Donell Jones

Like the best seduction, Donell Jones' vocal performance on Journey of a Gemini has a tenderness that doesn't sound rushed or forced. His voice quivering over the fuzzed out feedback of "Spend the Night" is spine tingling, while "Special Girl," with its punchy horns and the singer's slow, sweet tenor, is a carnival of sex and suggestion. Sure, Jones' romanticism occasionally comes off as maudlin and predictable, and the album is a bit top-heavy with ballads, but overall it manages to capture the sultry serenity of love.