The first quarter of 2007 is going to be full of great soul album releases. One of my most anticipated albums of 2007 was definitely Sunshine Anderson's "Sunshine After Midnight," which is only her second album in over 5 years. Sophomore albums are normally hell on an artist. The infamous "Sophomore Jinx" is always lingering around, and the skeptical critics never make it any easier when they ask those leading questions. With her debut album "Your Woman" bringing her critical acclaim back in 2001, would she be able to recreate that magic in 2007? Would she duplicate her past work, or reinvent herself this time around? After being absent from the music scene for 5 years, does she still have it?? Some of these so called critics (music, movies, etc.) really chafe my hyde (not literally) with their preconditioned spins on everything. They should just call themselves "Opinionist" instead, because all they are doing is giving their personal opinions anyway. No different from you or I. Even though they are supposed to remain optimistic and fair in their analysis, I am skeptical that they can remain consistent in that approach! As a fan of music, I don't think you need a critic to tell you what is good or not. That is totally your decision. Coming from a fan's perspective, I could give a dayum about any of that really! I am just glad one of my favorite female crooners is back in the mix with a new album for 2007. Remember, some artists never get a second chance to make an album. Just ask Davina and Yvette Michele!
Like so many other artists in the past, Sunshine's music career was derailed by shady record label politics. At one point Sunshine found herself without a label to call home. Sunshine was basically pushed out of the industry kicking and screaming! She took her show on the road to try and keep her name out there during her label wars, but eventually the fan following began to desolve. She finally went back home to regroup and establish a new music course for her career. That was a very depressing time in her life, but she finally got it together. She finally I have put ears on the new "Sunshine After Midnight" album, and it's definitely not a duplicate of her first joint. Well, sort of anyway? The new album seems to have more of a darker and melodramatic feel to it in my opinion. Understanding the rough road she's been on over the last few years, I totally understand her vibe. She does take it back to her 2001 vibe a little with standout tracks like "Something I Wanna Give You," "Good Love" & "Problems" that all kept my head bobbin'! Overall, the 10 tracks of "Sunshine After Midnight" are not in the classic category, but nevertheless the album still holds it's own. This album deserves a listen. Try to remove all of your preconceived judgements about this new material, and listen to it with an open mind and a fresh ear. I promise you it will sound much better under those conditions...If you Ms. Anderson is not your thing, you still have artists like Ciara, Cassie and Shareefa that may be more to your liking?
Checkout Sunshine's sites:
www.sunshineandersonmusic.com
www.myspace.com/sunshineanderson
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