Boyz II Men - Full Circle

Bursting with the airtight harmonies, feet-sweeping melodies, and scrub-free swagger the foursome from Philly's come to be known for, Boyz II Men aren't taking any chances with Full Circle, their sixth studio album (and their first on Antonio "L.A." Reid's Arista label). Full Circle's got everything we expect from the guys: the perfect falling-in-love ballad (the Babyface penned and produced "Color of Love"); the heartrending break-up ballad ("Oh Well," penned alongside mega producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis); the kickback midtempo ballad ( "Relax Your Mind," featuring Faith Evans); and the obligatory uptempo, let's-get-the-party-started number ("Ain't a Thang Wrong"), which is unfortunate, since it's the only track that breaks up the album's candlelit flow. Still, a genuine ardor seeps through the tracks, and Reid's meticulous production makes this outing a far stronger and more satisfying effort than the Boyz' last album, 2000's Nathan, Michael, Shawn, and Wanya. --Sylvia W. Chan Amazon.com

An Outsider's Appreciation

What do you call this stuff? Judging by what I hear on the radio, it's fairly archaic, with a DNA based on doo-wop and an RNA from Motown. I get the impression that Boyz 2 Men are passe with the Youth, but I swear I never heard or heard of them until they sang the Star-Spangled Banner at a baseball game I attended. Usually the national anthem is a form of torture to the ears almost as vicious as a Bush State of the Union to the conscience, but the Boyz sang the old song with artistry and taste. I was impressed. Just the fact that they could sing four-part harmony in very good tuning made me want to hear them on their own turf.

And now I have. Scoffers, pay attention. There are definite musical values here. The rhythm tracks are too monotonous and predictable, and the Boyz take very few chances with their riffs, way fewer than traditional gospel singers like Claude Jeter for instance. But their songs have structure and even some chromatic development, and the Boyz have the ears for close harmony. Another reviewer declares that he's "waiting" for them to cut loose. I'm not sure what he wants to hear, but I feel the same way. The pop genre is too confining for their talent. Like the Beatles when they discovered Indian music, the Boyz are ready to reveal their awareness of the larger musical world. I can imagine them taking on the challenge of real jazz singing, or just to be totally fantastical, hearing the Hilliard Ensemble singing Orlando de Lassus and thinking 'Wow! That's something we can learn from!" January 28, 2008

Kind of by the numbers but still a decent album

With the 2002 release of Full Circle, Boyz II Men decided to go to guartneed hitmaker "Babyface" for the first single The Color Of Love. Ironically The Color Of Love was orignally given to Sam Salter for his unreleased sophmore CD,Little Black Book and Sam sang it a bit better than the boys from Philly. However Full Circle does have a nice moments to it including Whatcha Need, Luv N U and the excllent yet heartbreaking Oh Well. Oh Well was written by Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis and even though this song would have sounded great on New Edition's One Love CD, Boyz II Men handle this song with sheer class. January 4, 2007

FULL CIRCLE, INDEED

Wow! I can't believe I took so long to listen to this album. Early into its release, I heard negative stuff about it because I didn't care much for their previous release, I avoided this one until now...two years later. This album is AWESOME and really is a full circle back to the day when Boyz II Men became my favorite group. I love this compilation of songs and their harmony is as tight as ever here and the songs compliment their voices. In the days when it seems to take very little singing talent to get an music contract, Boyz II Men prove once again that their silky smooth voices rides FULL CIRCLES around the rest of the "boy band" competition! I LOVE YOU, SHAWN! (just had to throw that in) :-) June 20, 2004

All time greats

Boyz II Men is the best R&B group in history. They have won nearly every award and accolade there is to win, broken numerous music records and brought real talent and beautiful harmonies back to R&B and pop music, totally overshadowing, from a talent standpoint, all the other boy bands and groups of their time.

Boyz II Men has creativity that rival Prince and Michael, and vocal maturity matched only by Gospel greats Commissioned and Take 6.

I used to be a rap fanatic and thought music was for sissies and girls. That is, until Boyz II Men came along and helped me not only discover my voice for music. Now, instead of rapping and hearing girls say, "shut up", now I'm singing and hearing them say, "Oooh, do that again!" Music truly is a manly art when done correctly, as Boyz II Men has proven.

The only weakness of Boyz II Men is their marketing. Some of the best songs never make it to the radio or to video. The American public is partially to blame for turning their backs on Boyz II Men, instead listening to lesser groups who's names I won't mention (please, you know who you are). That's not to say these groups aren't talented - they are - but they're no Boyz II Men by far. Sorry, you're not.

