JumpinJack AJ Posted August 29, 2011 Report Share Posted August 29, 2011 Album Review: Jill Scott - 'From the Vault. Vol. 1' Unlocking Greatness ... About.com Rating 4.5 Star Rating By Mark Edward Nero, About.com Guide Just a little over two and a half months after Jill Scott released her fourth studio album, The Light of the Sun, she's back with another project, The Original Jill Scott: from the Vault, Vol. 1, which comes out in the U.S. on Aug. 30, 2011. But unlike Light of the Sun, which was released through Warner Bros. Records, The Vault is a compilation of leftover, years-old material that had been held onto by her previous label, Hidden Beach Recordings. The ironic thing is that the older songs, on the whole, are actually superior to the newer, supposedly fresher material on Light. Quality & Depth Earlier in 2011, when Jill Scott and Hidden Beach reached an agreement to let her out of her contract and move over to Warner Bros., one of the stipulations was that the Beach retain the right to release some of the material Jill recorded but never released during her decade-long run on the label. And although it's not unusual for a label to put out a best-of or greatest hits package of an artist's work once they leave a label, what's unusual about The Vault is the quality and depth of the material. Each of the 11 tracks (14 on the deluxe version) are completely original recordings, and only one, the remake of the Bill Withers classic, "Lovely Day," is a remake. Anyone expecting this to be a collection of half-finished or unremarkable tracks that should have been left unreleased is in for a pleasant surprise. The Vault is at least the equal of -- and perhaps even superior to -- her last two studio albums. Highlights include "Running Away," a 12-minute suite that has the sound and feel of an in-studio jam session; "I Don't Know (Gotta Have You)," an ode to animal magnetism; the dancehall reggae-influenced "Love to Love;" and the aforementioned "Lovely Day," which manages to put an updated spin on the classic without having to completely reinvent it. Talent, Charm & Creativity The most impressive thing about The Vault is that unlike it's predecessor, The Light of the Sun, it's an album that's consistently good all the way good, from top to bottom. Hidden Beach managed to find the right mix of songs for this project and put them in the proper order. And instead of spreading herself thin creatively and being all over the map sonicly, this album sticks to what she does best: sing R&B and Soul music. There's no shoehorning of Jill's vocals into an ill-fitting music track, here: in other words, no hip-hop tracks or rap verses. In fact, there's no guest vocalists of any kind, and very little of her trademark spoken word poetry gets time to shine. It's basically just a woman and her microphone, getting it done in the recording booth. Although these songs might technically qualify as musical leftovers, by no means do they sound old or outdated; most sound like they could have been recorded last month, or even last week. It remains to be seen if Hidden Beach still has enough leftover material for a Vault Vol. 2, but it's doubtful that if so, the quality could be as high as what's found here. So if this is to be Jill Scott's swan song for her old label, it fittingly displays all the talent, charm and creativity that helped propel her to stardom. The samples on the commercial aren't nearly as good her early work but this still look pretty promising. The the review is a little too hard on her new music though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Hero1 Posted August 29, 2011 Admin Report Share Posted August 29, 2011 Trust me AJ..some site had a preview of the album the other day..and this album is her 2nd best album behind who is jill scott..the producers are jazzy jeff & all the old a touch of jazz producers..and it highlights how good they are and how superior they are to whoever she works with these days.. I actually listened to her new album and then flipped back to this and the difference was amazing! even what she writes about it is so far superior.. thank god hidden beach released this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VIsqo Posted August 29, 2011 Report Share Posted August 29, 2011 4.5 stars? this definitely deserves a listen!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpinJack AJ Posted August 30, 2011 Author Report Share Posted August 30, 2011 I was sure Jazzy and ATOJ were all over it. That's why I'm hyped to pick it up...but based on that preview (I haven't tired to find anymore music from it), it didn't sound as good as her other stuff. That's commercial doesn't let you hear much though. I'm picking the album up on my lunch break tomorrow! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpinJack AJ Posted September 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 1, 2011 Jill's cover of "Lovely Day" produced by DJ Jazzy Jeff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Hero1 Posted September 1, 2011 Admin Report Share Posted September 1, 2011 I love "Wondering Why? (You don't talk to me) awesome track!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpinJack AJ Posted September 2, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2011 Yeah, it's easily one of my top 3 favs. Wanya Morris' background vocals add the perfect flava to the mix! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpinJack AJ Posted September 2, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2011 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpinJack AJ Posted September 2, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2011 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpinJack AJ Posted September 2, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2011 I think I like the Piano Version better... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9xIc3mVHxQ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JumpinJack AJ Posted September 2, 2011 Author Report Share Posted September 2, 2011 This has been one of m favorite songs since 2003 but I'm happy they put it on the album. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Alex Marques Posted November 12, 2011 Members Report Share Posted November 12, 2011 Jazz's name made me listen to this record. WOW, what a voice Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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