126. Mary J. Blige, "My Life"

 


Regular readers know two things about me: (1) I'm an insufferable nerd; and (2) I don't really care much for R&B.  So imagine my surprise - and yours, perhaps - when I started listening to this album and loved it.  Loved it!  I know, I'm shocked too.

Let's take "You Bring Me Joy," built around a sample from "It's Ecstasy When You Lay Down Next to Me" by Barry White. Producers Chucky Thompson and Puff took the drums and bass from White's song and used that; otherwise, it's all Blige.  (White's song has lots and lots of instrumental; it's a rich text to sample from, and, indeed, has been used by everyone from Ja Rule to Pimp C.)  Like most of the songs on here, Blige got a writing credit.  It's a fun bop, an absolute head-nodder.  And it's fun!  It just seems like fun.  Plus the Wiki entry for this song has this wonderful paragraph that may have been composed by a precocious 3rd grader:

It's not all fun and games.  Largely written during a difficult period in Blige's life, as she was dealing with an abusive relationship with K-Ci Hailey (yes, that K-Ci, the one with JoJo), clinical depression, and a serious substance abuse problem.  That's a lot of shit!  In "Be With You," Blige's lyrics are familar to anyone in an abusive situation:

Everyday from you I look and I see something new
Now tell me what I got to do to get this through to you
It's the little things you do for me
That makes me very happy
You know that I don't wanna leave you
I just wanna be with you
Nothing else I'd rather do
(I wanna be with you)
I want to spend my life with you

I mean, not great lyrics, but she really sells it in the song, the pain of wanting desperately to be with someone who's objectively terrible for you.  "Mary's Joint" is in the same vein; she's singing about that desperate need for attachment.  Brilliantly produced by Combs and Thompson, the song really gives her voice room to shine.  

So will I listen to it every day?  No I will not.  Will I enjoy it when I'm looking for some downtempo R&B fun?  Yes I will.

Is this album in my personal Top 500? Sure, why not.

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