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While Once Again might not get as much attention as its predecessor, it's more assured and sounds nothing like an experiment to see what sticks.
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Don't expect a derivative mash of smudgy, nostalgia-filching sounds, though, because despite its retro leanings, what's in store somehow crackles with currency.
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A timeless, feel-good album that could easily slide into your papa's Sam Cooke and Percy Sledge collections, yet still sounds contemporary.
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Once Again sets out to rebuild the dramatic storytelling and redemptive power of soul music on a hip-hop foundation.
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Frequently staggering.
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Musically, the CD is satisfying enough to ensure further Grammy acclaim. Lyrically, it's damaged enough to require a top-flight couples therapist.
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Soul music impeccably poised between past and future, anchored by a warm voice comfortingly similar to Bill Withers'.
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"Once Again" seems almost monotone on first impression, diminished by the middling tempos that weigh down many a ballad-driven album.... But peel back the layers of this suburban soul, and you'll find … more layers.
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MojoHis most impressive skill is echoing the laid-back charm of Bill Withers and the melodic instincts of Stevie Wonder. [Dec 2006, p.104]
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The 27-year-old has stepped up into territory that references his background in gospel and soul but avoids the more obvious nods to the past.
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Paste MagazineLegend has grown by leaps on this disc, delivering a richer sound and more adventurous experimentation. [Dec 2006, p.88]
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Q MagazineIt's soulful, not funky, and brims with spiritual joy. [Dec 2006, p.134]
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[A] bigger, better follow-up.
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SpinLike Lifted, Once Again offers a mesmerizing blend of canny sample science and Stevie Wonderful life-band R&B. [Dec 2006, p.96]
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While Once Again occasionally slips from understated to sleepy, there isn't a bum track on the album.
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What worked so profitably for him before also works now: his tunes are little Motown-ish symphonies, lit from within by his quiet-storm intensity, itself beholden to Smokey Robinson.
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UncutIn short, Legend does for trad-soul what Oasis did for The Beatles. [Dec 2006, p.116]
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There are a number of words to describe contemporary mainstream r&b, but "elegant," "mature," "breezy," and "sophisticated" aren't usually among them. Luckily, they apply to John Legend's subtle follow-up to 2005's Grammy-winning, multiplatinum Get Lifted.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 30 out of 36
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Mixed: 2 out of 36
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Negative: 4 out of 36
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BrookeCFeb 13, 2007
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ReubenFDec 19, 2006
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RandyKDec 11, 2006