Rapture

While Anita Baker has a nice voice and these songs are perfectly fine, I don't find anything revelatory about this album. I can't say I've ever thought "I'd like to hear an Anita Baker song now" or ever heard one of the hits from it and thought "Wow! What a great song!" The chime-y keyboard sounds, along with some of the other production, place it squarely in the 80s soft-pop genre, and it's unfortunately mostly forgetable.

Adult Contemporary. It’s only for adults. Don’t you dare listen to this kids, it’s for the adults. This is the music that’s playing on a paint stained boom box in your neighborhoods open garage. It’s a hot Sunday afternoon in early September. Your neighbor’s dad has half their Chevy in pieces in the driveway and he’s covered in oil stains. He’s smoked a pack of cigs and crushed a 12 pack of Miller highlife before the late games kicked off. This is the album he’s listening to while he curses at the old truck. I haven’t listened to it yet (or checked that it exists) but I know Anita Baker has a great Christmas Album. 3/5. Good to know Baker.

A very uninspired assortment of supermarket music. While Baker’s voice is powerful and bursting with emotion, this is somewhat undermined by the obnoxiously synthetic 80s production which capes every track in a layer of aural polythene. It’s hard to treat anything Baker sings about with any sincerity when she’s surrounded by such artificiality. Additionally, I would argue the songs just aren’t there on this album and they don’t amount to anything remotely consequential. Why this is so acclaimed is beyond me. Not fun. Not interesting. Takes itself way too seriously. It’s a begrudging 1 out of 5 from me.

1001 albums you must hear before you die and it’s day 5!! To anyone that isn’t familiar, I have given myself the challenge of giving my own personal take on each and every album listed in the book 1001 albums you must hear before you die, a book by Robert Dimery. I found this book one day in 2016 in Barnes and Noble, and impulsively bought it. Since then, I’ve felt challenged by it every time I would flip through it out of boredom. I consider myself a music nerd but man, there’s a lot of music within 1001 albums. If I listen to every single album without missing a day, it will take me close to three years to finish. AND IM HERE FOR IT!! Without further ado, I got a MONSTER of an album to share with you all! Anita Baker’s 8 million copies sold, 2 Grammy winning sophomore album, The Rapture. Released quietly in 1986, this fucking album was a phenomenon within itself! I won’t sit here and try to act like I knew all about Anita Baker in 1986, when I was four years old, and quite frankly, when I was randomly generated this album to listen to I was a little intimidated... I LOVE QUIET STORM MUSIC! What is quiet storm music? Well, to me, it’s mood setting music. It’s baby making music, it’s ambiance music to fall peacefully to sleep to. It’s music you play after a break up or discovery of a new love. Quiet storm music is calming and can cater to any mood and that’s why I love it so much. Anita Baker had a hard life. Her mother abandoned her early on at 2 years old, she had to live through the civil unrest of the 1960’s, her foster parents died when she was twelve and she grew up in Detroit on top of all of that. Yikes. But there’s an emotion in her voice that I can’t describe any other way than as “pleading”. Not begging, per say, but an emotion that says HERE I AM! I MADE IT THROUGH! NOW LISTEN TO ME! RIGHT NOW! She kept her dream of being a top notch singer and performer and was recruited to join a funk band named Chapter 8, where she met Michael J Powell and boy, let me tell you, they mixed better than tea and sugar! The production and arrangement that Michael J Powell birthed into this project is so, sooo good! Every instrument is a star on every song. The band never took a day off on any of the eight tracks. The bass? Deep, funky and quite frankly... Superb. The drums? Sampled heavily by the likes of everyone from Jadakiss to Mac Miller. It’s impressive how influential Anita Baker has been to Hip Hop, my very first love. Oh yeah, Strings, horns, piano? Sharp as a razors edge. So many songs have since been sampled by other innovators like Ice Cube, A Tribe Caller Quest, Drake and everyone in between. Jeez. Anita Baker broke out with this album in a big way, and so much more was to come in the future for her that it’s hard for me to not visit her next releases (looking at you Giving You The Best That I’ve Got) .. until the generator Gods bestow them upon me! It’s tough to resist because I know there’s gold sprouting like flowers in her repertoire that I already subconsciously know... My most favorite song is Same Ole Love (365 Days) It is upbeat, the bass slaps SO hard, and the chorus is so catchy. My second favorite is the title song, Sweet Love. It’s the epitome of Quiet storm music.. 80’s contemporary R&B. You could still hear the melodies now as if you were in a ghostly memory of an old rusted and abandoned K-Mart of your childhood, still playing Muzak in the changing rooms .. If you can imagine it. Remember Muzak? I’m definitely old enough to remember! To be completely fair, I won’t rank any other songs because they are all crafted so well, that I may change my mind during the many play throughs that I plan on having in the future. PLEASE share your thoughts and memories of these masterpieces in Quiet Storm style music. I can still hear the DJ’s soothing my soul with their calming dialogue before they cue up the next song. Diana Ross once sang the lyric “Im Coming Out!” ... Anita Baker said hold my beer y’all. Damn... Much respect. Last, but not least, albums like this make me excited to hear acts like Sade, Luther, Brian McKnight, Teddy P, Smokey, Babyface and more... Even more. Much love, thanks for reading. Music heals. 🙏✌️

