What's new on CD 7/18/03

'Bad Boys II'

It seems everyone in hip-hop and R&B turned out for the P. Diddy-produced "Bad Boys II" soundtrack -- indeed, the only missing link seems to be the warbling of the omnipresent Sean Paul.

Yet for all its razzle-dazzle star power, "Bad Boys II" is just slightly above average. Indeed, it's surprising how some of the biggest names fail to deliver here.

Subpar rapping from P. Diddy, Loon and Pharrell Williams mar the otherwise funky Neptunes-produced opening track, "Show Me Your Soul"; Foxy Brown shows why she's become an afterthought in the rap world with her witless rhyming on an R&B song with Mario Winans; "Shake Your Tailfeather," by Nelly, Murphy Lee and (guess who?) P. Diddy, sounds like a retread of Nelly's past hits; and "Flipside," by rapper Freeway, would have been better as an instrumental.

The soundtrack gets a boost from the blazing rap track "La La La" by Jay-Z, and the raw pairing of 50 Cent and the Notorious B.I.G. results in the ultimate gangsta anthem.

There's also the enticing soul of Beyonce on the dance track "Keep Giving Your Love to Me," which is so good, you wonder why she didn't hold it for her own album. "Love Don't Love Me" by Justin Timberlake channeling Prince is another winner.

Perhaps the biggest surprise is "Why," a strong track from Da Band, the train-wreck-in-progress group documented weekly on the P. Diddy-MTV series, "Making the Band." That they could emerge from the fighting, back-stabbing and thumb-sucking long enough to produce an entertaining groove is a wonder.

'Jackpot'

The sole conclusion listeners will draw from Chingy's debut album: Man, that guy sure can stretch out his 'r' sounds.

If the rollicking 'r'-rolling of his club-thumping single "Right Thurr" (pronounced like "whur") weren't enough, the St. Louis rapper packs "Jackpot" with "Wurrs My Cash" and "He's Herre" -- then does it all over again on the "Right Thurr" remix.

But creative manipulation of consonants will only get hip-hop artists so far, and there is very little of interest in this 13-song collection.

Without the humor of his mentor Ludacris or the musicality of fellow Missourian Nelly, Chingy's arrogant party-time lyrics are bland and unamusing.

There's no fun here, no clever wordplay. Crisp, multilayered synthesizer beats bounce steadily along as Chingy misses one punch line after another.

Snoop Dogg and Ludacris can't save the unoriginal "Holidae In." Annoying choruses bury "Juice" and "Chingy Jackpot." Chingy commands attention only on the breezy "Bagg Up" and bouncy opener "He's Herre."

'Limelite, Luv & Niteclubz'

Da Brat, the high priestess of smooth and sassy rap, is back in the mix with a solid release, "Limelite, Luv & Niteclubz." The sharp-tongued artist who first commanded serious attention with "Funkdafied," a seminal smoothie from 1994, proves she's still up to the test.

Rap is often one part art, one part physical abilities. In the latter department, Da Brat is so technically sharp with her rapid-fire lyrical delivery, it's a mystery how she ever slipped off the rap map.

Her bad-girl image remains fully intact. The songs are all about taking other girls' men and money. On "Ain't Got Time to Waste," she even recaps her early forays into mischievous behavior. "I used to sell Girl Scout cookies, a Brownie then, But I got rid of the whole box and didn't even turn the loot in," she raps.

Worthy, too, is "Gotta Thing for You," a track that features guest vocals from Mariah Carey. Like many of the tracks, it's a smooth, rolling barrage of cattiness, delivered in a Brat-a-tat-tat style that still shouldn't be ignored.

On the "don't sleep on it" scale, Da Brat's latest album rates a raging 10-out-of-10 No Doze pills.'Connick on Piano'

Best known as a crooner, Harry Connick Jr. puts vocals aside on "Other Hours: Connick on Piano -- Vol. 1," an instrumental reworking of his Tony-nominated score for the Broadway play "Thou Shalt Not."

On songs such as "Take Advantage" and "Dumb Luck," Connick hammers out a music both pure and wild. They are jazz melodies driven by sounds all Connick's own, but the rhythms are reminiscent of old-school ditties.

Even in the album's most prim and proper moments, there's a hint of Connick's barroom drawl: You can hear it in his phrasings on the piano on "Sovereign Lover," which moves sexily through chorus and verse with each transition sounding like Connick singing.

Connick, who has released three albums in the past two years, appears intent on reinventing himself. "Other Hours" is music for music's sake and a sign that he's not limited by his voice alone. It's also a sign the Crescent City, La., crooner is maturing musically.

'Duetto'

"Duetto," an appalling recording by Marcelo Alvarez and Salvatore Licitra, is a cross between The Three Tenors and Andrea Bocelli, with the two young tenors performing ballads with drippy orchestrations and a giant amount of reverb. It's a waste to have such talented singers spend their time on this.

Some of the pieces have music by Bach, Gounod and Rachmaninoff that has been transmuted into pop pieces.

The best of this sorry lot is "Je crois entendre encore (I believe I hear still)" from Bizet's "Les Pecheurs de Perles (The Pearl Fishers)." The bizarre track is "Au fond du temple saint (In the depths of the holy temple)," the famous duet for tenor and baritone from the same opera. Not only is it performed by two tenors, but a chorus also is added.

This CD is worth remembering when "worst of the decade" lists are compiled.

-- From wire reports