The Songstress
| The Songstress | ||||
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Cover of the original 1983 release.
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| Studio album by Anita Baker | ||||
| Released | May 31, 1983 November 12, 1991 (reissue) |
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| Genre | ||||
| Length | 42:00 | |||
| Label |
Beverly Glen Elektra (reissue) |
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| Producer | Patrick Moten, Otis Smith | |||
| Anita Baker chronology | ||||
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| Singles from The Songstress | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |
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| BBC | (positive) |
| Robert Christgau | B+ |
The Songstress is the debut solo album by the American R&B/soul singer Anita Baker. It was originally released in 1983 by Beverly Glen Music, and was Baker's only album for that label prior to signing with Elektra Records with whom she had a string of hit albums. The Songstress was not a commercial success upon its initial release, though the album met with moderate success on the R&B charts.
Baker became a major international success after signing with Elektra Records (a division of Warner Music Group) in 1986, and Elektra acquired the rights to The Songstress and re-released it with a new cover in 1991. Between 1992-2007, the album sold 307,000 copies in the US according to SoundScan figures.
"No More Tears" peaked at number 49 on Billboard's Hot Black Singles chart, becoming Baker's first entry on the Billboard's singles chart; "Angel," number five on the same chart; "You're the Best Thing Yet," number 28.
Alex Henderson of AllMusic rated the album all five stars. Henderson praised Baker's ballads and 'slow jams' as "honest [and] heartfelt", like "No More Tears", "Angel", and "You're the Best Thing Yet", and her faster tempo in "Squeeze Me".
Singles
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Wikipedia