Comparing R&B here to the 60s, it is night and day. Nina and Aretha in the 60s make you feel something. Anita’s album has a strong vocal performance with perfect production, but it takes itself too seriously and ultimately feels lifeless. Nothing to hate, but it hardly goes beyond an average score for an R&B record.

“Rapture” by Anita Baker (1986) More great music out of Detroit. Anita Baker is a gem, bringing the serious listener a classic taste of R&B, no matter what mood you’re in. Her voice is beautiful, instantly and effortlessly moving from soulful resonance to piercing wail, kind of like your heart, if you’re human. Backing vocals and instrumentals exquisitely performed and mixed, this is an extraordinarily well produced collection of love songs. Delicate hand on the reverb. Great separation and depth. But the voice. The voice. I just bought this album on iTunes and put in on loop. Leave me alone for a couple hours. 5/5

Before this record, I had never heard the name quiet storm, the genre to which this album apparently belongs (I knew about the genre, just not the name). The brief potted history of quiet storm goes: in the 70s, with African-American audiences for soul music growing older, along with more and more African-Americans entering the middle class, suburbia and college, there emerged a market for a form of soul music more apposite for this upwardly-mobile demographic. That is, they sought an easy, Vaseline-smooth, uncontroversial soul music as a pleasant background sound to lovemaking. Taking its name from a radio show, which in turn took its name from a rather lovely Smokey Robinson number, quiet storm proved insanely lucrative throughout the 80s, yet it has never shaken the reputation of artificiality, of using the tools of soul to create product rather than soul. I have never been fond of that overproduced, anaemic style which became the dominant form of mainstream soul in the 80s. Partially it is the sense that this is soul for the Reagan era, of Reagan-approved soul. Many of the greats of 60s and 70s soul (Jame Brown, Curtis Mayfield, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, etc.) often had a civil-rights-era political dimension to their music, but 80s soul largely abstracted itself from that aspect. But that is not the issue here. Simply, all heart has been sapped from the music. The production has aged as well as Jacko’s legacy, and that smooth soul plus smooth jazz leaves the listener with nothing to hold on. Tragically, Anita Baker is an obviously talented singer, who happened to come to prominence after the golden age of soul. Individual moments strike the listener, but it requires the listener to sift. I accept that part of the 1001 exercise is to cover a gamut of Anglo-American popular music, but that does mean it occasionally throws up prominent albums from iffy genres. In American Psycho, the protagonist Patrick Bateman devotes a chapter to his appreciation of Whitney Houston (who does not have an album on this list, by the by), just after describing a sexually sadistic murder. He characterises Whitney as the greatest jazz singer of her generation, and tells the reader of the dignity and sincerity inherent to her debut album. Of course, this is meant satirically. We recognise that we are meant to mock Patrick for his abysmal taste and his facile justifications (which seem cribbed from music critics, indicating Patrick’s obsession with conforming), with the implicit message that Whitney’s music, and by extension quiet storm, is largely a cold, barren wasteland. Anita Baker had the misfortune to sow her seed on that wasteland. That said, in the wake of Whitney’s death, there has been more of an appreciation of her abilities as a singer, but not to the extent that it has prompted a critical reassessment of her 80s work. And yes, I know it is unusual to spend so much time talking about Whitney Houston in an Anita Baker review, but it underscores my point: sometimes genres should just be left to rot. Or are we all clamouring for the return of the teen death ballad?

I cannot stand this type of schlocky, over produced 80’s adult contemporary music. It’s like a Thomas Kinkade painting: gauzy and not reflective of reality. Anita Baker is a great singer, but, to my ears, this music sounds incredibly dated.

This style of music is not my thing. To me it feels and over-produced and sanitized version of R&B. The singing of course is phenomenal, and there are a few interesting chord changes here and there, but overall, this music does not resonate with me at all.

