Sweet Soul and Funk: Willie Hutch - Foxy Brown; Moniquea - Yes No Maybe; CG Cameron

WILLIE HUTCH – FOXY BROWN

A nice one on the MoFunk label from singer Moniquea – whose laidback, warmly soulful voice is backed by lean, bouncy synth funk production – coming off as a sweet modern take on the boogie soul and digital funk sound of the 80s! Monquea's voice and a strongly song-based approach really makes it soar, and feel fresh and vibrant, even while proudly flaunting 80s influences. Producer XL Middleton is wise to keep it lively and funky, with some spacey keyboards and some funky fuzz guitars in the mix. Very nice stuff! Titles include "If I Let You Take My Heart", "A Certain Way", "Casanova (Let You Go)", "Secret", "I Don't Wanna Get Used To It (Extended Album Mix)", "I Need It All" feat I Ced, "Not Enough (Extended Album Mix)" and "Can't Be Without My Baby".  ~ Dusty Groove

MONIQUEA – YES NO MAYBE

A nice one on the MoFunk label from singer Moniquea – whose laidback, warmly soulful voice is backed by lean, bouncy synth funk production – coming off as a sweet modern take on the boogie soul and digital funk sound of the 80s! Monquea's voice and a strongly song-based approach really makes it soar, and feel fresh and vibrant, even while proudly flaunting 80s influences. Producer XL Middleton is wise to keep it lively and funky, with some spacey keyboards and some funky fuzz guitars in the mix. Very nice stuff! Titles include "If I Let You Take My Heart", "A Certain Way", "Casanova (Let You Go)", "Secret", "I Don't Wanna Get Used To It (Extended Album Mix)", "I Need It All" feat I Ced, "Not Enough (Extended Album Mix)" and "Can't Be Without My Baby".  ~ Dusty Groove

GC CAMERON - CG CAMERON

Strong work from GC Cameron – really making a bold mark here on his own – working in a smooth, rich, masculine style that's a bit like some of the best early 70s material from Eddie Kendricks! Arrangements are by James Carmichael, Paul Riser, Wade Marcus, Gene Page, and other smooth soul talents – and GC's got this edgey vocal approach that strikes out from the backings very strongly, with a hip dope sound on the best cuts, almost in a blacksploitation soundtrack mode – with a sharper edge than on his previous group recordings. Titles include a great version of "If I Ever Lose This Heaven", plus the cuts "Me & My Life", "It's So Hard To Say Goodbye To Yesterday", "Strong Love", "Share Your Life", "Truly Blue", and "Don't Want To Give It Up". ~ Dusty Groove