I find the genre to lean towards boring arrangements whose main purpose is as a framework over which a soloist can be soulful and do all sorts of backflips. And I found that this was true to some degree for much of this compilation album. A lot of the tracks just lose my attention. I have trouble remembering which one's which. Most of the tracks have me interested by the end, but I forget them by the time the next song comes along.
Some tracks really shine.
The Amalgamates' version of Man in the Mirror is the track that first got me into the 'Mates many years ago, and it still holds up against the best collegiate a cappella being made today. I could listen to the end of the chorus after the modulation forever. And if I wasn't expecting to be impressed by most of the arrangements on this CD, I certainly wasn't expecting to be impressed by one sung by a trio where one voice is soloing. But boy oh boy, did The Flirtations surprise me with their version of Sister . The supporting voices never bore, floating in and out of the foreground, joining and then backing the jazzy and, well, flirty soloist.