An early-'80s jazz-pop-R&B synthesis as durable and pleasing as any other,
Straight from the Heart was
Patrice Rushen's most successful album, at least from a sales standpoint: it peaked at number 14 on the pop chart, 25 slots higher than 1980's
Pizzazz. Still working with a core group of associates -- including
Freddie Washington,
Charles Mims,
Paul M. Jackson, and
Marlo Henderson (along with a still young
Gerald Albright) -- that went back to her earlier Elektra albums, the material here is as slick as ever, but not at the expense of lighter rhythms or less memorable melodies. Much of the album's popularity can be attributed to the club hit "Forget Me Nots,"
Rushen's most-known single -- a breezy, buoyant mixture of handclaps, fingersnaps, twisting bass, and
Rushen's typically blissful (and not overplayed) electric piano, not to mention the incorporation of a bad bass-and-percussion breakdown. (If you were born after the mid-'70s or so, you'd be more likely to recognize the song as the basis of
Will Smith's "Men in Black.") Beyond a forgettable ballad or two, the only disappointment is the
Brenda Russell collaboration on "Breakout!," where rock affectations (gnarling electric guitar, grimacing vocal tactics that suit neither
Rushen nor
Russell) damage what could've been a bigger hit. "Remind Me," despite not being released as a single, is a sweet and low-slung groove that has been sampled and interpolated by no less than a dozen significant rap and R&B songs -- including
Faith Evans' "Fallin' in Love,"
Notorious B.I.G.'s "Unbelievable,"
MoKenStef's "He's Mine," and
Junior M.A.F.I.A.'s "I Need You Tonight." But it's not like anything about this album requires that kind of validation. [Rhino's 1996 reissue adds the 12" versions of all three singles, including seven very replayable minutes of "Forget Me Nots," as well as two single edits.] ~ Andy Kellman