Blackstreet Another Level Lyrics

Back in 1990, Teddy Riley was just as influential a producer as Babyface is now--maybe even more so, because Riley had invented a whole new sound, a combination of soul harmonies, rap breaks, and hip-hop beats called new jack swing. Riley is still a gifted producer; he can link up drum-machine beats, synthesizer chords, and voices so they make the maximum impact with the minimum presence, giving his work a sleek leanness. Riley was never much of a songwriter, though, and the R&B melodies and bedroom scenarios on Another Level, the second album by his group Blackstreet, all sound recycled. It's no coincidence that the two strongest tracks are a lush ballad rearrangement of the old Beatles rocker "Can't Buy Me Love" and a Winans-like version of the DeBarge hymn "Time Will Reveal." --Geoffrey Himes