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From the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Brown Sugar

D'Angelo

1995

Brown Sugar
Album Summary

Brown Sugar is the debut studio album by American singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist D'Angelo, released on July 3, 1995, through EMI. The album was recorded during 1994 and 1995 in sessions at Battery Studios and RPM Studios in New York City and at the Pookie Lab in Sacramento. Its production, instrumentation, arrangements, and songwriting were primarily handled by D'Angelo, who employed both vintage recording equipment and modern electronic devices. The songs feature earnest lyrics about love and romance, set against a fusion of contemporary R&B and traditional soul music with elements of funk, quiet storm, and hip hop music. Brown Sugar debuted at number six on the US Billboard Top R&B Albums chart, selling 300,000 copies in its first two months. With the help of its four singles, it spent 65 weeks on the Billboard 200 chart and received platinum certification within a year of its release. Brown Sugar was also met with widespread acclaim and earned D'Angelo several accolades, including four Grammy Award nominations. Regarded by music journalists as a pivotal release in neo soul, the album brought commercial exposure to the burgeoning musical movement amid the prominence of producer-driven, digitally approached R&B.

Wikipedia

Rating

2.94

Votes

7162
Genres
Funk
Hip Hop
Soul

Reviews

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Tue Jul 13 2021
2

Sure, it's peak 90s R&B but is that really saying much? For what it is, it's good. It's just that what it is isn't much, you know? It's an entire album of shallow sexism wrapped in a thin veneer of so-called romance. Nah. Pass.

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Thu Mar 11 2021
2

Very soulful and chill sounding. Great instrumentals create a true R&B experience. The lyrics weren't my speed, they were overly sexual without the nuance. It was very to the point where as other R&B achieves the same sensuality but in a more poetic way. His voice is great and I think for a debut this one was ok. It's like "getting in the mood music but for high-schoolers"(Which I might have rated higher 20 years ago)

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Wed Jan 26 2022
2

This album was definitely a cornerstone for the genre, pulls in a lot of great ideas, and D’Angelo is a competent singer. But man, I just did not enjoy this. He may be a good singer, but he is also a boring one. No excitement, the same energy the whole way through. And the melodies don’t help either. What’s the opposite of an ear worm? They seemed to slide off the folds of my brain and out my ears before the songs even ended. If they ever would end; the songs all go on for two or three minutes doing nothing new or interesting. I see why people like this, but it has so many of my pet peeves baked into it.

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Thu Mar 18 2021
2

dear lord am i glad that's over.

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Wed Jan 27 2021
2

He’s got a nice voice but I honestly hate this kind of music

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Thu Mar 18 2021
1

The best bit was the wiki. I found this tediously dull

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Tue Jun 08 2021
5

My goodness, I love neo-soul. D'Angelo's voice is nothing short of heavenly. That voice combined with groovy, soulful instrumentals makes Brown Sugar an R&B classic. Some standout tracks include Alright, When We Get By, and Brown Sugar.

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Thu Jan 07 2021
4

8/10 smooth, buttery smooth, smooth, I feel made love to by D'Angelo's pure, primal, non-toxic, sexual, raw smoothness

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Thu Sep 29 2022
1

Ma che noia… musica da salone di bellezza Non mi capacito sia inserito tra i 1001

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Mon Jun 28 2021
5

FIVE STARS!!!!! FIVE STARS!!!!! AHHHHHHHHH!!

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Wed Apr 07 2021
5

Better than Maxwell's Hang Suite, would get away with it on a first date.

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Sun Jun 06 2021
5

Delicious R&B. Chill and rythm.

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Tue Dec 22 2020
2

Not my music but nice when played in the background

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Tue Jun 29 2021
2

1/2 really not my jam. the music itself is pleasant enough, the singing is a lot of moany noises.

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Fri Feb 19 2021
2

Dated, but a couple of cracking shagging songs. 3/10

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Mon Jan 24 2022
2

It's rhythmic, not unnecessarily profane, and kind of works as an ode for his beloved... but there's just way too much cliche going on here. Way too much... not sure if his version of "cruisin" is better than Huey Lewis and Gwyneth Paltrow's version...

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Mon Jan 31 2022
2

Not really the kind of music that I choose to listen to but, this is a very nice album. I like his version of Crusin' but it isn't unique enough from the original Smokey Robinson version to make it stand out. It is nice that he is able to bring the song to a new generation of fans. 2/5

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Fri May 20 2022
1

This was exactly the kind of nothing R&B bilge that used to get me really animated in the 90s. Not now though, I’m chill. 😎

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Thu Jun 16 2022
1

Not my bag. The two albums I had before this were absolute bangers so only fair I get this to even things out.

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Fri Jun 17 2022
1

Schmoov futhermucker. Never been my thang.

