Second Chance by El DeBarge (CD, Nov-2010, 2 Discs, Geffen)

Album Features
UPC:	602527550183
Artist:	El DeBarge
Format:	CD
Release Year:	2010
Record Label:	Geffen
Genre:	Rock & Pop
Number Of Discs:	2

Track Listing
DISC 1:
1. Lay with You
2. Heaven
3. Close to You
4. Format - (featuring 50 Cent)
5. When I See You
6. How Can You Love Me
7. Serenading
8. 5 Seconds - (featuring Fabolous)
9. Joyful
10. Sexy Lady
11. Sad Songs
12. Other Side, The
13. Second Chance

DISC 2:
1. Silent Night
2. Christmas Without You
3. Heart Full of Love

Details
Playing Time:	63 min.
Contributing Artists:	50 Cent, Faith Evans, Fabolous
Distributor:	Universal Music Distribut
Recording Mode:	Stereo
SPAR Code:	n/a

Album Notes
Personnel: Gayle Levant (harp); Alyssa Park, John Wittenberg, Mario Deleon, Songa Lee, Nina Evtuhov, Katia Popov, Robin Olson, Tammy Hatwan, Jackie Brand, Henry Gronnier, Helen Nightengale, Ken Yerke, Phillip Levy, Sid Paige, Lily Ho Chen, Razdan Kuyumjian, Yelena Yegoryan, Gerardo Hilera, Tiffany Hu, Josefina Vergara, Roberto Cani, Bruce Dukov, Julie Gigante, Natalie Leggett, Sara Parkins, Robert Peterson, Sarah Thornblade, Charlie Bisharat, Tereza Stanislav (violin); Matt Funes, Jeanie Lim, Thomas Diener, Rob Brophy, Aaron Oltman, Vicki Miskolczy, Carole Kleister-Castillo, Brian Dembow (viola); Chris Bleth (alto flute, oboe); Paul Klintworth, Warren Leuning, Bill Reichenbach , Joe Meyer , Rick Baptist (horns).Recording information: Capitol Studios; Flight Time Studios; Flyte Tyme STudios; House of Music; MAS Sounds Studio; Mischkemusic Studios; No Excuses; Oceanway Studios; Redstar Recording; Shelter Studios; Sly Doggie Studios; Sound Studio; The Boiler Room; The Boom Boom Room; Unsung Studios.Photographer: Christian Lantry.El DeBarge was away longer than he was around. The first DeBarge album and the last El DeBarge album were separated by 13 years, and then 16 years passed between Heart, Mind & Soul and Second Chance. Apart from a handful of guest appearances during the latter half of the `90s and early 2000s, El was (to put it mildly) out of commission. So it's extraordinary that this, his fifth solo album, exists. It's something else that he's in top form. Working with an assortment of mostly complementary collaborators, including Ron Fair, Mike City, Jam & Lewis, and the Avila Brothers, El tends to stick to sweet love songs -- pleasurable, fresh updates of his tried and true approach. His voice remains capable of elevating substandard material, not that there is much of it here. The acrobatic falsetto and supple harmonies are as present as ever. While the first ten songs would have made for a strong return on their own, the final three put Second Chance over the top as one of the year's best R&B albums. The rippling "Sad Songs" and the sparse "The Other Side," two of the three songs written with Jam & Lewis, illustrate heartbreak while tapping into a vivid anguish that El had never before approached. They are both exceptionally poignant; anyone with the vaguest idea about the singer's struggles will hear them as more than just remorseful breakup songs. In this context, the closing "Second Chance" -- issued as the album's lead single -- sounds nothing short of triumphant. [Initial copies of the album, released in late November 2010, came with a three-song, Christmas-themed bonus disc.] ~ Andy Kellman