at any point.
**Four Stars**
17. “Came To Give Love” (Outro)
Although a far stretch from what was found in her first album, this one is just as strong as you find that there is a great balance in the range of tunes and the way that she chooses to go about making he music and bringing it all together to leave the listeners on a high. It is an very good R&B album, and one which makes the most of the production of both Timbaland (in his early years) in addition to other well-known acts.
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Great review. Not really into this kind of music but growing up, this album (and her in general) were a constant in my house. My older brother was obsessed with her and "If your girl only knew" was my jam! I do like the remix version of "Hot like fire" too! Timbaland's finest work as far as I'm concerned, his recent work is just shit imo. Anyway as far as RnB artists go she appealed to a lot of people, she had style and was likeable to people who wouldn't normally listen to that kind of music. She'd be totally massive if she were around today, I'm convinced of that. x
LawrenceP 10.09.2009 18:19
A tragic loss of someone who was destined to be big. I'm not a fan of "run of the mill" R&B. Aaliyah was different and seemed to have her own style and not all that "baby" "baby" "baby" rubbish every third word. Great review, I'm going to look out her album again.
Advantages: An Album for All Moods Disadvantages: Can be slightly dated now
Miss_BooBookitty 30.12.2002 (24.01.2003)
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