Details
Track Listing
1. Say What's in My Heart
2. Just to Be With You
3. Sweet Amelia
4. To Make Me Who I Am
5. First Time Ever I Saw Your Face - (with Linda Ronstadt)
6. Yes, I Love You
7. Your Sweet and Smiling Eyes
8. I Can't Change the Way You Don't Feel
9. Please Remember Me - (with Linda Ronstadt)
10. What Did I Do (To Deserve You)
11. God Made You For Me
12. Lovely Lady Dressed in Blue
Album Notes
Personnel: Aaron Neville (vocals, piano); Linda Ronstadt, Yakira (vocals); Robbie Nevil (acoustic & electric guitars, keyboards, programming); Michael Thompson, Bradley Spalter (guitar, keyboards, programming); Peter Moore, Jim McGorman, Ali Boudris, Dean Parks (guitar); Keith Andes (piano, Hammond B-3 organ, keyboards, drum programming); Johann Langley, Michael Norfleet, Ivan Neville (piano); Marc Nelson (keyboards, drum programming, background vocals); Richard Johnson, Robbie Buchanan (keyboards); Reggie Hamilton, Deon Estus, LeMarquis Jefferson, Lee Sklar (bass); Carlos Vega (drums); Deborah Cox, Ricky Jones, Gordon Chambers, Tony Rich, Khris Kellow, Emanuel Officer (background vocals).
Producers include: Keith Andes, Marc Nelson, Robbie Nevil, Bradley Spalter, Tony Rich.
Engineers include: Martin Horenburg, Paul Boutin, Adam Kagan.
Includes liner notes by David Ritz.
...TO MAKE ME WHO I AM was nominated for a 1999 Grammy for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance.
Aaron Neville croons these love songs with an ache in his distinctive voice, reaching up into falsetto range with a sweetness and ease which translate into pure tenderness. TO MAKE ME WHO I AM is a graceful montage of earthly romance, love of God, and a kind of childlike optimism in the face of W difficulty; Neville sings, "I've seen the little children all strung out on dope/No one to care about them/Living without hope/But I've been lucky that I always had a song/I sing it with compassion, to try to right the wrong" in the autobiographical title song, expressing candor and hope. Two duets with Linda Ronstadt are standouts: "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and "Please Remember Me." There is an underlying spirituality to every song on this album, which is described by music biographer David Ritz in the liner notes as "turning prayers into love songs and love songs into prayers."
Industry Reviews
...the falsetto angel uses the rich songwriting and production talents of craftsmen such as Kenneth Babyface Edmonds and Tony Rich....He manages to sound both lustful and damn grateful...
Vibe (11/01/1997)
...His latest continues his slide into slicker terrain, with guests like Babyface, Diane Warren, and Tony Rich aiding in too squeaky-clean production....Overall, a little more bayou grease would have gone a long way to fend off the gloss. - Rating: B
Entertainment Weekly (10/17/1997)
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