And what is up with the way Americans view this group? I think we were so blown away by their lush harmonies and skillful voices over smooth tracks and slow tempos with great lyrics that we expect them to only sing slow songs. I'm so tired of hearing people say their fast songs aren't good or they're played out. Are you serious? This is a group of skilled men who've perfected their art. If they were martial artists with this same level of greatness, Bruce Lee would not be the best ever, he'd be 2nd to Boyz II Men.

Boyz II Men spends most of their time in asian countries because their largest fan base is there. Why? Wake up, America! This is and always has been a fantastic group, better than any other groups R&B has to offer and they deserve to be paid attention to and recognized as the best there is.

Be it slow, mid to fast tempo, or acappella, Boyz II Men writes and sings some of the best songs ever written. Slow songs like IT'S SO HARD TO SAY GOODBYE, UHH AHH, 50 CANDLES, YESTERDAY, DREAMS, MAKIN' LOVE DO YOU REMEMBER, DOIN' JUST FINE, OH WELL, I DO, LUV N U and I'LL SHOW YOU, they are unmatched in their level of skill. Mid and fast tempo songs such as MOTOWNPHILLY, ON BENDED KNEE, JEZEBEL, THANK YOU, TO THE LIMIT, HUMAN II, WHAT THE DEAL, COME ON, BABY C'MON, ROLL WIT ME, I'M OKAY, YOU'RE OKAY, ON THE ROAD AGAIN and I FINALLY KNOW...no one else in the music business has the depth, variety and maturity that Boyz II Men has. And this isn't even close to half the list of great songs they have!

The only song I haven't really cared much for from Boyz II Men is I CAN'T LET HER GO, produced by Sean "Puff Daddy" Combs. Mixing Puff with Boyz II Men, for this song, anyway, is like mixing dirty water with clean water. All you end up with is dirty water! The song wasn't terrible, but it's my least favorite from this group; it could've been better.

In this album, Boyz II Men has created the perfect blend of upbeat dance songs and songs with a more hardcore vibe with some of the best harmonies and ballads to date. Songs like AIN'T A THANG WRONG, WHATCHA NEED, ROLL WIT ME, ON THE ROAD AGAIN, and I'M OKAY, YOU'RE OKAY, light up the album with the hard baselines, great arrangements, and solid lyrics. All this, coupled with COLOR OF LOVE, an anthem of a hope for peace to the world, in a classic Boyz II Men style, and songs like MAKIN' LOVE, THAT'S WHY I LOVE YOU, LUV N U. And my personal favorite, due to its rich harmonies and deep meaning, I'LL SHOW YOU. I feel that this is their best work ever and, as the previous album title EVOLUTION suggests, they'll only get better, even with the exit of Michael "Bass" McCary from the group. Yes, sadly enough, it's true...

One more thing: Boyz II Men, as individuals and as a group, need to become better marketers. Just before the release of the FULL CIRCLE album, the group appeared on TV (BET) and Shawn Stockman called it "a pretty good album". I dropped my head in shame. Michael McCary then called it, "the best album we've ever made". Shawn Stockman's reply was: "...Okay", as if he didn't believe it was, which means he felt like he settled for less than the best. I could've punched a hole in the TV set. SELL THE ALBUM! YOU CAN'T DO THAT IF YOU SOUND LESS THAN TOTALLY HAPPY AND ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT IT! People will pick up on that and you'll lose record sales because of it! Why would anybody buy your album if even you don't like it?

Regardless, after reviewing this album for myself, I've come to the conclusion that this is a great work of art and I will buy every Boyz II Men album that comes out. This is how I feel about Boyz II Men:

"...I bought 2 copies, cuz other than that, all y'all other dudes is sloppy!"

-Jin (Learn Chinese), Rough Ryders, freestyle in the booth with Big Tigger on BET.

Be on the lookout for the upcoming album from Boyz II Men entitled THROWBACK, in stores August 24, 2004! June 20, 2004

The end of the road

Boyz II Men - Full Circle (Arista, 2002)

Boyz II Men's Arista debut, Full Circle, proves just how fickle and forgetful the average R&B fan can be. A great return to form for the guys, there are great songs aplenty like "Oh Well", "That's Why I Love You" (both produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis) and "The Color of Love" (produced by Babyface). But the music world shifted by then; even fans of their previous album, the unfocused Nathan Michael Shawn Wanya, ignored this project and went to see what newer jacks like Dru Hill and B2K were up to. Plus, without proper promotion by executive producer LA Reid, the album flopped and the Boyz became another legendary act on Arista that became old-hat that year, along with Whitney Houston, Toni Braxton, and TLC (the lack of promotion for all four acts would lead to Reid's dismissal). Now the only way Boyz II Men can stay relevant in today's Beyoncé/Alicia Keys/Ludacris urban world is if someone releases another greatest-hits compilation on them. But they're still legends in my book. -EJR March 20, 2004

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