Sunshine Anderson - Sunshine at Midnight

Yall are a bunch of haters!

To the two reviewers below, I hope you guys do something else besides critique other peoples' hard work, cuz you SUCK at it! Sunshine did a wonderful job on this cd. How can you actually knock someone or review someone if you are not favorable to that particular genre, even? I've read some of your SICK reviews and honestly I think you should keep your darned opinions to yourselves. If I based my decision to buy this cd on you guys, I would have missed out on a wonderful cd... True enough, at first, it sounds good, but the more you listen to it, it gets better and better... I ABSOLUTELY LOVE "Wear the Crown"... And by the way, were you aware that Raphael Saadiq is one of the composers? Duh! I simply believe that his awesome r&b track record speaks for itself! Go critique yourself and sit down somewhere! I also like, "With You Baby". To the fans or just curious potential buyers or browsers, if you like Syleena Johnson or r&b/ blues type, Toni Braxton, or just a good singer (because she is great and has wonderful range), and laidback melodic and syncopated rhythms and music, then I suggest this album to you! :) I LOVE YOU SUNSHINE!!! Please don't be discouraged by the haters because your fans really support you... December 10, 2007

2 1/2 stars - Another dream deferred

Sunshine Anderson - Sunshine at Midnight (Music World, 2007)

In 2001, Sunshine Anderson kicked her trifling man to the curb in the slammin' anthem, "Heard it All Before". She released Your Woman to favorable reviews but that album wasn't exactly flying off the shelves. She was soon demoted to one-hit wonder status and went the way of Blu Cantrell and Truth Hurts. Usually, one-trick ponies don't get another chance, especially not from former Destiny's Child manager Mathew Knowles, who scooped her up to release her second album, Sunshine at Midnight. Unfortunately, Sunshine and her team ruin the moment to capitalize on this second chance.

Most of these moments are just like the song title of Sunshine's only hit: you've heard it all before. Her single, "Something I Wanna Give You", holds nothing back as she tells her loser man, "You were so-so in bed/I faked it more times than I can count on my hand", but this is just a lazy rehash of the aforementioned hit. Other songs find Sunshine fumbling by either singing uninspired lyrics or just sounding uninspired by her singing (she never did had the best voice). Even Raphael Saadiq's production can't save "Wear the Crown"; however, her last album's main contributor, Mike City, does save the only tracks that he produces. Yes, the sophomore jinx rears its ugly head as the album has no replay value whatsoever, perhaps making the sun set on this lady's once-promising career. -EJR November 25, 2007

Nice

Sunshine has the potential to be around for long time in the business as long as she keeps some great writers creating material just for her! She can truly sing! Great CD! November 21, 2007

3-1/2 stars -- Here's why the sun doesn't shine at midnight...

Sunshine Anderson came out of nowhere back in 2001 and hit it big with "Heard It All Before". Despite that, it seemed that no one picked up her album Your Woman except my brother and me, and we found that the album had a whole bunch of other good selections. After that it seemed like she dropped off the face of the Earth, but what really happened was that her label (Soulife) folded, and apparently other record companies didn't know what to do with her because her voice was so different (the same thing happened to Anthony Hamilton, as he was also on that label). But Sunshine finally got picked up by Music World and released her sophomore album, Sunshine At Midnight.

Now, Sunshine ain't no Aretha when she sings, but the reason why I can't rate this album higher than three-and-a-half stars is, well, this is another case of what happens when there is too long a break between album releases: it seems as though the artist maybe forgot how to make high quality music. Mike City only handles production and songwriting credits on three songs this time around, and I'm thinking maybe he should have stuck around more. A few of the songs use rehashed ideas, like "Switch It Up," which talks about goin' out to the club after being done wrong by your man. And while the I'm-in-love-with-a-thug ode "Force of Nature" starts off fine, it becomes weird when she starts talking about likin' the guy's dirty drawers. "Trust" suffers from weird production, and "Problems" is full of just that.

There ARE still some good songs though, like "Wear the Crown", the aptly titled "Unbelievable", and the creative "Something I Wanna Give You". But even then there really aren't any songs as stellar as "Last Night" or "Where Have You Been" from Sunshine's first album. It's good that she was finally able to release a second album, but you should really borrow this first.

Anthony Rupert October 3, 2007

strong songs and tepid tunes

Welcome back Sunshine!!! She puts out a pretty strong album though toward the end the music begins to sound like pretty run of the mill R&B. Her strength is the angry black woman anthems,but she really fights against being stereotyped with a few love songs, which are good. I just like it more when she's angry, then you can really hear the passion. There's no shame in being an angry black woman Sunshine, there are many many out there and they need music too, stick to your strengths. Overall though I missed her music and am glad she's back. June 27, 2007

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