Honestly I was gonna give this a 2 but then I listened to the back half of the album after smoking a joint while on a walk with my dog. That led me down some rabbithole of 90s soul that more for a very enjoyable start to the day.

I am a big RnB fan, but quiet storm is not a subgenre I listen to much. I prefer a bit of grit in my soul and RnB, and the essence of quiet storm is 'schmick'. And Rapture is probably the Everest of the quiet storm genre. It is super smooth, perfectly played and produced to provide a sophisticated and consistent listen all the way through. I like the balance of real instruments and synthesised; the synthesizers provide a sheen to the proceedings, while maintaining the feel of really great players. And over it all is the wondrous voice of Anita Baker. Apparently she wanted to make a jazz album, but was talked into to this, and it is perfect. It feels like her vision, what with her vocal control over the song dynamics and co-writing and production credits throughout. Hard to believe se was only in her late 20s when this was recorded; there is a maturity and power to her voice. I'm pretty sure I have a copy of this album lurking in my vinyl somewhere, I should pull it out to spin more often. Fave track: Sweet Love

Incomplete on Spotify but what’s available bops. Love to recognize the MF DOOM Hoe Cakes sample originated in…(checks notes) Sweet Love. Deborah Vance eat your heart out.

While Ms. Baker obviously has a lovely voice, it's clear that this music was not made for me. To me, it sounds like it should be played in a dentist's office in an elevator inside of a grocery store. The real question here is why are there four songs from this album unavailable on Spotify? Is "Watch Your Step" the unofficial Taliban national anthem? Is "Been So Long" about lusting after an underage object of desire? Does "Mystery" glorify selling drugs and killing cops? Did the crowds of insurrectionists chant the chorus to "No One in the World" while storming the Capitol on January 6th? We demand answers!

Very special voice. But not my style.

Fuck yes

Peaceful, spiritual, damn close to perfect. I've loved this album from the minute I bought it, many many years ago, and it's only gotten better with age.

Been trying to get into anita baker, this is my first album. Def a late night album that u wanna play in the background while getting hella intense with someone

Not for me, was well made and performed. Will I listen to again: 1%

No. 255/1001 Sweet Love 3/5 You Bring Me Joy 3/5 Caught Up in the Rapture 3/5 Been So Long 2/5 Mystery 3/5 No One In The World 3/5 Same Ole Love 3/5 Watch Your Step 3/5 Average: 2,86 No song that I disliked, but mostly boring.

I can see why Anita Baker is accused of being bland supermarket music. It's extraordinarily non-offensive and easy to listen to, which turns a lot of people off. The production almost flattens the entire sound. Having said that, I liked it a bit better than expected. 'Sweet Love' and 'Same Ole Love' both having enough texture to keep the music interesting and compliment Baker's gorgeous voice. Much of the album is pretty sanitized 80s adult contemporary, which isn't really for me. But when it works, it works pretty well.

I preface this by admitting that my ears know nothing about R&B, just that sometimes I enjoy it. That said, this feels by-the-numbers, but the numbers are about twice as big as usual. Very pleasant listening.

Anita Baker has a gorgeous voice but this album sure doesn’t showcase it.

A Häagen-Dazs® ad's idea of horny music. Smooth and sweet, sensual but vanilla, mass-produced and bland, but with an unstoppable rubbery bass tone.

Nothing special, bit boring.

She has a wonderful voice. Adult contemporary doesn't really do it for me personally, and this has the 80's over-production that feels a little lifeless for me, but that isn't Anita's fault. Sweet Love is a pretty good song and feels less 80's and more timeless than the rest of the album which isn't as engaging.

Fine voice. Stylistically vapid.

She’s got a great voice, but the arrangements are so bad. This makes that New Jack Swing stuff seem modern.

Two days ago I watched the episode of Hacks where there is an CD stuck playing on a loop, and I couldn’t remember the name of the artist for the life of me, but I didn’t bother trying to look it up because I knew it would come to me eventually. Today I got this album. (PS It was Anita Baker. Anita Baker was the CD in the show.)

Got Anita Baker booming

I love her voice! This is timeless romantic soul

BEST SONGS: - You Bring Me Joy - Been so Long - Mystery

Short and sweet love!

What a voice. This blew me away. I dont think I ever heard of her before, but wow. It is so soulful, especially the parts with the gospel. Loved every second of it.

The legendary Anita Baker man whew! One of the phenomenal vocalist of all time and she put on a clinic in this album. Definitely cleaning the house to this one today! How the hell did someone on here call this unremarkable?? How do you listen to Mystery and come to that conclusion? I’m sensing a lack of rhythm and taste.

Incredible voice and wonderful songwriting. Did not expect to love this so much.