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Sun Jul 10 2022
1

I mean, it's not literally the worst thing I've ever heard... but... it's not great. His falsetto sucks and the whole thing felt bland and boring after the first song. That being said, 'Shit, Damn, Motherfucker' is clearly the pinnacle of songwriting and no one should attempt to surpass it. I like how he said the three words over and over and over and over. Quality stuff. This album did help me find religion, though. I didn't think at the beginning that I would be praying for it to be over, but here I am.

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Mon Jul 18 2022
1

Doesn't even scrape a 2. It's really dull musically, and the lyrics are both cliches and throwbacks to the creepy lyrics you'd get in 50s/60s music but without the innocence that gave the oldies a bit of an excuse. Would've got a 2 had I only been half listening to it, but the lyrics drop it down to a 1 as it made it actively unpleasant to listen to.

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Wed Jul 20 2022
1

Is mid-90s neo-soul the hardest genre to listen to now? Beware of any artist who has his/her top off in their photos as a USP. One star for the first track, but boy this is inconsequential.

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Thu Jul 28 2022
1

Is there a sexy word for ‘boring’?

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Thu Sep 15 2022
1

No more please, make it stoooop

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Wed Oct 12 2022
1

p769. 1995. 1 star. The background music they use in stores selling Gwyneth Paltrow's "This Smells Like My Vagina" candles. Wannabe Marvin Gaye for the 90s, only without the talent or the voice. This was a key influence on Craig David - so! We finally have someone to blame! Can't be doing with high pitched male voices, especially when they are used on such bland material. This is soulless and instantly forgettable.

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Fri Nov 25 2022
1

He's got a good voice but R&B does nothing for me. Lyrically uninteresting. Would not listen again

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Fri Nov 25 2022
1

Not for me at all, dull even by r and b standards.

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Fri Jan 20 2023
1

This music makes me very nervous, overproduced, all character removed, like swimming in a pool instead of a sea full of waves.

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Fri Jan 27 2023
1

imagine my disappointment when i found out this isn't about heroin.

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Thu Feb 09 2023
1

This Neo soul is really not my jam. Couldn't get thru this one and for the record, the Stones did Brown Sugar better.

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Sun Feb 26 2023
1

eu ouvi a primeira musica, tem um som legal mas n é muito meu tipo de musica. prefiro o dos stones

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Mon Feb 27 2023
1

Awful. Repetitive. I had to keep skipping to the next song because the repetition was getting on my nerves.

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Sun Mar 05 2023
1

Urghgghhhhhhhhhhh A mix of cringe and boring. Just not an enjoyable record at all. Would not listen again. Best track: Lady Worst track: Alright, Jonz in my Bonz, Higher, Brown Sugar, Cruising

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Wed Mar 29 2023
1

Rubbish. Boring, whiny RnB, like there's good RnB but this was terrible. Who even is D'Angelo? Literally never heard of him. Too many of the songs were drawn out and way too much of that "woo woo yah yah" crooning that kinda gives me the ick. Best: Brown Sugar Worst: When We Get By

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Wed Mar 29 2023
1

Shocked at how boring and not good this was. I'm amazed this is always so critically acclaimed, other than the first track it put me to sleep.

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Thu Apr 06 2023
1

Saw the cover and thought this is gonna be awful. By half way through the first song that was confirmed. Somehow, it then continued to get worse. It manages to offend and bore me at the same time.

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Sat Jul 24 2021
5

You gotta love soul/jazz and prince for that one. And I def. do

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Tue Aug 24 2021
5

This album is so silky smooth, from start to finish. I love every single song, there's not one on here that I don't love. I think I've fallen in love with this album. 5/5 stars.

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Wed Feb 16 2022
5

Shout out to all the grown-ass adults who were conceived to this album back in the 90s. This is smooth and seductive! I love the sense that the lyrics are utterly at the service of the music and D'Angelo's vocals, more about evoking a mood. It's a dream.

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Sun Apr 10 2022
5

Great debut album - pretty perfect. I say 9/10 but only because the follow-up, Voodoo (assume it is the list too) is even better (10/10).

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Wed May 11 2022
5

Come ON! Try to top it, what is sexier than this?

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Sun Jul 24 2022
5

D’Angelo one of the best to ever do it

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Mon Jul 25 2022
5

Superb. 90s R&B at its finest. Every track is gorgeous, and I love his rendition of Smokie Robinson's Cruisin. A new favorite.

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Fri Sep 02 2022
5

Muy bueno, chill, para trabajar o ir de viaje. Hasta para una cena en el lounge.

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Wed Oct 05 2022
5

Not always a huge fan of R&B, but damn, this man has soul. Love the album.

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Thu Dec 08 2022
5

Undeniable the greatness of this album. Made us all listen to music differently again. Could be released today and win awards.

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Fri May 12 2023
5

Brilliant album, start to finish.

