Boyz II Men "A Song For Mama"

Album: Evolution (Motown)/ Music From The "Soul Food" Motion Picture (Laface)
Songwriters: Babyface
Hit #1: December 27th, 1997 (2 Weeks)

By 1997, the common consensus was that the public had had about enough of Boyz II Men as they could take. Thanks to a handful of big ballads that had taken the airwaves hostage over the past few years, the group suffered from extreme overexposure and had begun to appear stale in comparison to the neo-soul and hip hop-oriented R&B acts bubbling within the urban music scene at the time.

A change was hinted at by the group titling their third release, Evolution, but very little "evolving" was actually heard, as the album remained mostly stuck in drippy love song formulas the group predictably pushed down our throats as singles. Even after the forgettable lead single "4 Seasons of Loneliness" failed to bring in the sustained big sales they had become accustomed to, BIIM refused to budge from their earnest output, dropping the syrupy maternal ode "A Song For Mama" next. Thanks to an extra boost by it being used as the theme song for the hit film "Soul Food", though, "Mama" helped nab the group their fifth, and final, R&B #1.

Written and produced by Babyface (another artist who felt stuck in place creatively by 1997), "Mama" is harmless AC-soul that's chock full of cheesy lines ("Mama you're the queen of my heart/ Your love is like tears from the stars/...Lovin' you is like food to my soul") straight off a Hallmark card. Despite it's overt corniness, the tune does accomplish it's heartwarming aim. Like previous tear-inducers "End of The Road", "One Sweet Day" and "It's So Hard To Say Goodbye", "A Song For Mama" held a certain spark that could open you up to all kinds of tender emotions. For anyone who had, at any time, shared a close relationship with their mother, the song's touching tribute to that special bond was far too powerful to deny. Even if you had swore you wouldn't fall for their mushy sentiments anymore, you had to give the Boyz credit for pulling you in once more.

After "Mama" came "Can't Let Her Go", a funky Puffy-produced uptempo that finally delivered that "Motownphilly" successor we had long given up at ever receiving. The single pumped some much needed youthful energy into their act, but it perhaps arrived a bit too late. BIIM fatigue seemed to had set in indefinitely and the single barely registered on the charts. From there, the group took a more active role in their career, writing and producing their own material and enduring a revolving door of record labels, both major and independent but they would never quite reclaim their '90's multi-platinum glory.

Boyz II Men - A Song For Mama
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DL: "A Song For Mama" (YFH)