Description
Real Life is the debut album by the American singer and songwriter Cindy Morgan, released on Word in 1992. Also manufactured and distributed by Epic, a division of Sony Music. The album was produced by Mark Hammond.
At times Angie Alan, Kim Boyce, Kathy Troccoli and a bevy of others could’ve been, should’ve been or tried to be Christendom’s grand dames of dance pop. Cindy Morgan and Lisa Bevill score higher in consistently tearin’ it up than any diva over the past few years.
And in those past few years, the stakes have heated up, what with Madonna, Paul, Janet, et al., setting standards musically while too often stuffing fluff and dubious morality into their otherwise righteous grooves. Morgan and Bevill take different tacks toward settling the score with material good enough for both youth group skate nights and strobe-&-fog drenched dancefloors.
Morgan is predisposed toward the adult end of the genre, and her voice, a dusky thing akin to the strengths of Anita Baker and Mariah Carey, shines as part of or above her material. That mature inclination brings a slight saminess to some of side one’s material melodically, but the socially conscious proclamation of Christ in the title track and «2 Hearts, 1 Love»’s romance make for some catchy listening. More memorable still is the second half with the relative hardness of «Free World», a jazzy shuffle accenting the sass of «It’s Gonna Be Heaven» and the warm piano-and-vocal thankfulness of «How Could I Ask For More». Morgan can write well when given the chance, and only her producers and imagination will limit the directions in which she could go.
Bevill plays more with irony: a married white girl singing fiery dance snazz, primarily directed to teens, urging them to stay chaste, incorporating some black slang (thanks partly, to occasional, unusually cartoonish cameos from DC TALK‘er Toby McKeehan) while maintaining a naively sexy persona. These ironies might not much matter to the middle- and high-school throngs for whom Bevill makes the notion of God as a date “Chaperone” or knowing that when you save “it” for that special someone «It’s Gonna Be Worth It» appealing with inferences to the Almighty and crazy-hype beat-smarts, though. Hipper, older siblings, will appreciate the nods toward Brand New Heavies-like acid jazz on the smoothly downtempo title track and the more hi-NRG «Place in the Sun». Christian radio will likely fall for «Alone in Love» as the album-selling ballad, but the kids for whom Bevill has a heart will better relate to the courtship saga of «Second Chance». And anyone hoping for Millie Jackson to clean up her mouth will get a taste of that possibility on «Shirley (Keep It to Yourself)».
This time out, Morgan wins on technical ability and songwriting poignancy while Bevill brings it home on personality and overall ferocity. Both represent the future of groove ‘n’ godliness for those with ears to listen and rhythm to do something about it. [Jamie Lee Rake, CCM, March 1992]
> iTunes (https://music.apple.com/us/album/real-life/1165948416)
CD tracklist:
01. Real Life – 4:14
02. Say It Again – 3:49
03. Moment In Time – 4:09
04. Let It Be Love – 5:33
05. 2 Hearts, 1 Love – 4:28
06. Free World – 4:11
07. It’s Gonna Be Heaven – 4:07
08. Anytime At All – 4:34
09. Love Can Break Your Fall – 4:45
10. How Could I Ask For More – 3:32
Note: Simultaneously released on cassette and CD by Word.
A full-page advertisement for Cindy Morgan’s debut album Real Life was featured on the back cover of the March 1992 issue of CCM Magazine.
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