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Thu Aug 10 2023
5

Hard to be left unsatisfied after hearing this album. It's just exquisite. It SOUNDS like D'Angelo at his most unconscious, his most musically free and unwrought. Just effortlessly making incredible music. But... apparently he spent ages, recording all of the instruments himself?? At 21?? Unreal. I couldn't believe that because it sounds so effortless. It just sounds like, an early incarnation of D'Angelo, with an incredible backing band. Well, it turns out that that's D'Angelo as the backing band. Wow. Still a classic, still an incredibly fun time. 5/5

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Fri Aug 11 2023
5

he actually cannot make bad music

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Wed Aug 23 2023
5

This album was fire during my University years. People lost their damned minds when D’Angelo came to town to perform. A re-listen rekindles. This was the start of neo-soul.

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Thu Aug 31 2023
5

Great album all the way through

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Mon Nov 02 2020
4

I don't really like rnb/soul music but this floated my boat, pretty impressed. and reading wiki the dude is like a musical genius. wrote and played the whole thing himself, produced most as well. crazy that i'd never even heard of it before. 4/5.

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Tue Apr 20 2021
4

90’er rnb, neo-soul, lækkert, fløde

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Sun Jan 24 2021
4

Excellent album, all the way through! Great voice, and great vibe.

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Fri Jul 09 2021
4

Ur-neo-soul. Have loved this record since day one. 4.5.

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Sun Jun 27 2021
4

Sweet und sommerlich, urban und zeitlos. Klingt für mein ungeschultes Ohr wie ein männliches Pendant zu Erikah Badu. Perlt, hat die richtige Menge Soul und Jazz. Top-Entdeckung hier, Digger, no diggity!

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Sun Jan 24 2021
4

I think I liked a majority of the album (as in I saved almost 3/4ths of the songs.) But there wasn't any songs that really stood out and forced me to listen on repeat like "Girls just Wanna Have Fun", "Blue Suede Shoes" or "Tutti Frutti". I enjoyed listening to it and will revist it though, it's MORE OF A SOFT FOUR than a HARD FOUR LIKE the other two

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Thu Apr 15 2021
4

4.4 - Sophisticated R&B jams, smooth vocals with radiant falsetto, lush instrumentation. A vibe good enough to warrant an immediate repeat listen.

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Thu Jun 03 2021
4

Pretty good album. Brown Sugar was a great track and liked Crusin’ more than I was expecting. A good mellow sound throughout. Shit, Damn, Motherfucker is an A+ name for a song

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Mon Feb 15 2021
4

Den va nice, I like it. Lite sensuell typ, blir def 4/5

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Wed Jun 16 2021
4

Saved Prior: None Off Rip: Brown Sugar; Me And Those Dreamin' Eyes Of Mine; Shit, Damn, Motherfucker; Lady Cutting Edge: Cruisin' Overall Notes: Smooth as butter. Didn't really think soul was my genre, but I've heavily fucked with the soul albums I've gotten thus far on this thing. Vibes on vibes on vibes.

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Mon May 10 2021
4

Great album! The epitome of cool!

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Sat Jul 10 2021
4

Smooth, groovy, very sexy. Love the jazz undercurrents.

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Fri May 14 2021
4

Nice chilled songs, good background listening

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Fri May 14 2021
4

Nice chill soul music. Good for background listening

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Fri May 07 2021
4

Not the best D'Angelo album but still very good

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Fri May 14 2021
4

Good album. It's weird but I somehow couldn't shake the feeling that the lyrics were nonsense. Maybe something about them being so literal made me feel that way. Honestly I have no idea. His cover of Cruisin' is pretty damn good though.

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Tue May 25 2021
4

memories of being in my ex's bunk bed age 14! Very smooth, lovely rich sound. Great voice. Some bits were definitely the inspiration for some Flight Of The Conchords songs.

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Wed Jun 09 2021
4

I didn't believe sex music existed before this album

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Mon Jul 05 2021
4

Musically, a really beautiful album, and D'Angelo's vocals are heavenly. Soulful, sexy, great mood music. Some of the lyrics are a bit much for my old lady ears, but that's me. Fave track: "Alright."

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Mon Aug 02 2021
4

I liked this one! Not that complicated lyrically but for what it is, it's beautiful :)

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Wed Sep 01 2021
4

Aww man the band here is so in the pocket it's ridiculous. Love that jazzy keys sound. First time hearing this album, and it just works straight outta the gate. What a talent! Can't wait to listen to his other albums. Bonus points for naming one song "Shit, Damn, Motherfucker". Is that the greatest song title of all time?! Every track here is awesome.

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Fri Sep 10 2021
4

Will need to listen again, still, definitely enjoyed it. D'Angelo sounds very cool and collected, and the instrumentals were great.

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