Keith Sweat - I'll Give All My Love to You (1990)

The glut of faceless, interchangeable new jack swing artists plaguing urban contemporary radio in the early '90s served one useful purpose: they reminded you how exciting the originators of the style (Guy, Bobby Brown, and Keith Sweat, among others) could be. When Sweat's overdue sophomore effort, I'll Give All My Love to You, was released in 1990, it exposed countless new jack automations for the unimaginative frauds they were. Though not quite as strong as 1987's Make It Last Forever, this is a respectable disc that sounds consistently heartfelt and sincere. The hard electro-funk groove of "Make You Sweat" is likable enough, but ballads and slow jams like "Just One of Them Things" (a duet with Gerald LeVert), "I Knew That You Were Cheating," and "Merry Go Round" are where the Harlem native really shines. For all its high-tech production gloss and use of hip-hop elements, this self-produced CD reminds you that Sweat is quite aware of the great soul music of the 1970s. ~ Alex Henderson