Get It On… Tonite – Christopher Thelen

Get It On... Tonite
Def Jam / Island Records, 1999
Reviewed by Christopher Thelen
Published on Apr 25, 2000

If you’re not a person who follows r&b/soul music closely
like myself, you might think it’s been some time since we heard
from Montell Jordan. After the success of his album
This Is How We Do It and its title track, it might have
seemed that Jordan dropped off the edge of the earth.

Those in the know are much better informed. Jordan is now on his
fourth album,
Get It On… Tonite, and if he’s done anything over the
years, he’s turned himself into a soul singer who’s a cross between
R. Kelly and Luther Vandross. Musically, this work is incredibly
pleasant, even if the subject matter in some of the songs borders
on typical male braggadoccio.

The disc is divided into two distinct parts: the first is an
uptempo, on-the-fringe-of-hip-hop style that glorifies fun, both in
and out of the sheets. The second half is more introspective and
slower-tempoed, focusing more on the heartbreak of relationships
than the pleasure. What’s a mark of excellence for Jordan is that
both sides are equally as good, meaning your preference will most
likely depend on the kind of mood you’re in at the moment.

On the faster division of
Get It On… Tonite, Jordan walks a fine line between
r&b/soul, funk and hip-hop, all without diluting the music one
drop. Tracks like “Get It On Tonite,” “Can’t Get Enough” and “Why
You Wanna Do That? (Ooh Girl)” all show just how talented Jordan
truly is, even if he’s not creating anthems that would be beat to
death in the sports world. All of this the same, maybe it wouldn’t
have hurt to have toned down the suggested sexual play on tracks
like “What’s It Feel Like? (Is It Good?)”. Not that I’m a prude,
but it almost feels like if you’ve got to sing about it, chances
are you ain’t gettin’ as freaky as often as you’d like to.

For me, it is the slower half of
Get It On… Tonite that seals the deal for Jordan. Here is
where he’s given a chance to musically stretch his legs, and he
does so without seeming overbearing or becoming a musical show-off.
Who else could take Phil Collins’s 1983 hit “Against All Odds” and
work it into a unique masterpiece all its own? Who else could take
two songs like “One Last Time (Break Up Sex)” and “Last Night (Can
We Move On?)” and make it sound like this is a natural progression
of the album?

Especially noteworthy are the two versions of “Once Upon A Time”
that grace this album – the original track, and the version in
Spanish that starts playing just seconds after “Against All Odds”
fades out. (Memo to all record producers: this is the way to handle
bonus tracks! Take the hint.) In a sense, it almost sounds better
hearing Jordan sing this one in Spanish, even though I admit I
don’t understand one word of the language. Following the storyline,
this sounds much more natural.

Get It On… Tonite is the kind of album that will keep
Jordan’s diehard fans drooling for more — and if all you know of
his music is “This Is How We Do It,” now might just be the time to
pick this album up and to discover the real Montell Jordan.

Rating: A-

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