Customer Reviews

Bachelor

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

i think this album is an absolute classic. every r&b lover should have this album in there CD rack. ive got every ginuwine album and this one is the best one. his voice has changed alot over the years and i cant say its changed for the better. The vocals in this album are amazing. take 'G Thang' for example, after Missy's rap, his voice is brilliant. "come here shortaaayyyy"... ace.
this album deserves alot of credit and for a first album it amazing. Undoubtable one of the best R&B albums to date.
top 3 tracks:
1. pony
2. G thang
3. only when your lonely

Wow i almost forgot about this kid hitting big back in 1996. Before Usher & Justin Timberlake were jockin' MJs style, the boy Ginuwine was doing it. Plus he brought that cool hairstyle & body that drove the girls crazy.

Ginuwines debut album is a good album if you take it for what it is. A typical contemporary R&B album with no instruments, just programmed drums and computer sounds. But luckily it also features a young kid who can sing nice. Timbalands beats are all good, even if he doesn't vary them up enough. It runs nice all the way through, sounding quite dark & futuristic throughout. 'Pony' is still the jam, and he even jocks Prince too.

Overall Ginuwines songs are all nice. He loses marks for lack of substance or real instrumentation, but this is a cool album with a nice fresh flava. The following year in 1997 Usher & Jermaine Dupri kinda stole Ginuwines thunder with 'My Way', and hes never really been able to make it back.

Before Usher Raymond caught the tidal wave that Ginuwine managed to create with this album, Hip-Hop/Soul was much less dynamic than it was between 1996 and 1999. After the end of the New Jack Era in 1992, it simply wasn't cool to dance - at all. But that all changed when Brandy started chipping away at the hard crust surrounding mid-90s R&B with her "Baby" video, and then Soul For Real brought back an easier spirit to the mix with "Candy Rain" and "Every Little Thing I Do (You're On My Mind)." But not since Bobby Brown ruled R&B had a solo singer been as daring as Ginuwine in terms of making dancing a focal point. Because circa 1989, Bobby Brown was THE MAN when it came to performing. And in 1996, it was Ginuwine who would bring it back.

What makes this album special is that it was produced when the Timbaland sound was still fresh, and when it wasn't being imitated yet. The sparse and mysterious beats were a perfect counterpoint to Ginuwine's own slight voice, slight build, and fluid stage presence. Every song on "Ginuwine...The Bachelor" has its place, and I'll go as far to say that there isn't any filler on here. But the standout tracks are: "Pony" (of course), "Tell Me" (2nd single - great ballad in the vein of "So Anxious"), "Only When Ur Lonely" (5th single - dreamy and plush), "I'll Do Anything/I'm Sorry" (4th single - a percussive ballad in the vein of Aaliyah's "Heartbroken" - this is my favorite), and "When Doves Cry" (3rd single - all over MTV in 1997, great remake!).

The songs that I didn't mention are still great, particularly "Hello" and "Lonely Daze," which are both lazy-sounding ballads that sound great late at night just chillin'. "Holler" and "Ginuwine 4 Ur Mind" are decent uptempos that prove that Ginuwine can do both fast and slow jams -- something that male R&B acts had a hard time doing after the New Jack Era ended. Uptempo cuts weren't really happening in male R&B between 1992 and 1996 with the exception of Soul For Real (who brought them back) and before that, maybe "Here We Go" by Portrait. But after Ginuwine kicked down the door, Usher sailed right on in and definitely benefited from Ginuwine's "The Bachelor."

Now it can be argued that Usher attempted to pull a Ginuwine back in 1994 with his first album, and "Think of You" was indeed a fast song -- but it can't be denied that it was *Ginuwine* that originally seemed to be the 2nd coming of Bobby Brown before Usher came along with "You Make Me Wanna." It was on this album that Ginuwine sounds the most confident, the most unstoppable, and perhaps most importantly -- the most mysterious (sorta like Jodeci - especially Devante). I think what made this whole thing work was how unprecedented it was. Timbaland's beats were practically brand new then, and no one was copying yet. Ginuwine's vocal swagger (especially on "Pony") was a perfect match for these beats, and the timing of this album with Aaliyah's 'One In A Million' was like a one-two punch combination in 1996. Not to mention Missy Elliott's songwriting and vocals on cuts like the amazing "I'll Do Anything/I'm Sorry."

To all reading, I hope you can feel my sincere enthusiasm and appreciation for this album. I can really listen to this thing from start to finish and feel rewarded because to me, the music is really good. Timbaland, Missy and Ginuwine (along with Magoo and Playa) were finally getting a chance to get their music heard after being under-utilized protégées of Devante Swing of Jodeci. And you can hear the freshness of their creativity just bursting out of the speakers whenever you put on anything from this camp around this time. And that includes Missy Elliott's debut, the previously mentioned 'One In A Million,' Timbaland & Magoo's 'Welcome To Our World' and even Playa's debut which had some heartfelt composition and singing.

