The O'Jays - Beautiful Ballads Series
Published December 30, 2006
Donald Trump knew a good thing when he heard a certain throbbing and driving bass line. The theme song for his “The Apprentice” TV series is a drastically edited down version of the O’Jays performing their 1973 mega-hit “For the Love of Money.” Any fan of the 70s Philadelphia Sound also knows “They smile in your face, all the time they wanna take your place, the Backstabbers.”
With such songs as “Love train” and “I love music” playing in my head, I was apprehensive about a newly released compilation of ballads by a group so famous for incredible fast-paced dance music. In my opinion this is the group that gave rival Motown Records a run for their money in terms of stealing away a chunk of their popular music market.
Since I was only familiar with their top-ten style, it didn’t surprise me that I didn’t recognize a single track on this CD. In fact I put it aside and wrote a critique for another CD instead. Then I tried loading the collection into my CD player in the car and absently listening while driving on a road trip to Akron from Columbus. I turned it off after about ten minutes.
Determined to give it every chance, the next day I loaded it back into my CD player at home and did some housework and played it while cleaning out my aquarium. The great Eddie Levert and Walter Williams’ voices are there, but I guess it’s just that I was so used to their more familiar work that I was spoiled. I considered it as hard to listen to as maybe Prince doing a Country and Western album. The talent is there; it’s just that the material is wrong.
Something or some song was missing, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I’m sure that die-hard O’Jays fans will vehemently disagree with me, but I found this CD a disappointment. I went back through my music collection and discovered that songs such as “Make Up” and “Your Body’s Here With Me,” were absent from this collection and maybe in the back of my mind that’s why I was so disillusioned.
I consider myself an O’Jays fan, but you’d have to be a truly die-hard fan to like this collection.
Track list
1. Let Me Make Love to You
2. Stairway to Heaven
3. Family Reunion
4. Cry Together
5. Sunshine
6. Listen to the Clock on the Wall
7. Who Am I
8. Now That We Found Love
9. You Got Your Hooks in Me
10. I've Got the Groove
11. I Should Be Your Lover
12. Let Me in Your World
13. Emotionally Yours
Jet is the not yet published author of two spy novels, SYSTEM 10 and its sequel GHOST OF A CHANCE, and a professional artist. He likes to collect books, music, chess sets, and friends. Favorite saying: "Evil only succeeds when good men do nothing."
- The O'Jays - Beautiful Ballads Series
- Published: December 30, 2006
- Type: Review
- Section: Music
- Filed Under: Music: R&B, Music: Funk, Review
- Writer: Jet in Columbus
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- Jet in Columbus's personal site
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Comments on this articleComments
News bulletin. I grew up with the O'jays-I have most of their albums. I LOVE the O'Jays... I just hate these tracks.
You have your opinions
I have mine...
Does anyone know what O'Jays song contains the lyrics that say... my baby or girl done gone and left me broke?
I think it's "One Night Affair" but in my extensive of lyrics I can't find the lyrics for that song or any O'Jay tune that's similar.
Are you sure it's the O'Jays?
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Unbelievable! You consider yourself an O'Jays fan? That would be funny if it wasn't so sad. This is a collection of superb soul tracks, not obscure or rare outtakes and the fact that you are not familiar with these well known and loved tracks screams out that you are neither an O'Jays fan, a soul music fan or even actually have a basic appreciation or interest in quality music. I would suggest that if you can't be for real then leave real music alone and don't insult the intelligence of those of us who are real enough to appreciate pure class.