Album: Mary (MCA; 1999)
Songwriters: Lauryn Hill
R&B Peak Position: #6
"I wish I had words to tell/ This feeling that I know so well/ But I don't, I don't..."
On her fourth effort, the simple-titled Mary, the Queen of Hip Hop-Soul saw it fit that she begin maturing a bit in her sound. De-emphasizing the 'hip hop' aspect of her media moniker, the set embraced a sleeker adult R&B sound and saw her trading emcee cameos for collaborators like Elton John and Aretha Franklin. First single "All That I Can Say" was a fitting intro to this new era.
Written and produced by Lauryn Hill, at the time one of the hottest urban acts in the world, "Say" was a big risk for Blige in that it didn't cast her in the signature role of the ever-depressed/ brokenhearted sobber. Instead, Mary was wrapped in the sunny throes of a new, promising romance.
"Loving you is wonderful/ Something like a miracle/ Rest assured I feel the same way you do," she pines, a striking calmness felt in her vocal. Yes, Mary has indeed found peace in this new partner and the effect is has in her makes for something that's oh-so inspiring to hear. She's so caught up in her current happiness that she can't even muster up sensible words to express her inner joy; in their place, she lets loose a series of spirited "I love you" wails, jazzy scats and "doo-doo-doo"'s that seem to flutter to the blue skies overhead, a kiss to God as thanks for allowing someone who "loves like me" to finally enter her life.
Meanwhile, Hill accompanies the song's beautiful lyricism by sculpting a lush, heavenly sonic-scape built from the playbook of '70's-era Stevie Wonder, incorporating a hint of hip hop influence in it's light bottom-end bump and a sprinkling of DJ scratches and stuttering rap vocal snippets that arise in the final third.
Managing a #6 R&B singles peak and Grammy nomination for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, "All That I Can Say" presented a more positive direction in Blige's music that would be further fleshed out on later albums. The theme shift would definitely polarize fans (some appreciated her new outlook on love and life, others detested her move away from pained narratives), but it nevertheless strengthened her position as modern day soul royalty.
Best Moment: Lauryn's dreamy production work.
DL: "All That I Can Say" (YFH)
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