Jill Scott :
Beautifully Human: Words and Sounds vol. 2

Release Date: 30 August 2004

Reviewed By: Wendy Ragiste

1. Warm Up

2. I'm Not Afraid

3. Golden

4. The Fact Is (I Need You)

5. Spring Summer Feeling

6. Cross My Mind

7. Bedda At Home

8. Talk To Me (Break It Down)

9. Family Reunion

10. Can't Explain

11. Whatever

12. Crazy

13. Nothing

14. Rasool

15. My Petition

16. I Keep

17. Still Here (Hidden Track)

18. Bedda At Home (mix)

ATL - The ATL Project
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Jill Scott sings the way the rest of us breathe...effortlessly. There's something about the way she releases the words from her vocal depths that makes you believe, that convinces you. She says exactly what she means to say and says it with uncompromising confidence. There's an honesty to her tone. A jazzy, sassy, sexy feel to some of the songs. When, in the opening track, she tells us, 'I am not afraid to be your lady/ I am not afraid to be your whore' we feel the fleshy substance of that affirmation.

Ms Scott exudes the kind of saucy feistiness that would make a bad American chat show host shout, "You go girl!" It's not bra burning stuff, but you do get the feeling that this album is in celebration of a 21st century woman enjoying her sensuality. It's soul seductively laid over jazz.

'Family Reunion' is a joyous walk through a barbeque with relatives in which we are introduced to a host of colourful characters. How is it that, to the listener, they hold a certain familiarity? Likewise, what is it she captures in the positive aftermath of sexual satisfaction which makes us delight in the reverence offered to her lover in 'Whatever'? 'Do you want some money baby?/ Do you want some chicken wings?/ Do you want some fish and grits?/ I'll hurry and go get it.' It's in what she says, the way she says it, the way she unashamedly lays it on the backing track. The driving force is the voice, the delivery. The sometimes bitter truthfulness, regret and sorrow we hear from Scott is displayed in the apologetic ballad 'Can't Explain' and the mournful cautionary tale of 'Rasool'.

Perhaps the most striking thing about this album is Jill's ability to capture different moods through her incredible range; and in saying that I am not talking about her competency at reaching the different octaves, but her strong command over the depth and tone of her voice. Throughout the album she balances soft silky smoothness with strong passionate vibes. Each track has a measured dose appropriate to the lyrical content. It seems she has a voice to match each mood, each experience. When at the end she tells us, 'I am a source of power/ I am an excited journey/ I am a rock of patience,' we are quite inclined to agree with her.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Top 3 tracks:
11) Whatever
14) Rasool
7) Bedda At Home

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