for the under 25s, new jack swing is a hazy childhood recollection. it's a young will smith running on the spot as the fresh prince of bel air, dwayne wayne after a few too many alize's at the campus club in a different world.
new jack swing was the natural progression from slick yet laidback jheri soul, thrown into the 90s by adopting faster beats for crowds getting used to the more hectic pace of the house and garage scene.
of all the retro revivals, its difficult to see the flat top, loud clashing hammer pants and two tone shirts making a comeback to the fashion world. although it would be a laugh to see desperately trendy 16 year olds looking so ridiculous in the pursuit of fashion. i would definitely invoke the 'if you remember it the first time round...' rule and leave the girls' lycra minidress and bubble perm well alone.
the music however, was the most futuristic that r&b had sounded until timbaland turned the entire genre on its head in the late 90s. it was criticised at the time, like jheri soul, for being over-produced, and strangely, sounds about right listened to now. anyone who's anyone tried their hand at the sound though, and there's nothing that date's a genre so effectively as joey lawrence, nkotb, debbie gibson and those damn turtles.
for the real deal, check for those reruns of house party, in living color and new jack city.
twelve hi top fade anthems - download here
al b sure - if i'm not your lover
fondly remembered, mostly for this track and the dreamy/bouncy late 80s track 'night and day'. about to launch a radio show called 'the secret garden', full of slow jams and celebrity insights. sounds unintentionally hilarious, i can't wait!
basic black - she's mine
almost one-hit wonders, this is the remix club version. also check out 'special kind of fool', a popular ballad.
bel biv devoe - do me
now the new edition veterans were all grown up, and claimed their rightful place alongside bobby brown as new jack swing pioneers, with this, their second single after the hugely successful debut, 'poison'.
father mc - lisa baby
popular track, in its remixed form, from the band known mostly for '69'. yes that masterpiece of subtlety. father dropped the 'mc', like hammer before him, and went on to duet with a young mary j blige.
guy - i wanna get with you
so many guy tracks, so little time. the band were established by the time this was released, having practucally invented new jack swing a few years earlier.
keisha jackson - mama told me
one of the few girls on the new jack scene, before swv, tlc and jade came along and were labelled as the new jill swing invasion. i actually wasn't sure that keisha was a girl, until recently....oops! in fact i'm pretty sure i used to confuse her with tevin campbell.
mantronix and jade trini - don't go messin' with my heart
hiphop and electro were kurtis mantronik's comfort zones but even he got in on the action in 1991. this track, more obviously than keisha's somewhat masculine effort, gave a much needed injection of girlieness to the proceedings.
mariah carey - someday remix
mariah was new to the scene in 1990 and whilst she was gaining a reputation for her soaring vocals and that whistle register, she already had one eye on the club scene and drafted in shep pettibone, 80s remixer extraordinaire.
ready for the world - yo that's a lot of body
a brash yet bubbling bassline and jacking beats give way to vocals that creep and you can just imagine rotfw bogling next to you in the club...still, can't imagine a njs set without it.
rythm syndicate - p.a.s.s.i.o.n
had two hits then disappeared. used to get regular play on mtv and like so many others before and since, labelled as 'that group who sound a bit like prince'.
samuelle - so you like what you see
originally part of club nouveaux, samuelle released one solo new jack album in 1990.
today - him or me
had actually been recording as 'the gents' during the 80s, but a chance meeting with new jack supremo teddy riley proved fortuitous after years of flops.
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