TLC Albums (4)
What The Critics Say
How good is TLC? So good that they survive the tragic, early death of a key member -- Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes was killed in a car accident during the recording of 3D -- with grace and style, turning out a record that sits comfortably next to their modern classics, Crazysexycool and FanMail. Perhaps surviving members Chilli and T-Boz spend a little too much time in the lyrics paying tribute to their colleague, but it's easy to glide past that and just concentrate on the strong songwriting and stylish production. Like their previous albums, the particulars don't matter as much as the overall impression. No member of TLC has an astounding voice, but their skills are exploited to the hilt, since the material not only suits them, it's melodic, memorable, and grows in stature with each play. Best of all, the production plays to the strength of the song, balancing the group's character and abilities with the hooks and character of the song. Perhaps 3D doesn't blaze trails like their other albums, but it never plays it safe and it always satisfies, and it's one of the best modern soul albums of 2002. A bittersweet triumph, perhaps, but it's better to go out on a positive note. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Crazysexycool was one of those records that defined an era. Few records before it combined hip-hop and classic soul songwriting quite as intoxicatingly or gracefully -- the performances and productions were utterly seamless. It would have been difficult to top anyway, but TLC had it doubly bad, since a number of behind-the-scenes problems delayed a sequel for nearly five years. As with any eagerly anticipated record, that follow-up, FanMail, arrived with too many expectations. And initially, it may be disappointing to realize TLC doesn't forge new ground with FanMail, but after a few spins, it settles in that nobody else makes urban soul quite as engaging as this. Not that it was easy to make this record, as the head-spinning list of collaborators indicates. Almost ten producers worked on the record, all trying to replicate the easy, appealing sound of Crazysexycool. And "replicate" is the right word, since there are no new innovations on FanMail, apart from a few lifts from the Timbaland book of tricks. Nevertheless, that may be for the best, since TLC and their army of producers have spent time crafting the songs and productions, turning FanMail into a record that almost reaches the peaks of its predecessor. By the end of the record, it appears that they can do it all -- funky, hip-hop-fueled dance-pop, seductive ballads, and mid-tempo jams -- and they can do it all well. Other groups try to reach these heights, but they don't have the skills or the material to pull it off quite so well. True, the five-year wait felt interminable, and they're now standard-bearers instead of pioneers, but if takes TLC as long to make a sequel to FanMail, so be it -- they have one of the best track records in '90s urban soul. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
On their second album, TLC downplay their overt rap connections, recording a smooth, seductive collection of contemporary soul reminiscent of both Philly soul and Prince, powered by new jack and hip-hop beats. Lisa Lopes contributes the occasional rap, but the majority of CrazySexyCool belongs to Tionne Watkins and Rozonda Thomas. While they aren't the most accomplished vocalists -- they have a tendency to be just slightly off-key -- the material they sing is consistently strong. As the cover of Prince's "If I Was Your Girlfriend" indicates, TLC favor erotic, mid-tempo funk. Yet the group removes any of the psychosexual complexities of Prince's songs, leaving a batch of sexy material that just sounds good, especially the hit singles. Both "Creep" and "Red Light Special" have a deep groove that accentuates the slinky hooks, but it's "Waterfalls," with its gently insistent horns and guitar lines and instantly memorable chorus, that ranks as one of the classic R&B songs of the '90s. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
'Ooooooohhh...On the TLC Tip'
Release Date 1/1/1992
Tracks 15
Label La Face
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
TLC's debut album, Ooooooohhh...on the TLC Tip, established the trio's image and unorthodox fashion sense, which at this point was based on baggy, brightly colored clothes and Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes' trademark condom. Some accused them of borrowing their look from Bell Biv DeVoe, and their female-positive, pro-safe-sex attitudes from Salt-n-Pepa, but TLC has the boundless enthusiasm to make it all convincingly their own. What they don't always have are the songs to pull off a consistent album. The most infectious songs are naturally the singles: "Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg" is bouncy, catchy, and sexually assertive, and "What About Your Friends" is an equally danceable meditation on true friendship. The chart-topping ballad "Baby-Baby-Baby" is typically well-crafted Babyface, if a little by-the-numbers. Some of the album tracks keep the sense of fun going, but others fall flat -- not that they're bad, they just aren't that memorable. On the plus side, Left Eye gets a lot of space for her distinctively nasal, girlish rapping, and the entire group drops rhymes on "Das da Way We Like 'Em." Although it's uneven, the best moments of On the TLC Tip deserved their popularity, and set the stage for the group's blockbuster success the next time out. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide
