I Care 4 U - December 10, 2002 (Review)
Young singer’s musical tombstone is this collection of dazzling hits
Reviewed by Joseph Patel
Songs:
1. Back And Forth 8. All I Need
2. Are You That Somebody 9. Miss You
3. One In A Million 10. Don't Worry
4. I Care 4 U 11. Come Over
5. More Than A Woman 12. Erica Kane
6. Don't Know What To Tell Ya 13. At Your Best
7. Try Again 14. Got To Give It Up (Remix)
Aaliyah - July 17, 2001
Songs:
1. We Need A Resolution 9. U Got Nerve
2. Loose Rap 10. I Refuse
3. Rock The Boat 11. It's Whatever
4. More Than A Woman 12. I Can Be
5. Never No More 13. Those Were The Days
6. I Care 4 U 14. What If
7. Extra Smooth 15. Bonus Track 1
8. Read Between The Lines
One in a Million - August 27, 1996
Songs:
1. Beats 4 Da Streets (Intro) 10. Giving You More
2. Hot Like Fire 11. I Gotcha' Back
3. One In A Million 12. Never Givin' Up
4. A Girl Like You 13. Heartbroken
5. If Your Girl Only Knew 14. Never Comin' Back
6. Choosey Lover (Old School/New School)
7. Got To Give It Up 15. Ladies In Da House
8. 4 Page Letter 16. The One I Gave My Heart To
9. Everything's Gonna Be Alright 17. Came To Give Love (Outro)
Age Ain't Nothing But a Number - January 1, 1994
Songs:
1. Intro 8. I'm So Into You
2. Throw Your Hands Up 9. Street Thing
3. Back And Forth 10. Young Nation
4. Age Ain't Nothing But A Number 11. Old School
5. Down With The Clique 12. I'm Down
6. At Your Best (You Are Love) 13. Back And Forth (Mr. Lee And R. Kelley Mix)
7. No One Knows How To Love Me Quite Like You Do
I Care 4 U
When Aaliyah died in a plane crash in August 2001 at age 22, black America mourned with such profound grief that commentators likened her funeral to that of Princess Diana. Aaliyah wasn’t the most obvious candidate for heroism: She didn’t write any of her hit songs or produce her music. All she did was sing — but with her uniquely resplendent voice, at once sexy and angelic, she connected with people in ways other contemporary R&B stars could not. I Care 4 U is a collection of her hits, of which she had many in a short time, plus six songs recorded before her death and one new remix. Convention never suited Aaliyah, and she encouraged collaborators R. Kelly, Missy Elliott and Timbaland to twist and morph words and beats in ways that were uniquely suited to her lissome skills. Elliott penned her 1996 breakout hit, “One in a Million,” and with Aaliyah’s emotional descants, the two turn a simplistic love song into a devotional plea. To Timbaland, Aaliyah was the perfect muse: a singer whose phrasing he could bend, chop and stretch to fit experimental, skittering compositions. His signature minimalism was popularized on “Are You That Somebody,” a cooing, coiling come-on, and on the futurist jam “Try Again.” A new song, “Don’t Know What to Tell Ya,” is a similarly syncopated dance marvel, with stuttering bass hits and flowing, East Indian strings adorning Aaliyah’s cocksure dismissals of a potential lover. Aside from her deep, pillowy purr on “Don’t Worry,” the songs aren’t quite as rapturous. “Come Over” is a traditional, syrupy love song, and tradition was never Aaliyah’s forte. She thrived on the imagination of others, which she seemed to inspire, integrate and compound into greatness.