Track Listing

1. Used to Be My Girl
2. Comfortable
3. Find Myself in You
4. What's My Name
5. Unhappy Without You
6. A Little Too Late
7. Holdin' On (Missin' You)
8. Shoulda Been Lovin' You
9. Again
10. More and More
11. Can't Leave You Alone
12. I Do
13. The Rest of My Life
14. Red, White, and Blue
15. Don't Take Your Love Away

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #38130 in Music
• Brand: Warner Brothers
• Released on: 2006-12-05
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .20 pounds

Album Description
Grammy-nominated Brian McKnight's tenth album.

Amazon.com
A funny thing happens around track three of Ten, Brian McKnight's intricate, nuanced, and very grown-up follow-up to 2005's Gemini: he starts sounding like Daryl Hall. It's a blip overall, but it's indicative of McKnight's chameleon-like way with an R&B song. At times he stands unapologetically in the shadows of Marvin Gaye (see "Shoulda Been Lovin' You"), at times he tries on Luther Vandross's silky tones ("Don't Take Your Love Away"), and at times he leans in a direction that seems carved from a cross-section of the two ("Holdin' On"). The dip into Daryl Hall is a neat addition--a cool swerve that should protect McKnight from predictability charges. More than that, it demonstrates a clear-eyed artistic approach. It doesn't necessarily make him a smooth-singing maverick, though. Tim & Bob, the studio wizards who helped score hits for Bobby Valentino, Donell Jones, and others, cowrote four of Ten's strongest tracks, the radio hit "Used To Be My Girl" among them. And Rascal Flatts, the country act, teams up for the flag-waving, well-intentioned "Red, White, and Blue." McKnight's maneuvers, shot through with versatility, haven't failed him yet; on a scale of one to ten, Ten rates a nine. --Tammy La Gorce

Customer Reviews

It must be very difficult...
for someone with Brian's level of natural talent to determine how to best "showcase" his voice. If he's true to his voice, he would simply sing ballads and turn more toward jazz and gospel...If he is to make a living and sell CDs to satisfy the music company, he has to compromise his true talent and try to cross over to the more secular music. It's a difficult position to be in...

That said, I will ALWAYS buy his music, but I can't help but wait, wait and wait longer for his return to the "I Remember You" format which is the pure "unsaturated" Brian. This man can sing anything and his voice is truly the BEST of our time right now (in terms of male vocalist)...but this CD is conflicted with what the masses want and what Brian is really cabable of...

I really like, "Find Myself in You" and "Shoulda Been Lovin You", but he's already demonstrated his ability to master Marvin's sound...and while it is certainly sensually melodic and sweet, it's not Brian. Most of the other songs are extremely disruptive in terms of the music itself. The electronic voices used takes away from his vocals especially on "Unhappy Without You", and "Can't Leave you Alone"..There are a few quick glimpses of the real Brian in "A Little Too Late", "I Do" and "More and More", which are the more exceptional songs on this CD. I was really happy to hear him layering background vocals again which I haven't heard in a while.

I'll keep waiting, maybe he will follow suit of the some of the others in the business, (Duke, Tamia) and create and produce under his own label...he definitely gets a 4, just for the turmoil he must go through to make his music.

Nearly A Perfect '10'
In a R&B world where albums seem to be hit or miss as of late, Brian McKnight's latest disc Ten is surprisingly good. There is a heavy dose of familiarity, both with what McKnight is used to giving as well as the production style from today's hottest beat makers. An great example of the latter is "Used To Be My Girl." With Tim and Bob lending their signature sound, it forces the listener to compare McKnight to Bobby Valentino since he's known for using a similar format for his songs. A track that sounds like a Tim and Bob song (actually produced by Brian Cox) titled "Comfortable" is just as good. McKnight does include his 'steppers' song "Find Myself In You" on this album, a cut that was previously on the soundtrack to Madea's Family Reunion. "What's My Name" sounds like it came straight from one of his earlier albums outside of the hint of falsetto which tends to be more prevalent on his later records. "Unhappy Without You" is another Tim and Bob production that tastefully uses a touch of hip-hop for the background (anybody remember Souls of Mischief's mega hit "93 Til Infinity"?). Brian McKnight busts out on of his impassioned love songs "A Little Too Late" and "Missing You." Brian conjures up a little 70s funk for "Shoulda Been Lovin' You," a song that puts you in the mind of Marvin Gaye instantly. "Again" is a nice mid-tempo cut produced by Tim and Bob while "More and More" is a quaint serenade placed eloquently over a piano riff. The final Tim and Bob offering titled "Can't Leave You Alone" reverts back to their familiar production but includes a guest rapper to break up the flow a bit. "I Do" is basically classic Brian McKnight in every sense. He also proves he can still do power ballads too with "The Rest Of My Life." He closes this phenomenal album with "Red White And Blue," a surprising poignant duet with Rascal Flatts and "Don't Take Your Love Away," a song that stands on its own even though (only for a moment) it sounds like a remix of Janet Jackson's "I Get Lonely." Although Ten is not a perfect ten as far as ratings go, it certainly has the makings to be one of his best albums to date.

There's no one like Brian McKnight
10 is the CD is most often listen to these days. Why? Because Brian McKnight is so incredibly gifted - he's a wonderful singer, musician, and composer and he has the ability to invoke certain moods when you listen to his songs. I love Used to Be My Girl (the beat is thumping); I love Again (I feel the sadness in the music and the lyrics); I love A Little Too Late (the words, the music, I believe him when he sings); I love Missin' You (please release this as a single). I love so many songs. Now all he has to do is win awards, something he greatly deserves. Kudos Brian!