Last year, I joined Popdose‘s Jeff Giles and Robert Cass for a column called “‘Face Time,” in which we discussed essential (and some non-essential) cuts in the catalog of Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds, one of the most prolific singer/songwriters of the ’80s and ’90s. ‘Face and his partner Antonio “L.A.” Reid were one of the big 3 production teams that ruled pop and R&B during that era. There was also Teddy Riley and his New Jack Swing camp, and perhaps most notably, Minneapolis’s James “Jimmy Jam” Harris III and Terry Lewis. The former members of Prince offshoot band The Time turned out to be legends in their own right, composing and producing hits for a who’s-who of the music industry and proving to be as (if not more) influential than their purple-clad benefactor.
So in 2014, the three of us (and a new team member, fellow Popdose editor/Popblerd podcast co-host Michael Parr) are back to talk all things Flyte Tyme. YOUNT!!!
Cherrelle-“I Didn’t Mean To Turn You On
(Written and produced by Jam/Lewis, from 1984’s Fragile)
MJ: This is one of those situations where I can’t decide whether the original or the cover is the better version.
(note: singer Robert Palmer covered “Turn You On” in 1985 on his album Riptide. The following year, it soared to #2 on the pop charts and is considered by some to be the definitive version of the song.)
JG: Well, the cover has less of a creep factor.
MJ: How so?
JG: Actually, you know what? Strike that. I was thinking about the story (myth? legend?) that the original was performed by an underage singer. I can’t find a link backing me up at the moment.
I do like the way Palmer’s cover flips the expected narrative, though.
MP: Is it bad that, until recently, I had no idea that Palmer wasn’t the original artist?
RC: The original is pretty straightforward to me in terms of its beat, whereas Palmer’s version skitters to and fro in a way that makes it both laid-back and full of nervous energy all at once. Do I know what I’m talking about? No, but I do know that this song worked its way under my skin back in fifth grade whenever it came on the radio.
MJ: I don’t know, guys. I think “Turn You On” sounds like Minneapolis, but doesn’t necessarily sound like _Prince_.
JG: I see where you’re coming from, Mike. Those hand-buzzer synths are what do it for me — you can get none more Minneapolis than that sound right there.
I think this kind of a precursor to the work they did with Janet, in terms of the arrangement and production acting as more of a buttress than a background for or a complement to the vocals. Cherrelle is a secondary presence here, and she doesn’t sound like she has any connection whatsoever to the song. Janet’s vocals for Control had more flavor than this, but they were still in the passenger seat — Jam & Lewis knew how to write songs that put a spotlight on the artist without asking them to stretch.
7 comments
John says:
Jan 7, 2014
Woo hoo! I won’t lie…when the thought came to mind last year about a Jam and Lewis retrospective, I didn’t expect to see it come to life, but there it is!
For me, Palmer’s version is one of the few times a Jam and Lewis production has been improved upon with a remake. You can take other early Flyte Tyme tracks like “Just Be Good to Me” that have been covered many times, but nothing will measure up to the original (although Beats International did an awesome rework on “Dub Be Good to Me”). Palmer came close a second time as well, as “Early in the Morning” is a damn good cover of the Gap Band’s original. Pretty fly for a white guy…
MJ says:
Jan 7, 2014
I’ll admit to some bitterness that in a few cases, Palmer’s versions were more successful than the originals, but he did his thing with “I Didn’t Mean To Turn You On,” for sure.
That said, the original versions of “Early In The Morning,” “Tell Me I’m Not Dreamin'” and “You Are In My System” (to name a few) are vastly superior.
John says:
Jan 7, 2014
I wouldn’t say vastly superior on “Early,” just because he took it in a slightly different direction than the original. Besides, he helped make Uncle Charlie a little extra money in the process. No argument on the other two, though. I was never a fan of his version of “System,” although listening to it now, I can dig the production on it.
I think if “I Didn’t Mean to Turn You On” suffers in any way, it is that Cherelle didn’t have the power in her delivery that she developed on High Priority. I’ll agree that J&L were still a bit too under the Prince production style and not quite to their own signature sound yet, but they were well on their way.
MJ says:
Jan 7, 2014
Yeah, I don’t know the rest of Cherrelle’s first album, but “girlish” doesn’t really suit her. She did a lot better with songs like “You Look Good To Me,” which had a little sass to ’em.
Tom says:
Jan 9, 2014
Good stuff, Mike. I for one am anxious for your discussion on the Cherrelle + Alexander O’Neal vs. Stacy Lattisaw + Johnny Gill duets. Flyte Tyme vs Narada Michael Walden, if you’d rather focus on producers.
I personally never had a problem with Robert Palmer’s version of “You Are In My System”, as much as I love and prefer the original. It seems like it fits in well with the minimal electro-funk thing he perfected with his CLUES album, and expanded upon with PRIDE (although I’m sure I’m in the very small minority who think that’s one of his better albums.
MJ says:
Jan 9, 2014
I dig the electro-soul version of Palmer as well. It’s strange (in a cool way) that he had so many different guises, and the one that made him famous (winking cock rocker) was probably my least favorite…
Wow-I might have to dig up my copy of “Perfect Combination” and start listening.
buricco says:
Jun 23, 2016
Cherrelle’s version does have a very “1999” sound to it, as does Mariah Carey’s cover (which was also a Jam and Lewis production).