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Jam and Lewis' Early "Janet" Sound....and its Imitators I am huge fan of the Jam and Lewis sound. My fondness goes way back to their early days producing Klymaxx and the S.O.S. Band, and those productions are exquisite. When they began to work their magic with Janet Jackson, there were many others in the music industry enamored with their result as well. Overnight, the airways were seemingly filled with songs inspired by "Control" or "What Have You Done For Me Lately." Here are a few:
Chico DeBarge - "Talk To Me" This song was released in 1986, the same year as Janet's "WHYDFML." With its piercing synthesizer hits, driving bass line, and fierce drum beat, it sounds very much like a cousin to "WHYDFML," with a few elements of Skyy's "Call Me" in the middle (the part where most of the music stops, a small chord plays periodically, and the phone rings). This track was composed by Robert Paul Fox, Frannie Golde, and Nick Mundy. Tracie Spencer - "Wanna Be" This tune was released on the Tracie Spencer album in 1988, and borrowed heavily from the early Janet sound. There is an interlude at the beginning of the song which recalls "Control," but the rest of the song is in the vein of "WHYDFML." "Wanna Be" was composed by Ollie E. Brown and Cornelius Mims. Jody Watley - "Looking For A New Love" Yes, I know this was written by Andre Cymone along with Watley, so it's no surprise that it has this sound. However, I do feel that elements of this song, released in 1987, echo the early Control sessions, particularly the workings of "WHYDFML." Having said that, I should clarify it's not a strict sound-a-like, and definitely holds its own. Please post other songs that you feel "pay homage," per se, to that early Jam and Lewis production style!  Everybody's looking 4 the answers
How the story started and how it will end What's the use in half a story, half a dream U have 2 climb all of the steps in between......RIP Prince | |
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I think the blueprint for that whole genre came from the Prince records with Vanity 6. That and the record "Sexy Dancer" with the mixture of synths and live piano. "The first time I saw the cover of Dirty Mind in the early 80s I thought, 'Is this some drag queen ripping on Freddie Prinze?'" - Some guy on The Gear Page | |
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Certainly, it goes without saying that the Minneapolis sound was pioneered by Prince. Utilizing synthesizers as edgy horn sections rather than background filler was a large trait of this new genre. I do think, though, that Jam and Lewis provided a slightly different spin on the sound, and it is on this that I was focusing primarily. I was just marveling how many songs came out around the time of Control which sought to emulate its style, and it just seemed interesting to me.  Everybody's looking 4 the answers
How the story started and how it will end What's the use in half a story, half a dream U have 2 climb all of the steps in between......RIP Prince | |
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I think even today that sound would work with the right female vocalist.
Jam and Lewis did keep that style more solid than quirky so their artists were able to have more hits over a longer period of time. "The first time I saw the cover of Dirty Mind in the early 80s I thought, 'Is this some drag queen ripping on Freddie Prinze?'" - Some guy on The Gear Page | |
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Add Apollonia's Mismatch to that list; it's a straight rip of WHYDFML! 
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somethinginthewater said: I am huge fan of the Jam and Lewis sound. My fondness goes way back to their early days producing Klymaxx and the S.O.S. Band, and those productions are exquisite. When they began to work their magic with Janet Jackson, there were many others in the music industry enamored with their result as well. Overnight, the airways were seemingly filled with songs inspired by "Control" or "What Have You Done For Me Lately." Here are a few:
Chico DeBarge - "Talk To Me" This song was released in 1986, the same year as Janet's "WHYDFML." With its piercing synthesizer hits, driving bass line, and fierce drum beat, it sounds very much like a cousin to "WHYDFML," with a few elements of Skyy's "Call Me" in the middle (the part where most of the music stops, a small chord plays periodically, and the phone rings). This track was composed by Robert Paul Fox, Frannie Golde, and Nick Mundy. Tracie Spencer - "Wanna Be" This tune was released on the Tracie Spencer album in 1988, and borrowed heavily from the early Janet sound. There is an interlude at the beginning of the song which recalls "Control," but the rest of the song is in the vein of "WHYDFML." "Wanna Be" was composed by Ollie E. Brown and Cornelius Mims. Jody Watley - "Looking For A New Love" Yes, I know this was written by Andre Cymone along with Watley, so it's no surprise that it has this sound. However, I do feel that elements of this song, released in 1987, echo the early Control sessions, particularly the workings of "WHYDFML." Having said that, I should clarify it's not a strict sound-a-like, and definitely holds its own. Please post other songs that you feel "pay homage," per se, to that early Jam and Lewis production style! this may be outside of topic, but Janet Jackson in my opinion was trying hard to be Vanityesque, I'm sure Janet was probably very jealous of Vanity at the time, since Vanity was hot and Janet had to spend hundreds of hours in the gym trying to look even half as good as Vanity  [Edited 7/9/08 17:50pm] | |
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WisdomNLove said: this may be outside of topic, but Janet Jackson in my opinion was trying hard to be Vanityesque, I'm sure Janet was probably very jealous of Vanity at the time, since Vanity was hot and Janet had to spend hundreds of hours in the gym trying to look even half as good as Vanity
Certainly possible, especially when you take into account a song like "Nasty."
carlcranshaw said:
I think even today that sound would work with the right female vocalist. Jam and Lewis did keep that style more solid than quirky so their artists were able to have more hits over a longer period of time. I agree. The production style is pretty timeless. GoActive said: Add Apollonia's Mismatch to that list; it's a straight rip of WHYDFML! Absolutely! [Edited 7/9/08 18:22pm] Everybody's looking 4 the answers
How the story started and how it will end What's the use in half a story, half a dream U have 2 climb all of the steps in between......RIP Prince | |
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Janet went to MN cuz the music drew her there. The best music of the day was coming from there and it still is; when they play. Vanity's sound was Prince. I hope P, Jam, and Lewis keep rolling cuz we need em. | |
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JonnyApplesauce said: Janet went to MN cuz the music drew her there. The best music of the day was coming from there and it still is; when they play. Vanity's sound was Prince. I hope P, Jam, and Lewis keep rolling cuz we need em.
Agreed. The "Nasty" reference above was simply tongue-in-cheek. Long live the Minneapolis Sound!  Everybody's looking 4 the answers
How the story started and how it will end What's the use in half a story, half a dream U have 2 climb all of the steps in between......RIP Prince | |
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Can you dance - Shanice Wilson
The way that you love me - Paula Abdul |
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WisdomNLove said: this may be outside of topic, but Janet Jackson in my opinion was trying hard to be Vanityesque, I'm sure Janet was probably very jealous of Vanity at the time, since Vanity was hot and Janet had to spend hundreds of hours in the gym trying to look even half as good as Vanity
[Edited 7/9/08 17:50pm] I agree. Obviously Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis were there with Prince when Vanity's image was created. I think they saw the potential there and just made it more mainstream, and voila you have the new Janet. These 2 knew what they were doing. Before hooking up with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Janet was oh so wholesome [Edited 7/12/08 9:44am] | |
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