The O'Jays: Love You To Tears : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Every once in a while, nepotism turns out to be an excellent – and even funky – idea. Love You to Tears, which finds Gerald Levert playing label head, producer and writer to his father Eddie's veteran soul group, is the strongest O'Jays album since the group's historic run with producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff. The various producers at work here – including Levert and Keith Sweat – find a strong, natural balance between the classic O'Jays sound of the '70s and a more current R&B approach. Songs like the gritty, "No Diggity"-ish "Pay the Bills," the ultrahorny "I Want My Cake" and the soaring title track prove that given the right context, old-school R&B dawgs can still teach new tricks.