Bobby Brown [extended]

• Don't Be Cruel [MCA, 1988] B+
• Dance! . . . Ya Know It! [MCA, 1989] C
• Bobby [MCA, 1992]
• New Edition Solo Hits [MCA, 1997] A-

See Also:

• Bobby Brown, Bell Biv Devoe, Ralph Tresvant

Consumer Guide Reviews:

Don't Be Cruel [MCA, 1988]
It's the eternal fast one/slow one problem--when he states his prerogatives and tries to make the world dance he's irresistible, when he masks his motives and tries to make the tenderoni moan he's an obvious con. But he earns his prerogatives: the internal rhymes and voice-electrobeat patterning of the title track are so tricky they're hooky. And since I've never been much of an expert on tenderoni, I'm willing to suspend judgment on the half that leaves me unmoved. B+

Dance! . . . Ya Know It! [MCA, 1989]
Disco postmodernists say there's no such thing as a song any more--only versions. Talk about the triumph of theory. Proof that they're full of it can be found on Brown's Don't Be Cruel, where the song versions of five of these nine dance-remixes-cum-consumer-frauds can be found. C

Bobby [MCA, 1992]
"That's the Way Love Is"

Bobby Brown, Bell Biv Devoe, Ralph Tresvant: New Edition Solo Hits [MCA, 1997]
Laid out conveniently on one infopack, the best of lesser half A and group B, with every track uptempo if not contempo (those electrothwocks are already over), and microstar C on board primarily to slow it down a little right here. In sum, new jack swing nostalgia--not a moment too soon. A-