Search - Kenji Sawada :: Jule 7: the 3rd Recital

A Decent Follow-Up

Marcus | Washington, DC | 04/17/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"After listening to "Finally", I bought her sophomore effort, "Thought 'Ya Knew". I was surprised, and a little disappointed to discover that CeCe pulled almost a complete 180 and recorded mostly R&B tracks. Let's take a closer look...



1. Searchin (10/10): This song is damn catchy. Maybe it's the beat, maybe the vocals, but something about the song makes you want to listen to it over and over.



2. I'm In The Mood (East 87th St. Mix): (9/10): That's strange. The remix of the song is here, but the original cut isn't. So I have nothing to compare it too. Oh well. This is a good remix (I guess).



3. Hit By Love (10/10): Yes! Here it is. Miss CeCe shows a return to form with this house classic! The beats are thumpin and the bass is pumpin' just like a house track should. And it still could hold its own with the house records of today.



4. Whatever It Is (7/10): Your typical, run-of-the-mill, mid-90s slow jam. Nothing special.



5. Forever In My Heart (7/10): Something about this song (probably the electric piano) makes this song very dated, like you KNOW that this song came from 1994. Nevertheless, her vocals carried it.



6. I'm Not Over You (9/10): This song is a lot like "Keep On Walkin'", which is probably why I like it so much.



7. Any Way You Wanna Go (10/10): This track is the second house track of the album. Yes, it's house. Hip house (hip hop + house) is an older form of house, so I can forgive this one for sounding dated.



8. Give What I'm Givin' (6/10): Very generic.



9. Through Those Doors (7/10): Less generic, and I like the reggae feel of the song.



10. Let My Love Surround You (6/10): The beat doesn't seem to match the vocals. It sounds like it should be a ballad.



11. Keep Givin' Me Your Love (10/10): The third, and last house track of the album. This is the most jazzy of the three. I like it a lot. It's so LONG, but I can live with that.



12. If You Love Me, I Will Love You (7/10): Another pretty generic 90s ballad. But her voice once again carries it.



13. Maybe It's The Way (10/10): The last ballad of the album, but the first one that doesn't sound dated. It's absolutely beautiful.



14. I Will Be Received (9/10): A good closer. This is a very spiritual track."

Ouch she hit me with another great album

K. C. | NC | 09/30/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Slammin' trax on this one I thought I heard them all. Listening to #6-9, joy, joy, joy to my ears. She shows her spiritual side on #14, get into this album deep. Hey, I thought ya knew?!"