A rockier Lauryn Hill... with a lot less commercial success
Carl B. Walker | North Cali | 05/14/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"As a kid I listened to both alt-rock and hip-hop for quite a while, I was interested when I heard the pop hit "I Know" that brought soulful singing and a hip-hop flavor to pop rock guitars and rhythm. The single was a hit, but the album lingered somewhere around #100 on the charts, and no more singles came out. Luckily, I bought this album after listening to it in a record store, and it's one of my best. "I Know" is still fun to listen to, but it pales in front of the smoooth blues/thrash of "Passion," the death trip-hop of "Stop to Think" (amazingly constructed from a Lenny Kravitz sample, it's hard to imagine how), and the acoustic mournfulness of the "Blackbird" cover. Dionne Farris just rips up every kind of music into a classic CD that's been as throughly ignored as possible. What's wrong with people (like the A&R folks for example.) While Lauryn Hill managed to bring soul and rap together for a classic R&B album, Dionne Farris mixed rock and soul elements for a equally accomplished piece. Maybe she'll come back some day....?"
"Blackbirds is flyin' free."
Daniel Magallon | Spokane, Washington | 11/10/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Never can this be more true than with the debut album of an artist who can truly be called versatile. Her use of funk, soul, rock, lush melodies and down home sass combine to make an experience, an experience that can only be good for your soul. To this day, considered to be one of the best albums this reviewer has ever owned. Never have so many different types of music and instruments been so succesfully mixed. From the sultry breakout heat of "Passion" to her soul-filled cover of the old favorite "Blackbird" to pop favorite (and a little bit of rock'n'roll) "I Know" to the little bit of country sqeal in "Water" Dionne Farris shows she isn't even afraid to show off every kind of voice she's got coming out of that throat. How nice that she even includes an alternate version of her hit "I Know" to give us another flavour and a new vibe on a song we already love (check out the maxi single of this song to hear the Acoustic Roots version). Themes are even produced through "Now or Later" and "Find Your Way" as well as the comedic talents of David Alan Grier reprising an old Im Living Colour character for a hilarious interlude. I can't tell you enough about this album but to tell you how excited you will be to pop this in and sit back and appreciate this talent...then wait for the next album......"