When producers
Teddy Riley and
Gene Griffin parted company, one of
Griffin's first moves was producing this self-titled debut album by new jack swing quartet
Basic Black.
Griffin was obviously hoping to duplicate the success of
Guy, and in doing so produced a CD with very few traces of originality. There are a few worthwhile songs on the disc, including the sociopolitical "Stupid" (a commentary on drugs, inner-city violence and other issues) and the 1970s-influenced ballad "Special Kind of Fool." But most of the material isn't the least bit memorable. Faceless and contrived, tracks like "Nothing But a Party," "Don't Make Me Fall In Love" and "She's Mine" expose
Basic Black for the shameless, knee-jerk
Guy clones they were. Artistic integrity clearly wasn't a high priority for
Griffin when he produced this embarassing release.