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album review
Noel Gourdin's debut album has been several years in the making, at least if you track back to the Kay Gee-produced "Family Reunion," a song featured in the 2004 movie The Cookout. "The River," a gorgeous and spiritual '60s throwback, became his first official single in 2007 and found early support from Steve Harvey, who spun it on his Morning Show. Once After My Time was released in July of the following year, the song had been on the R&B/hip-hop chart for several months, never threatening to reach the top but holding steady for an apparent eternity, much like a couple Anthony Hamilton singles. That is likely a good indication of Gourdin's future status -- not superstar-level, yet not without a set of enduring (if not blockbuster) hits and a very devoted fan base. While Gourdin's not quite as classicist as Hamilton -- his voice is flexible enough to allow the possibility of making albums that fill any number of R&B pigeonholes -- he can be roughly slotted into the John Legend/Chrisette Michele/Raheem DeVaughn camp, where modern sounds mix it up with classic inspirations. He's definitely tapping more directly into the 30-and-over crowd with "The River" and sincerely humbled ballads like "Sorry" (which slows and softens Ronnie Foster's "Mystic Brew," aka the backbone of A Tribe Called Quest's "Electric Relaxation") and "Make the Most" (which owes most of its production to Michael Henderson and Jean Carn's "Valentine Love"). Even the productions that are synth-spiked or more hip-hop-oriented -- "Open," "Better Man" -- don't register as flagrant attempts to top the pop chart; yet, at the same time, they add a necessary dimension and another level of appeal to Gourdin's debut. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide
listener reviews
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Legend
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- By SigNique
- 6/12/2009 18:31:53
- I was so far gone, I heard a song "The River" playing on the radio one days & I spent 2 weeks looking for the artist name. Im very pleased. I love the album, I went and bought the album & was even more excited when i found out he is Mississippi born. Cant wait for the next album!!
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Classic
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- By Kalajj
- 10/8/2008 00:44:23
- This is a great debut for Noel Gourdin, people hopefully will not sleep on this!!! I really can't name 1 bad track on the album, every song is awesome, really really long time since I've heard a cd that you can put on and play all the way to the end...
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One of the BEST
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- By Yellow Rebel
- 10/3/2008 16:43:50
- I can FINALLY, honestly, say that I have heard a CD worth every single penny it cost to purchase. I would buy this CD even if it were $25. It's just THAT GOOD! I hope every album Noel comes out with is this GREAT!
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