Donell Jones Journey Of A Gemini CD

Personnel: Donell Jones (vocals); Clipse, Jermaine Dupri, Bun B (rap vocals); Charles Pettaway (guitar); Abdul Ra'oof (trumpet); Lloyd Oby (trombone); Tim Kelley (keyboards, drum programming); Bob Robinson (keyboards); Omar Phillips (percussion); Ryan Leslie (programming); Cassandra Lucas, Eric Dawkins, Chantell Jones, Katrina Humes, Durrell Babbs (background vocals).
Audio Mixers: Kevin "KD" Davis; Franny "Franchise" Graham; Dave "Natural Love" Russell ; Patrick Viala; Phil Tan; Stephen George.
Recording information: Battery Studios, New York, NY; Brandon's Way Recording, LA, CA; Claygarden Studios, Norfolk, VA; Doppler Studios, Atlanta, GA; KDTS Studios, Atlanta, GA; The Record Plant, LA, CA; The Underlab, LA, CA; Tree Sound Studios, Atlanta, GA; Unsung Studio, Sherman Oaks, CA; ZAC Studios, Atlanta, GA.
Editor: Dave "Natural Love" Russell .
Photographer: Clay Patrick McBridge.
The fourth album by urban R&B artist Donell Jones rivals his 2002 commercial breakthrough, LIFE GOES ON. There are no radical stylistic departures here, which is a good thing for Jones fans. JOURNEY OF A GEMINI is a solid urban contemporary effort, suffused in equal measure with the aesthetics of hip-hop and Jones's silky-smooth, old-school crooning.
JOURNEY enjoys top-notch production from the Underdogs and Tim & Bob, among others, and the tunes find a comfortable middle ground between uptempo club tracks and honey-sweet bedroom ballads. There are plenty of strong grooves to dig into, and Jones is suave and seductive as always.
Following a protracted bout with label issues and some time spent cleaning up his lifestyle, Donell Jones finally released his fourth album -- four full years after his most successful album, Life Goes On, which fell only two spots short of reaching the very top of the Billboard album chart. While Journey of a Gemini doesn't quite maintain the steady level of consistency that his first three albums carried, it's nonetheless a satisfying addition to his catalog. Known to produce most of his own material, Jones takes a surprising direction by handing the duties over to the likes of Tim & Bob (who, unsurprisingly, shine the brightest), the Underdogs, Mike City, and Ryan Leslie for a significant chunk of the album. Since the album's not as ballad-heavy, Jones is less prone to oversinging, and several excellent midtempo tracks -- "Better Start Talking," "I'm Gonna Be," "Spend the Night," "Feelin' You," "Lust or Love" -- should function equally well in clubs and living rooms. Just to show that he hasn't turned into a total square, there are plenty of nasty bedroom come-ons. ~ Andy Kellman