Irreplaceable
With tunes like "Softly as a Morning Sunrise" and "Arizona Sunrise," George Benson has delivered his best pure smooth-jazz jams in many years. Most of the album, however, caters to the urban-contemporary/R&B; crowd. Benson is in great voice, often adapting the rapid hip-hop meter used by modern R&B; singers likeR. KellyandJoe, the latter of whom co-wrote two tracks here ("Black Rose" and "Missing You"). The only vocal track that comes close to jazz is "Stairway to Love."  Benson does some octave picking on his creative instrumental reading ofLuther Vandross's "Take You Out," but like much of the rest of the album, the tune was meant for R&B; fans. The outstanding vocal talents of Andrea Simmons ("Cell Phone") and Cameroonian Richard Bona ("Strings of Love") also deserve mention.--Mark Ruffin