CD name: ‘Another Round’

Artist: Jaheim

Genre: R&B/soul

Sounds like: Teddy Pendergrass with an urban flavor

Soundwaves: 4/5

Jaheim’s fifth album, appropriately titled ‘Another Round,’ maintains his successful formula of soulful crooning about street life, yet it takes on a more serious and refined tone. His voice, deep in tone and smooth around the edges, creates sweet memories of recently deceased soul legend Teddy Pendergrass.

The album opens with ‘Ain’t Leavin Without You,’ the funkiest, catchiest lead single produced in a long time. Jaheim recalls the style of dance-soul from the 1970s and straight smooth talks for three minutes. Lyrically, the song describes a standard club pickup routine, but the hook is beyond good. Jaheim then transitions right into the second single, ‘Finding My Way Back,’ which is enjoyable but suffers from overdosed production at the end. Following suit is the hip-hop- and gospel-flavored ‘Whoa.’

The first three songs are very poppy and may not please all, but they are valuable displays of Jaheim’s astounding vocal range. Here’s an artist who can bend his pipes to mimic R. Kelly one minute then flip for the next song and sound like Luther Vandross. It’s amazing to hear ‘Till it Happens to You,’ which finds Jaheim tapping into the lowest parts of his bass voice with impressive control and power. ‘Bed is Listening’ is a catchy joint, driven by a piano beat that sounds like something Dr. Dre would produce for Jay-Z. Jaheim utilizes harmonies and backup vocals very well here to complement a slower, almost rap-like delivery.

Jaheim again proves his savvy for blending classic soul and modern R&B styles together on ‘Impossible.’ It is driven by Motown-influenced rhythms and a fat bass line, which Jaheim adorns with modern R&B harmonies. ‘Another Round’ is a surprising misstep in the middle of the album, a club-destined single that sounds like something T.I. should be rapping. The vibe of the beat doesn’t fit well with Jaheim’s delivery, and the lyrical content is shallow.

However, he quickly rebounds and redeems himself with a smooth second half of the album. ‘Her’ is a feel-good song that finds Jaheim poeticizing about the girl of today’s desires, with cool-jazz flute thrown in for good measure. ‘II Pink Lines’ is anchored by a great bluesy guitar riff, and it’s the smoothest track on the album. Jaheim croons and describes his new role as a father and transitions into the mature-sounding ‘Otha Half.’ Here, he once again hits with a deep bass voice on this slow jam.

‘Closer’ is light-hearted yet soulful and does well to transition to the requisite love ballad ‘In My Hands.’ The remix of ‘Ain’t Leavin Without You’ wraps up the album and features rapper Jadakiss. The two trade smooth verses over the great beat of the original version. It’s catchy and fun to end the album with, but the gritty rap veteran sounds odd on such a poppy track.

With ‘Another Round’ as his second album with Atlantic Records and sporting two platinum and gold albums to his name, Jaheim looks poised to continue his successful style as he grows older within his musical career.

Published on February 15, 2010 at 12:00 pm