Noel Gourdin's debut album has been several years in the making, at least if you track back to the Kay Gee-produced "Family Reunion," a song featured in the 2004 movie The Cookout. "The River," a gorgeous and spiritual '60s throwback, became his first official single in 2007 and found early support from
Steve Harvey, who spun it on his Morning Show. Once
After My Time was released in July of the following year, the song had been on the R&B/hip-hop chart for several months, never threatening to reach the top but holding steady for an apparent eternity, much like a couple
Anthony Hamilton singles. That is likely a good indication of
Gourdin's future status -- not superstar-level, yet not without a set of enduring (if not blockbuster) hits and a very devoted fan base. While
Gourdin's not quite as classicist as
Hamilton -- his voice is flexible enough to allow the possibility of making albums that fill any number of R&B pigeonholes -- he can be roughly slotted into the
John Legend/
Chrisette Michele/
Raheem DeVaughn camp, where modern sounds mix it up with classic inspirations. He's definitely tapping more directly into the 30-and-over crowd with "The River" and sincerely humbled ballads like "Sorry" (which slows and softens
Ronnie Foster's "Mystic Brew," aka the backbone of
A Tribe Called Quest's "Electric Relaxation") and "Make the Most" (which owes most of its production to
Michael Henderson and
Jean Carn's "Valentine Love"). Even the productions that are synth-spiked or more hip-hop-oriented -- "Open," "Better Man" -- don't register as flagrant attempts to top the pop chart; yet, at the same time, they add a necessary dimension and another level of appeal to
Gourdin's debut. ~ Andy Kellman