The Real Thing Words And Sounds Vol. 3 (CD - 2007)

Personnel: Jarius Mozee, Dennis Brown, Kevin Hanson, Randy Bowland (guitar); Jason Freeman (strings, Fender Rhodes piano); Matt Jeff Bradshaw (trombone); J.R. Hutson (Fender Rhodes piano, drums); Omari Shabazz (keyboards, background vocals); George Duke (synthesizer); Adam Blackstone (upright bass, programming, background vocals); Kevin Jeeter, George "Spanky" McCurdy (drums); Paulinho Da Costa, Kevin Ricard (percussion); Shafiq Husayn (programming, background vocals); Jesse Owenz (drum programming); Chinah Blac, Om'Mas Keith (background vocals).

Additional personnel: George Duke.

Audio Mixers: Kevin "KD" Davis; Vincent Dilorenzo; Dave Pensado; Jason Goldstein; Randy Battiste; Jon Smeltz; Serban Ghenea; Om'Mas Keith.

Liner Note Author: Steve McKeever.

Recording information: Bazz Studio; Currie House Studios, Maplewood, MN; Glenwood Place Studios, Glendale, CA; Headquarters Studio, Philadelphia, PA; Keswick Studios, Reseda, CA; Kush Studio, Miami Beach, FL; Sigma Sound Studios, Philadelphia, PA; Studio 609, Philadelphia, PA; Studio Atlantis, Hollywood, CA; The Cosmic Dust Recorders, Los Angeles, CA; The House That Quest Built; The Studio, Philadelphia, PA.

Photographer: Marc Baptiste.

Arrangers: Om'Mas Keith; Shafiq Husayn.

Neo-soul diva Jill Scott is big on collaborations, and 2007's REAL THING: WORDS AND SOUNDS VOL. 3 is no exception. Leroy Hutson, for example, co-wrote four of the tracks here, while Adam Blackstone, Andre Harris, and Vidal Davis also pitch in on songwriting duties. But this is still Scott's show, a fact verified by her powerful, often smoldering vocal performances on every track of the album.

For the most part, REAL THING is an album for lovers. "Come and See Me," for example, one of the album's highlights, is a slinky, silky ballad in which Scott breathes gorgeous yearning into the listener's ear. "Only You" is a smooth, head-nodding track that has the buoyancy of bed springs. Romantic, seductive, and executed with finesse, REAL THING reminds listeners that Scott is still holding her own in the neo-soul game. minimize