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The Best of Calloway - Let's get Smooth

This album comes in to parts, that recorded in 1989 which to me sounds very dated, and that recorded in 1992 which still sounds fresh.

In particular the track 'One Day at a Time' is what would be labelled 'Modern Soul' and would today still grace the dancefloor, much more so than the disco cuts on here.

The Calloway Brothers, Reggie & Cino-Vincent, out of Midnight Star, open this album with 'I wanna be rich' (Extended version), with it's throbbing Solar Bass and good commercial hook, was a million seller in it's heyday and their first commercial release. The follow up though 'Sir Lancelot' was similar in feel, perhaps a bit more contrived, and didn't sell nearly so well. 'All the way' though for me is much better, similar disco bass of the time but a bit mellower on the vocal and better lyric.

'Freaks compete' - contrived disco but including, what was to be, the ever popular rap break, 'I want you' is not bad at all, midtempo, and ''Sugar Free' a fine ballad indeed, with at last Reggie's excellent vocal being allowed to predominate.

 The 90's album includes a couple of covers, 'Family Affair' and 'La La La (Means I love you)', both are Ok and try to add something current and fresh to older tunes, but both originals actually stand the test of time in their own right anyway!

'Let's get smooth' is excellent, mellow, soul and one of the top cuts on the album. Again as with the best cuts it's Reggie's vocal ones that excel and you can see for example how he would progress into something that Expansion would be interested in.

'Major Love' is a dancer, which still succeeds and illustrates what I am trying to say about the 90's material, compare this to the opening track and I hope it's evident, 'Work Hard' is pretty standard, 'I desire you' and 'Set the table' are both good quality smooth, adult orientated, quiet storm ballads, the latter building into an excellent climax.

There is more than enough 'good stuff' on this album to make it a valuable acquisition, and a couple of tracks (Smooth and One Day) that make it pretty near essential.