Martha Wash - Martha Wash (1992/2018)

Martha Wash's work with the Weather Girls and Black Box was so strong that one couldn't help but greet this debut solo album with high expectations perhaps so high that a generally enjoyable album came as a slight disappointment. Anyone familiar with the big-voiced diva's history couldn't help but hope for a soul/disco/house extravaganza, and this CD, for all its strong points, doesn't fit that description. There are a few dance-floor gems on the album (including "Things We Do for Love," "Leave a Light On" and the soaring "Carry On"), but most of the tracks fall under the heading of decent but not outstanding. And after hearing Wash belt it out on the Weather Girls' "It's Raining Men" and Black Box's "Everybody Everybody," it's impossible to expect less than consistent excellence from her. This album has more going for it than most of the faceless, soundalike releases flooding the urban contemporary market in 1992, but Wash is capable of so much more.