Robert Christgau: Dean of American Rock Critics

Consumer Guide:
  User's Guide
  Grades 1990-
  Grades 1969-89
  And It Don't Stop
Books:
  Book Reports
  Is It Still Good to Ya?
  Going Into the City
  Consumer Guide: 90s
  Grown Up All Wrong
  Consumer Guide: 80s
  Consumer Guide: 70s
  Any Old Way You Choose It
  Don't Stop 'til You Get Enough
Xgau Sez
Writings:
  And It Don't Stop
  CG Columns
  Rock&Roll& [new]
  Rock&Roll& [old]
  Music Essays
  Music Reviews
  Book Reviews
  NAJP Blog
  Playboy
  Blender
  Rolling Stone
  Billboard
  Video Reviews
  Pazz & Jop
  Recyclables
  Newsprint
  Lists
  Miscellany
Bibliography
NPR
Web Site:
  Home
  Site Map
  Contact
  What's New?
    RSS
Carola Dibbell:
  Carola's Website
  Archive
CG Search:
Google Search:
Twitter:

Playboy Music

Back when he had the guts to call himself Eldra, El DeBarge masterminded the exquisite family harmonies of DeBarge. But though the austere lilt and falsetto fantasy of its In a Special Way sold handsomely, the group never conquered the "pop" (that means white) audience. It was just too idiosyncratic--and too steeped in black harmony-group tradition. So on El DeBarge (Gordy), the young singer-songwriter-producer goes solo, hiring hack songwriter-producers such as Jay Graydon and Peter Wolf to help him pass as one more ingratiating opportunist. It's a tribute to El's natural musicality and the indomitable sweetness of a voice a just God would have bestowed on a braver guy that this shamelessly ready-made synth-glitz concoction simulates a winning innocence anyway. It's great summer music, a noncritic friend tells me. And that gets its weight just right. The videos for Graydon's Stevie Wonder-ish "Someone" and Burt Bacharach's Eldra-ish "Love Always" (and more) may even alert fans to the gorgeous In a Special Way--or to the El DeBarge album an angry God had damn well better order him to mastermind next time.

Playboy, Nov. 1986


Oct. 1986 Dec. 1986