Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION
Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite CD Columbia, 483699 2, 1996, 11 Track

AMAZON
Handsome in his designer clothes and angelic, nappy dreads, Maxwell styles himself a modern-day urban love prophet in the tradition of Marvin Gaye. He concocts a conceptual music suite that purports to tell a fully rounded tale of meaningful love set in the tough but misunderstood inner city. What he delivers, however, contains only the faintest hints of what he promises. Instead we get a whole lot of the same tired R&B elevator slush and lyrics like "Gonna take you in the room suga'/ Lock you up and love for days." Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite is significant only in that it recasts the same old same old as something monumental, and nearly pulls it off.

Initially, there's a lot to like about Maxwell: On his openers, "Urban Theme" and "Welcome", the early 1980s full-band R&B and jazz pop grooves are reminiscent of Maze's brightest days and Steely Dan's coolest nights. But soon even Maxwell's passionate voice gets lost in a flat mix that turns every song into faceless background music. While R&B is at no loss for suave and sexy personalities to take the stage, a dearth of new ideas keeps the genre for the most part floundering and visionless. In the end, Maxwell's urban hang suite is just another empty room. --Roni Sarig



REVIEW
Recorded in 1994, but released two years later, Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite still sounds as if it was made yesterday. It is a heartfelt, soulful album that praises monogamous love. Released at the height of hip-hop's popularity, it was a novel idea, and one that slowly and surely caught on.

Although the name of the genre was coined a couple of years later, the album can be seen as the birth of Neo-Soul. Like his peers - most notably D'Angelo - Maxwell's songwriting can be seen as a direct homage to the work of Stevie Wonder and Curtis Mayfield.

From the scratched vinyl introduction to the loose, late night soul of The Urban Theme, the album is sophisticated, accessible R&B. Ascension (Don't Ever Wonder) was the rightful hit single and the nagging funk of Dancewitme demonstrates the album is not all about the bedroom. The spirit of Prince hovers in the mix as well, especially on Lonely's The Only Company (I &II).

What sets this album apart was the simple economy of Maxwell's vocals. There is almost nothing extraneous in his performance; everything is to the point. For example, the album's tender ballad, Whenever, Wherever, Whatever could easily have drowned in a sea of extemporisation in other artists' hands.

Collaborators here include soul legend Leon Ware, who wrote most of Marvin Gaye's I Want You album, and Gaye's guitarist himself, Melvin 'Wah Wah' Watson. Also present is Stewart Matthewman, the multi-instrumentalist at the heart of Sade, no stranger to contributing to radio-friendly mellow grooves. Yet, with all these people on board, it is still unmistakably Maxwell's work.

Maxwell's Urban Hang Suite established Maxwell as a serious and lasting performer. It became a Top 30 UK hit and went on to sell over a half a million in the US, earning him a Grammy nomination, and that very mid-90s accolade, his very own MTV Unplugged special. --Daryl Easlea

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1: The Urban Theme
2: Welcome
3: Sumthin' Sumthin'
4: Ascension (Don't Ever Wonder)
5: Dancewitme
6: ...Til Cops Come Knockin'
7: Whenever Wherever Whatever
8: Lonely's the Only Company (I&II)
9: Reunion
10: Suitelady (The Proposal Jam)
11: The Suite Theme

Number of Discs: 1

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