On his debut album, young R&B/Soul singer Noel Gourdin (the last name's pronounced
gore-deen) proves that although R&B may have lost some of its luster over the past several years and might now be considered the 'other' urban music (after hip-hop), there's still some bright talented young stars out there who will continue to keep the essence of true R&B alive. Noel's album
After My Time (released in the U.S. on July 22, 2008) and its first single,
"The River," take rhythm and blues back to its roots while pushing things forward at the same time.
Classy & Elegant
Noel Gourdin seemingly came out of nowhere with his highly popular debut single,
"The River," a song so great that it's easily one of the best tracks of 2008. But since little was known about him, people wondered if "The River" was a fluke and if his debut album could live up to the promise of that song. First of all, let's not get it twisted: "The River" is far and away the album's best song. Nothing else comes close. But that's not to say that the other songs aren't good. Not at all. Because although he's already most known for his musical masterpiece/debut single "The River," there's numerous other great songs on
After My Time, too.
Among the other noteworthy songs are "Summertime," a sexy, slow-burning song about lovemaking so good and steamy that it makes the middle of winter seem hotter than July: "Just 'cause it's cold outside and the sun ain't shinin,' that don't mean me and you can't get to sweatin' like its summertime," he sings. Two more stellar tracks are "Open," about a man who's in love with a woman who apparently barely knows he exists; and "Sorry," in which he confesses to cheating on his woman and asks for forgiveness.
Despite being a relative rookie, Noel has the polished voice of a veteran singer, and despite being only 25, his maturity is astounding. Although he can't be put in the category as such legendary singers as Marvin Gaye, Sam Cooke and Otis Redding, Noel can already be considered on the same level of such classy and elegant contemporary R&B/Soul men as Brian McKnight, Musiq Soulchild and Joe Thomas.
