Levert composed and produced songs for several artists including Barry White, Anita Baker, Teddy Pendergrass, Stephanie Mills, Freddie Jackson, James Ingram, The Winans, and The O'jays. Gerald released two duet albums with his Eddie Levert, and he also substituted for his dad when his father was ill and not able to tour with The O'Jays. Levert recorded eight number one hits on the Billboard R&B charts, including "Baby Hold On To Me" with his father. During his 31 year recording career, he performed as the lead singer of the group Levert (including his brother Sean Levert), as a member of the trio LSG (featuring Keith Sweat and Johnny Gill), and a solo artist. That said, even the weakest tracks here sound better than most of the vocally processed R&B of now.Born Jin Cleveland, Ohio, Gerald Levert followed in the footsteps of his father Eddie Levert, lead singer of The O'Jays. Sure there are parts of Private Line that sound like 1991, those songs like “Hugs And Kisses” were less about Levert’s vocals and more about a groove – in this case a groove that became the nondescript new jack swing sound (at its worst). It also was Private Line’s biggest crossover hit, creeping into the Billboard Top 40 at #37. Particularly effective is “Baby Hold On to Me”, a duet with his father Eddie Levert. They all feature vocals that include all out energy and emotion. Just about every other track on the album is this or mid-tempo. The track’s baseline and rhythm section sounded like a Nellie Hooper production, although it was produced by a trio that included Gerald Levert himself.Īs catchy as “Private Line” was, Levert would be best known for slow soul bedroom jams or the quiet storm. While it’s biggest hit, the title track “Private Line” was one of the few uptempo songs on the album. In addition to sounding more contemporary, Private Line is perhaps Levert’s most successful solo album (in a discography of great records). His solo album never strayed too far from the sound he helped laid down with his old group. When R&B was the showcase for top notch singing, Gerald Levert was near the top of the heap.Īs a member of Cleveland, Ohio based family act Levert, Gerald enjoyed considerable success through the ’80s. That mantel has since moved on to gospel. This wave in R&B lasted through the first half of the decade and was truly the last stab of R&B as a platform of people who could really sing. Despite any album inconsistencies, this new crop of artists were more willing to integrate rap or hip hop into their music, as opposed to people like Freddie Jackson or Luther Vandross who were appealing to a older more mature audience with arrangements that were more traditional. Many of these artists were still singles focused and as such their albums could be inconsistent – which is why I own so few of them today. Gerald LeVert was part of a movement of artists (most new jack swing) who like Silk, Arron Hall, Johnny Gill, Christopher Williams and others had exceptional vocal abilities. Among acts aimed primarily at the traditional R&B fan, few of the new comers could match chops with Gerald Levert. Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey, two ladies known for their vocal abilities represented a kind of trans-R&B that was designed for the pop charts. That of course is a generalization, the era’s most memorable legacy in the rise of the talented male vocalist en masse. Had it not been for the rise of excellent male acts like Johnny Gill, LoKey or Jodeci, the period would be remembered just for baggy pants and gaudy jewelry. One unexpected by product of this movement was how it brought the power of vocals to the forefront. By the early ’90s it was the most dominant movement in R&B beyond hip hop. While singers like James Ingram had proved that the quiet storm could be sophisticated with crossover appeal, a new crop of male vocalists combined the energy of hip hop with the passion of the quiet storm and called it new jack swing.
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