Maxwell

Chalk up another win for Maxwell. After a couple of years out of the spotlight, he returns with one of the grooviest, rootsiest Neo-Soul albums to grace the charts in years. It's horny but subtle, smooth but not over-produced, and it's spawned hits that deserve to be. You can almost see Prince and the Isley Brothers nodding over these grooves. Give it a listen.

Is it his fervent singing, top-rate falsetto, C-plus songwriting or superbabeness that earned
neo-soul pinup Maxwell two platinum records and a lock on the dorm-room poster market?
With Now, Maxwell proves that he's better than he has to be. This third full-length album
continues to mine past gold, integrate rock and jazz elements, and work Maxwell's
beautifully supple vocals around old-school styles. He has dispensed with the qu... More >

He can't outbeat D'Angelo, so he works on outsinging and outsonging him ("Temporary Night," "This Woman's Work," "Lifetime") (Grade - **)