Salı 1 Tem 2008, 1:10

This below is the list of my favorite R&B albums from the first half of 2008, but I haven't checked out enough of the albums released during that period of time and so this is very temporary. Also, although I had first thought of making the list of just 5 best albums, after choosing the five, I found out it was so neo and then decided to add "5 other notables" to include In And Out Of Love and Discipline within the list.

Other higher-profiled releases, such as E=MC2, Here I Stand and especially The Declaration, are not really bad, but at least for now, I don't feel them enough to pick them up here. Furthermore, I'm quite sure that they will, within a year or two, re-release those albums with some new tracks, remixes and music videos and it will be the right time to judge them when the "Deluxe Editions" finally come out.

Among these five albums, Dwele's Sketches of a Man is very new (just released last week) and probably needs more time before it gets properly evaluated, but I love it very much and think it's great because it perfectly embodies what I love about him and his music. He's actually a modern day Marvin Gaye, from various perspectives.

I've noticed that there's something common behind all these top 5 albums; while all being very 60s/70s-oriented and having the retro vibe, they are not just reproductions of retro music but smartly developed it with modern edges. These are perfect examples of what R&B music should be in this turbulent era of urban music. However, I'm not reluctant to appreciate a "reproduction of retro music" as well when it's as good as Duffy's debut album.

5 best albums:
1. Love Behind The Melody (Raheem DeVaughn)
2. New Amerykah Part One (4th World War) (Erykah Badu)
3. Shine (Estelle)
4. Lay It Down (Al Green)
5. Sketches of a Man (Dwele)

5 other notables:
In And Out Of Love (Cheri Dennis)
Rockferry (Duffy)
Discipline (Janet Jackson)
E-Life (Mint Condition)
Tiffany Evans (Tiffany Evans)