SeventeenDayze said:

Timmy84 said:

Hell he sounded nervous while singing all the tracks. It's like he came back way too soon. He just got off a two-decade drug addiction. It's not that easy to remain sober especially if you're in the music industry and you don't have good people to support you and to be in an area where you'll be fine (like Miki Howard for example).

Timmy--well when I saw him the end of last year he looked great but maybe he was just tired/stressed from the embarassment of going back into rehab when you saw his photo post rehab. BTW, I haven't seen that pic, do you have a link? Another issue Timmy is that El basically came out of nowhere again and did a very intense comeback tour that perhaps emotionally he wasn't ready for, as you mentioned. I remember when I saw him doing the club gig a few months ago, he kept asking the audience what our favorite song was off the album. Some of the folks were like "All of them" and he laughed and was like "No, seriously tell me"....he did seem a bit nervous in some of the interviews that were going on around this time (I'm thinking about the interview he did with Monique, for example).

I wish him the best, I think he was maintained for a reason and not because of R&B. I wouldn't be surprised if he became an evangelist one day (think of Vanity/Denise).

[Edited 5/28/11 9:06am]

Can't seem to locate it but apparently he was at a jazz festival recently and I saw one of his performances on there, I think it was posted on the El back in rehab thread a while ago.

Timmy84 said:

SeventeenDayze said:

Timmy--well when I saw him the end of last year he looked great but maybe he was just tired/stressed from the embarassment of going back into rehab when you saw his photo post rehab. BTW, I haven't seen that pic, do you have a link? Another issue Timmy is that El basically came out of nowhere again and did a very intense comeback tour that perhaps emotionally he wasn't ready for, as you mentioned. I remember when I saw him doing the club gig a few months ago, he kept asking the audience what our favorite song was off the album. Some of the folks were like "All of them" and he laughed and was like "No, seriously tell me"....he did seem a bit nervous in some of the interviews that were going on around this time (I'm thinking about the interview he did with Monique, for example).

I wish him the best, I think he was maintained for a reason and not because of R&B. I wouldn't be surprised if he became an evangelist one day (think of Vanity/Denise).

[Edited 5/28/11 9:06am]

Can't seem to locate it but apparently he was at a jazz festival recently and I saw one of his performances on there, I think it was posted on the El back in rehab thread a while ago.

It's on facebook....

https://www.facebook.com/...mp;h=6cd9e

TD3 said:

Timmy84 said:

The production on some of the songs... I guess I was expecting something funky or something or something really soulful but it all sounded plastic. He was much better producing and arranging his own stuff, which he hasn't done since 1994.

And I know he'll be 50 I'm aware of it. But to ME it seemed he did look younger during promo of "Second Chance" and then post-rehab, the wrinkles became more defined.

yeah i gave El's album an tentative *** stars.

i could've done without the rappers and baby face corny ass song, other than that it was fine, OK. Like some many mature artist they seem to concerned with sounding current instead of doing what they do best, being themselves.

who knows maybe El wasn't strong or confident enough to step back behind the controls; i hope in the future he takes his production into his hands, at least co-produce and write much of his material.

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[Edited 5/26/11 21:03pm]

phunkdaddy said:

What I say?

You know it's true, I'm not a fan of babyface's producing or songwriting skills. Most of his songs sound like the rap of teenage boy trying to get into a girl's panties.