Good catchy album. Love songs from get female side. I even liked some songs.

Link is broken on spotify, since half the album is gone

The production on this album is INSANE. Yeah I know it’s cheesy, whatever I don’t care. Just listen to it, you can hear every single instrument, they all sound crisp. And it never drowns out baker or the backup singers. This album is luxurious, it’s like drinking a cold glass of water at 3 AM when your lips are dry.

Best voice in this list so far. Holy shit she's good. Stand-out: Sweet Love, Caught Up in the Rapture

VERY jazzy r&b music; taking inspiration from city pop tracks and romantic soul creates an album that sounds VERY nice to listen to. it's said that the likes of whitney houston took heavy inspiration from baker's discography, and i see why, with very jazzy chords, sappy lovey-dovey and moderately religious lyrics, and a voice so firm and strong it can save a soul from a deep depression. i had a great time all the way through.

Basically a perfect album. Fantastic vocals, beautiful composition, and flawless production. 5/5

Very smooth and great sound

Very underrated artist in my opinion. Lovely voice, love Anita Baker 👍

Once you've listened to this list for a while, you'll welcome any album that you can listen to without damaging your hearing. I think this album is unfairly rated so low. Anita Baker has a very beautiful voice and the songs are well composed and arranged.

We were all caught up by her beautiful singing back then. Great arrangements and Anita has an instantly recognizable voice. This is a delightful album still.

EXCELLENT

very chill sound, so classy

p559. 1986. 5 stars. One of THE great soul voices on absolutely top form. This is fabulous.

This was a brilliant listen, faultless.

spotify would only allow me to listen to 5 of the 8 songs on the album.

Sweet, sweet voice. I’d heard her before but hadn’t really listened to a full selection. Just soothing & sweet.

Her voice is amazing! the percussion work is a masterpiece. The passion this album displays is a must to appreciate.

Cool

Oh I am so excited to see this on the list. It’s so nice to see anything other than more white men. It’s rare to find some soul in this list of sameness. Aaaaand of course Spotify has half the songs on the album blocked. SMH One of the things I admired about Anita Baker was that, at the absolute peak of fame, she walked away from it all to care for her sick relative. Just left the world behind for the sake of love. I still enjoy her music. The two big hits are still perfect r&b pop. Even my 80yr old grandfather used to like her back in the day. Her voice is effortless and clear. So much of the melody is carried in her singing. It’s hard not to blast this to sing along to. Her voice just invites you to join in. Really enjoying this. No One in the World is new to me and has been added to mixes now. Ok now pretty much everything has been saved to my lists. Forgot about Same Ole Love. Friggin’ love it. Excellent album. Wish it was fully available. Happy to have more Anita Baker in my life. This is a great example of 80’s quiet storm, easy r&b. Great music that still holds up. Perfect performances all around. Already replaying.

Rating: 10/10

A great album! Surprised that I knew so many of these songs.

Beautiful gem that will now live in my life forever

I fondly remembered Anita Baker thanks to my aunt & uncle listening to R&B stations back in the day. Every time Anita came on, I'd stop to listen. To this day, I think about her - I'm so glad this was on the challenge. This is classic R&B, and it's done right. I loved this album so much, I listened to it three times & let the algorithm run free after the album was over. What an awesome day of beautiful & chill R&B. It was like hearty chicken soup for the soul. 5 stars.

A great album from one of my favourite vocalists! favs: You Bring Me Joy, Watch Your Step, Same Ole Love, Sweet Love, Caught Up In The Rapture least fav: No One In The World

Bright, joyful, super smooth. I've always had an appreciation for this type of RnB, the kind when the piano just glistens as the singer sings soulfully over it. Anita has a gorgeous voice, and it just plays against the instruments so well. So many wonderful melismatic runs, hooks for days. It might be a little cheesy, but I think it's aware of that, and plays into it. Favorite tracks: "Mystery", "Sweet Love", "Caught Up In The Rapture", "Same Ole Love"

Beautiful

A última romântica.

A stunning album, great singing, great bass, fantastic sax

Perfection.

Oh my God, I love it already! Reminds me of my childhood. 70s sound with 80s production.

I didn't want this album to end.

Beautiful voice - had to listen on YT b/c half of the album was hidden on Spotify?

For me this is the best embodiment of the R&B quiet storm that was very popular in the 80s. A perfect late night album - it doesn't sound very 80s. There are too many classic, retro touches - R&B with a dash of jazz (especially her scat singing). She sounds older than her years (28) and more experienced (her second album) throughout. It is what every soul album in the 80s aspired to live up to. I can't think of one that came close.