But 'Ginuwine...The Bachelor' represents a revolution in Hip-Hop/Soul. It represents a period in which things were starting to lighten up -- when the fellas were aloud to dance and *perform* again after the demise of New Jack Swing rendered dancing passé. It represents a period in which production styles evolved into a more innovative approach. If Teddy Riley is to be credited for New Jack Swing, Timbaland (who was a protégé of Riley) should be credited for the evolution of Hip-Hop/Soul into a more dance-friendly genre. Oh, and I almost forgot - Ginuwine actually co-wrote 9 of the 13 tracks from this album. Props are due for "Ginuwine...The Bachelor," because this album really changed the game for Hip-Hop/R&B, and formed the blueprint for classic songs like Dru Hill's "In My Bed (remix)" and albums like 'Justified' some six years later...

New Jack Swing 4Ever

This is a must-buy album for your R&B collection. I find the songs much better than G's more recent ones on "The Life," and "The Senior." They have a different sound from typical R&B with production by Timbaland. I love how most of the songs are connected to each other through interludes which give the album a more artistic flavour.

Intro: 7.5/10 This intro is pretty unusual, but has a good beat, and good flow into "Pony" at the end.

Pony: 9.7/10 Very unique if a bit weird song. I like the "Freakin' You (Pony Remix)" version with Jodeci better, but this original version is still great.

Tell Me Do You Wanna: 9.5/10 Great seductive slow track with an unusual sound.

Holler: 9.6/10 This is one of the best fun R&B songs that I have heard. Love the sax and beat. "If you want meee, baby Holllaaa!"

Hello: 9.2/10 Good follow up to "Holler." Slow song with phone sounds throughout. G is trying to call a woman who doesn't want to talk to him.

Lonely Daze: 8.5/10 This is a more typical slow R&B track that doesn't really stand out. It's still good though.

Ginuwine 4 Ur Mind: 8.8/10 Good beat on this faster song that uses electronic sounds like those in"Pony."

Only When Ur Lonely: 9.6/10 Amazing slow song with great lyrics. Some old soul feel.

I'll Do Anything/I'm Sorry: 10/10 This is another amazing song. It's got an old soul feel with a modern beat.

World Is So Cold: 8.6/10 Very nice track, but not outstanding. Nice intro to "When Doves Cry."

When Doves Cry: 10/10 Everything about this song is great.

G. Thang: 9.3/10 Starts off with a rap by Missy Elliott. I like the use of "daylight comes and me wanna go home." Also has a nice rap by Magoo.

550 What?: 9.2/10 This is a fun track with a great beat. 550 Whhhaaattt!?!

Overall this is arguably the best R&B CD that I have heard. Not one track on here is weak.

9.5/10!

This is ginuwines 96 debut. Before i saw him, i thought pony was song by a women.Anyways this is a great cd produce by timberland in his earlier days. He has some good songs on here like world is so cold, pony,and pick up the phone all stand out. The only bad thing is some of the beats sound repetittive, its like the pony type beat. But he still did good for his first cd.

The Bachelor is without a doubt one of the best R&B albums of the last decade. With futuristic beats (provided by Timbaland who can almost do no wrong) and lyrics to match, this was a debut to end all debuts. I really can't say anything bad about this album... so I won't.

Best tracks (to me) include:
4. Holler
6. Lonely Daze
8. Only When Ur Lonely
9. I'll Do Anything/I'm Sorry (best track on the album)

Basically, his second album was also good, but his third album and his new album have proved that he should've stuck with Timbaland.

This was a landmark CD in R&B music. You can tell that Jodeci had some influence on Ginuwine, because on his freshman CD he creates the perfect blend of soulful R&B songs and beat heavy tracks such as "Pony" and "I'm Sorry." This CD made me fall in love with Ginuwine as an artist. I can only hope that on his next CD he hooks up with Timbaland again and creates a CD that is as good as this one.

I absolutely love anything Ginuwine, but this wasn't his best CD.

only "pony" is worth listenin to on here.

This album isnt all that it is cracked up to be. For me there is only a couple of good songs on the album (pony and holler).
The rest of the songs are not anything amazing and frankly made me fall asleep. Im not saying its the worst album ive ever heard im just saying its one of the worst.
Ok pony is a great song and the beat to it is tight but what the hells going on with the rest of the album. was he drunk when he released it?
The ladies probably love him because of his looks and his nice body but men can see right through that. Men dont get impressed by him takin his shirt off. The men actually look at the lyrics of the song and how well the song is presented and from a mans point of view it really is dreadful.
If you want pony go and download it and dont bother buying the album. I made that mistake.