So Many Ways
Trina, Tamar, and Towanda may not have their older sister Toni's unusual,  relaxed sultriness, but they are all fine singers and it's a treat hearing that Braxton sound  multiplied by three on the Braxtons' debut album, "So Many Ways." The Braxtons do  remake "I'd Still Say Yes" the 1987 Klymaxx hit written by Babyface, but no other  melody on the album grabs attention as effectively. Jermaine Dupri comes close on the  two songs he wrote and produced. The title track finds the three women crooning about  the many ways they can love a man over a tricky, syncopated rhythm pattern, while  Dupri's other contribution is an old-fashioned soul ballad about the kind of man a woman  could "Take Home to Momma." The album ends with the Braxtons imitating their most  obvious role model, Diana Ross, by remaking her 1979 hit, "The Boss." Otherwise,So Many Wayssquanders classy singing on formulaic soul material.--Geoffrey Himes