Well that was sublime 🥰 Perfect for an evening curled on the sofa in front of a fire with the love of your life, with a glass or two of your favourite tipple. Lovely

Phenomenal. I've always loved her voice and her music.

Sweet, sweet smooth 80s R&B. Love this stuff. Best tracks are the ones with Freddie Washington on bass. That guy grooves. Saddened to read that Don Myrick, who was in the original Earth, Wind & Fire horn section and the sax soloist on 'You Bring Me Joy' was murdered by a police officer who mistook his lighter for a weapon. In better news, I read that Anita Baker has regained the rights to her music so fingers crossed all her records will be available for streaming soon.

I loved this. Anita's voice is so beautiful and soulful.

Ahhhhhhh, what a voice! Sweet and smooth like silky honey. Released just as I was starting college, this seemed like music for old people to me. I guess I'm old now because it just sounded great today. A genuine treat.

After Murder Ballads on one day and noise rock the next, the 1001 Album Gods took mercy on my ears with a quiet storm of perfect 80s soul. This was just the musical hug I had no idea I was needing. The production is spot on. This is music for a romantic evening in a swanky blue-lit nightclub sipping on a cocktail as the conversation grows more and more intimate. Sax-forward and butter-smooth, RAPTURE is an unexpectedly wonderful addition to my night.

10/10 based af

Absolutely blown away by Anita's beautiful voice. This old school RnB was such a breath of fresh air and it will be in heavy rotation for me.

Great album!

Это полный восторг!

Mellow

A 4 or a 5. Oh what the hell

Chill. Good. Understated. Feels familiar. Morning vibes.

Sounds lovely. 9

I'm a sucker for eighties soul production. This album was fantastic on that alone. Add in bakers vocals it was a homerun

Ultimate smooth R&B

Så mysig, bra!

The end of the 80’s.

Back when people really be singing

FINAL REVIEW 4/5. A dreamily produced, sensual, and romantic album made by a vocalist whose passion can be felt in the sound of her voice. I think what I wrote in my last note really captures how I feel about this album, so I'm not going to repeat myself lol. NOTES 5:51 am - ive heard this name before, but i dont know anything about her. time to check it out, then!! 5:52 am - this album isnt on spotify :( i will check youtube then 5:55 am - only like a minute in and i love it. i actually know this song too??? lol idk from where. but this is the kind of r&b i really love, so lush and dreamy~ 6:13 pm - i didnt end up listening to the album last night (morning?) bc i got tired, so i just did now, and uuughhhhh it's so pretty. i wish we had half-ratings, bc to me this is a 4.5. like its pretty much perfect, but like my five star standard is "is it was good as the albums on this list that i've heard before this project and would call a 5/5" (ftr, those are pet sounds by the beach boys, hounds of love by kate bush, heaven or las vegas by cocteau twins, discovery by daft punk, and to pimp a butterfly by kendrick lamar) and it doesn't quite reach that. but, nonetheless, it is an absolutely beautiful album, and anita baker's voice is just so powerful and emotive and incredible. the lush, sensual production and yearning lyrics highlight it so perfectly. i can absolutely understand why this style was called "quiet storm", as it really does bring to mind the feeling of staying inside during a storm, curled up with someone you love. i'm honestly just going to do my second listen right now. this might even get a third. who knows.

Exceptional vocals and great instrumentation. The lyrics are a bit trite at times, but it's nothing egregious.

Beautiful 80s production, amazing voice; you'd have to be a bit soulless to not enjoy this on any level. Favourite tracks: Sweet Love (it's incredible), Caught Up in the Rapture, Been so Long, Watch Your Step (I swear this reminds me of a Sonic 3 song, but can't quite place which).

Nicht meine Musik, aber super umgesetzt und es macht Spaß, das zu hören. Gute Songs.

Sweet Love is gorgeous and the rest of the album holds up. Rapture feels like the kind of R&B/pop album that has gone on to be super influential and listening to it has so many echoes of future artists to come.

Good 80s soul

NICE

Cool

This is exactly what I needed that evening.

Very 80s production but the voice is amazing. Turn down the lights.

Fond memories of taking Mom to see this tour.

Smooth as whipped butter. And SO mid 80’s. My 12 year old self hated this music. My 50 year old self begs to differ. I have no doubt that many a baby has been made to this music. Anita’s voice exists in its own universe much like Sade and Hope Sandoval of Mazzy Star. When you find a voice that resonates with your soul, it’s sometimes hard to accept that they are the only person who sounds like that.

love the soul sound of this album! 4/5 #musicsky #albumsky