Pop Classic from the 90s

Seal produced a gem of an album on his second attempt. He collaborates with producer Trevor Horn to produce an album of beautiful sonic textures wedded to some excellent songwriting. Seal's voice is on top form throughout. It's the songwriting that takes it a notch above most pop albums. This is pop music at it's finest, unlike the vapid junk that constitutes 90% of popular music.

Trevor Horn is clever enough not to overwhelm Seal's voice in too much instrumentation while at the same time keeping his musical influences varied. Consequently, the musical variations keep the album from getting boring like most typical pop albums. There's some dance floor influences ("Bring it On"), some Celtic instrumentation (the truly gorgeous "Kiss from a Rose") and some over the top ballads ("Don't Cry").

Fourteen years on, this album aged really well and is still a great listen.

10/10