Year of the Gentleman by Ne-Yo (CD, Sep-2008, Def Jam (USA))

One of the few R&B stars to emerge in the last few years to sound more like an authentic talent than a record company puppet, singer/songwriter Ne-Yo affirms his stardom on killer third studio LP "Year of the Gentleman." A classy affair throughout, the fast-moving album packs a dozen quality songs, at least half of which could make solid radio hits, with Ne-Yo's warm, velvety vocals leading the way. He is a smart songwriter fully aware of the type of material that suits his limited but solid, expressive range, enabling him to craft catchy, elegant musical rapture consistently and heartily.

Ne-Yo has explained the album title by proclaiming it as his aim to evoke memories of a different time - a time when it was imperative to walk out the front door always looking your best - to look the part of the gentleman. Most importantly, he sings as well as looks the part on the glossy album cover, whether he does it through romantic paeans such as "Why Does She Stay?" or situational pieces such as "Mad," where he refuses to go to bed with his love muffin until their argument is over and they've kissed and made up. Yes, Ne-Yo may be aiming for the title of Mister Cornball, but darn if he doesn't churn out some downright listenable stuff.

The seductive, hook-drenched "Nobody" is every bit as impressive as effervescent lead single "Closer," one of the strongest Top 10 pop hits of the year. The bouncy "Single" twists and bends with sticky-as-Christmas tree sentiments that ably blend in with the album's context, as does second single "Miss Independent." A sexy, endlessly-playable pledge of allegiance to powerful women, it is already firmly situated in the Top 40 and bound to go even further than "Closer." Stargate's buoyant, light-as-feather production touch again brings out the best in Ne-Yo's particular brand of meaty, substantial R&B.

The pace slows as the album winds down, but the quality songs keep coming with the likes of the hard-won wisdom of "Lie to Me" and the crisp, airy "Back to What You Know." The urgent, captivating "Stop This World" wraps thing up tidily.

Ne-Yo truly delivers the goods here. Solid, juicy melodies color all the tracks, as opposed to the pre-canned rhythms and handclaps that have poisoned the market as of late. In the world of mainstream music he is a creative breath of fresh air. He may not yield anything groundbreaking, but he produces quality art. Today's pop music scene desperately needs more artists like him, and if "Year of the Gentleman" is any indication he is here to stay for a while.

Ne-yo has 3 songs that I just honestly love..."Closer," "Miss Independent,"& "Back to What You Know." Each album you can tell that he evolves his sound and mutures his lyrics. The rest of the songs are great to just listen to while you're on the road or in the house. I kust wished he was more consistant with his new pop sound that he uses, but all in all you can tell he is very talented and this album is better than ever.

Ne-yo always comes correct so I was not surprised to hear another great cd by him. He has a smooth, classy and distinctive sytle. I can just let the cd play without even skipping a song. I love the song "Miss independent"

I love this CD! Almost every song should be a single for the album! my favorite so far on the CD is "MAD". I play this song every time I am in the car! Some of the "yet to be known" songs are great too. Like the song "lie to me" sounds fantastic!

For any R&B lover this cd is fabulous. There are 1 or 2 songs that arent the greatest, but there are also alot of songs that totally melt my heart! I could listen to it over and over again. MAD is the best song ever! I LOVE THIS CD! I would recomend it for sure.