Programming note: It’s 90s week! I'm spotlighting some of my favorite records released between 1990 and 1999. Like previous decade-themed newsletter posts, I've selected albums that cover multiple genres and deliberately avoided the well-worn titles that top all "best of" lists for this decade. In other words, no OK Computer, Nevermind, and so on.
Hope you enjoy it!
Hello! 😊👋
Welcome to a new edition of the Daily Music Picks newsletter!
Today’s 90s music pick is an unsung R&B gem, overflowing with charisma, sex appeal, and genre fusion experimentation.
Genre: R&B, Pop
Label: Atlantic
Release Date: March 24, 1992
Vibe: 😍
Is En Vogue the most slept-on 90s act of all time? Skimming the accolades they received with their sophomore full-length release, Funky Divas, it’s hard to argue with that notion. Spawning three Top Ten singles and several others that were in heavy rotation both on mainstream radio and in nightclubs worldwide, the commercial success is even more admirable when you consider how “out there” some of the production choices were then. Beloved hip-hop and R&B sounds of the period are well-represented across the board, but so are genres like jazz, hard rock, doo-wop, and even Middle Eastern classical, the latter driving the lustful “Desire.” Listening to it again after many years, this record is the definition of all killer, no filler—a concept that, in the streaming era, is sadly all but an afterthought in popular music.
Most casual fans of 90s R&B or those who were in earshot of a radio in 1992 will know Funky Divas’ biggest hit, “My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It),” all feminine independence gliding effortlessly above a rock-solid groove built around that infectious guitar riff. Speaking of guitars, there’s the smash “Free Your Mind,” an absolute face-melter not dissimilar to what Janet Jackson did with “Black Cat” a few years earlier. Adding to the song’s potency was a bittersweet bit of cultural timing, with its lyrics serving as a call to a post-LA Riots America to see past individual prejudices for the betterment of us all. Years later, those words still pack a punch. Political commentary notwithstanding, it’s the feel-good moments that make this album unforgettable. From “Hip-Hop Lover” to “Give It Up Turn It Loose” to the exceptional reinterpretation of Curtis Mayfield’s “Hooked on Your Love,” this throwback is not to be missed, especially for those who missed out on the R&B girl group heyday.
👉 Don’t forget to click the album image to stream the album on your favorite platform