Library Rock's Backpages

Anita Baker: Compositions (Elektra Entertainment)

James Hunter, Musician, August 1990

FOUR YEARS ago, Anita Baker quietly stormed the pop music charts with Rapture, a reclamation of jazz-soul balladry driven by acoustic resonances and Baker's forthright voice. Slightly overrated, Rapture still announced the arrival of a singer and a songwriter whose allegiances to the past seemed like a personal necessity rather than a sales gambit, as Baker interpreted outsized tunes like 'Sweet Love' and 'You Bring Me Joy' with the control and heart of a gospel singer.

Total word count of piece: 435

Subscribe

Becoming a member is easy. Membership gives you access to all the thousands of articles in the library.

Click here to go to Subscribe page.

Click here for academic and other group subscriptions.