Soulstar
No getting around it--Musiq (who drops the "Soulchild" half of his moniker this time out)--really, really sounds likeStevie Wonder. OnSoulstar, though, tracks such as "Momentinlife" channel the great man with such beauty and good nature that a listener can't help but just go along with it. The Philly-bred Musiq makes other disarming moves like asking point blank "You love me, don't you, girl?" and making silly allusions to a certain board game on "Womanopoly," which is nonetheless a celebration of its female subject's climb out of hard times. And following on from hisprevious disc's cover ofGeorge Harrison's "Something," he takes on theStoneswith a no-excuses-needed take on "Miss You" (note the album's busiest bass line). Only the most rabid fan would claim that Musiq equals even a second-level Stevie effort, but while this plays, it's hard to argue with its vibe. --Rickey Wright