John Legend - Get Lifted
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Free Music Notes for Get Lifted
Free Music Review: My favorite!
Hit: 5 Stars
I have never owned a CD that was perfect listening throughout the entire CD until now. John Legend covers everything you need in an album. From music to be mad to, to be happy to, to be sad to. Perfect for kicking back and enjoying good music. Don't press the skip button with this one, you'll miss something great. Free Music Review: John lifts us up...
Hit: 4 Stars
For the most part this is a near flawless CD. It starts off establishing the fact that man is imperfect and then flips the subject to prove that man can change for the better. The first half of the album sports tracks like 'Used to Love You' 'Alright' and 'She Don't Have to Know' covering the bases of broken relationships, talking about trying too hard to make a relationship work when it won't to going as far as cheating on the ones we love...and then theres a changing point for once John and Snoop take on the track 'I Can Change' the album takes a different approach, scrapping the bad ways and pleading for forgivness, stating his undying love and devotion and praising those who've been there for him the whole time. Tracks like 'Stay With You' and 'Refuge' are just so heartfelt and beautiful that you become a believer, no matter how much John established his pimp mentality on the dreadful 'Number One'. There are quite a few golden tracks here, the two singles (perfectly chosen) 'Used to Love You' & 'Ordinary People' included, but tracks like 'Alright' and 'Stay With Me' lay on the bass and beats heavy while 'So High' and even the opener 'Let's Get Lifted' slow things down and give us raw emotion and pure talent. The song subjects in general may not be completly origional but with the family throwback in 'I Don't Have to Change' and the creamy vocals on 'So High' John serves up just enough difference from track to track to keep us interested...and in this day and age there isn't much that hasn't been sung before, so it comes down to HOW you sing it, and in John's case he sings it just right!Free Music Review: Best of the Best
Hit: 5 Stars
John Legends debut is a smash with his melodic sounds and Kanye West inspired music, it is one for the ages...A CLASSIC!!!Free Music Review: stop hatin
Hit: 5 Stars
This is a beautiful Cd that a mature ear needs to listen to. The reviewers who do not like the album probably lack the ability to listen to a soothing and introspective album. People are always complaining that the current state of music is bad but the artists who try to be different dont sell and then they lose their record deals. John Legend created beautiful music that deals with issues people obviously want to hear and thats why it sold well and he will contiue to grow as an artistFree Music Review: The best album of 2004
Hit: 5 Stars
With his debut album, Get Lifted, John Legend manages to avoid the over-commercial/under-creative stigma of many R&B singers without pigeonholing himself with the label of "just another neo-soul artist". Beyond that, he puts forth an honest and cohesive statement that he is a force to be reckoned with, especially when paired with mercurial producer, Kanye West.
There is an unmistakable narrative in Get Lifted. It starts with Legend spouting braggadocio and unapologetic accounts of womanizing over slick hip-hop beats. The production on "I Used to Love You" is one of Kanye's finest moments, and provides the album with an early highlight. "Alright" and "She Don't Have to Know" (which cops the opening of Sly & the Family Stone's "Luv & Haight") both breach the subject of infidelity, but nowhere near as audaciously as "Number One". With its bouncy Curtis Mayfield loop and campy guest spot from West, "Number One" is one of the most infectious tunes on the album. Legend's lyrics are so flippant, though, that it comes off almost insulting, but it perfectly captures the mindset of the habitual cheater. By the time "I Can Change" comes around, we have no doubt that the song's title is a bald-faced lie. The song turns out to be a pivot point for the whole album, however. Starting off in the same vein as all of the previous tracks, "I Can Change" is a hip-hop/R&B hybrid with dense horns, a steady groove and even a verse by Snoop Dog. Legend is re-treading much of the same ground as he did in "Number One", but there is an actual touch of sincerity to his voice. Somewhere along the way, Kanye and John completely flip the script and take us to church, dropping the horn samples and the bass and bringing in a full choir while Legend makes us believe that a change really is going to come. We have no idea.
"Ordinary People" is one of those songs that grips you instantly the first time you hear it, but takes several listens to fully appreciate. On the heels of seven terrifically produced songs complete with full instrumentation and samples, the track is a little disorienting. Stripped of all bells and whistles, "Ordinary People" relies only on Legend's robust voice and a single acoustic piano to survive. It is at the same time the most powerful song on the album and the most fragile, mirroring the subject matter perfectly. In addition to serving as Get Lifted's centerpiece, it serves to cleanse our palate for the second half.
Here is where the soulful side of John Legend gets a workout. The focus becomes more about Legend's voice, and the subject matter deals with life after the attempted reconciliation of "Ordinary People". Unabashed love songs like "So High" and the Solomon Burke-style "Stay With You" suggest that the reconciliation worked. In addition, Legend has shifted his focus from hook-ups to family life, as in the glorious "It Don't Have to Change" (which features his actual family) and "Live it Up". Even though the sexual energy hasn't dried up, it is presented in a monogamous context. The title track, featured early on, is a cocky come-on to one and all, boasting Legend's prowess by comparing it to a drug. The reprise of the song, nested comfortably in the second half of the album, is much more intimate and focuses only on seducing the woman he loves. What separates these songs from contemporary R&B is partly their production, but more importantly the choices that Legend makes with his vocals. He has a very good voice, but it isn't particularly awe-inspiring. Fortunately, he has the control to push his voice to its limit without going too far, and the maturity to avoid the type of self-indulgent caterwauling that is popular with so many of today's pop divas (men and women both).
The dichotomy of Get Lifted is such that it almost feels like two different albums. John Legend's songwriting is so strong that they would be two considerable debuts if forced to stand alone. When combined, however, the listener is taken on a journey through the mind of a man (it isn't clear how much of Get Lifted is auto-biographical) as he makes mistakes, gets hurt, hurts others and ultimately grows. It is an intoxicating effort that it is impossible to take out of your CD player. I can't wait to see what's next for the best new talent around.