I'll Prove It to You

I'll Prove It to You
Studio album by
Gregory Abbott
Released1988
LabelColumbia[1]
ProducerGregory Abbott
Gregory Abbott chronology
Shake You Down
(1986) 		I'll Prove It to You
(1988) 		One World!
(1996)

I'll Prove It to You is the second album by the American musician Gregory Abbott.[2][3] It was released in 1988.[4]

The album peaked at No. 132 on the Billboard 200.[5] The title track peaked in the top 10 on the Hot Black Singles chart.[6]

Production

The album was produced by Abbott; he also played drums.[7] The title track is performed as a ballad; "Prisoner of Love" was done in a funk style.[8][9]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[10]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[11]
Los Angeles Times[12]
The Philadelphia Inquirer[13]

The Los Angeles Times called "Crazy for You" "a slow-drag '50s-sounding ballad that Jackie Wilson would've had a ball recording."[12] The Washington Post opined that "Abbott's at his best with slow, swaying ballads like 'Unfinished Business', but the overall effect is ignorable."[14] USA Today deemed Abbott "a minor talent marketed like a superstar, and his everyman voice does little more than highlight his mediocre original material."[8]

The Christian Science Monitor stated that Abbott "throws in a couple of '50s-style rhythm-and-blues numbers, where he lets loose his Smokey Robinson falsetto."[7] The Philadelphia Inquirer determined that Abbott's "material is weak and repetitive, but his singing is still strong and confident."[13]

AllMusic wrote that the album "finds the vocalist in the same vein as his previous effort; merging '80s music technology with '50s doowop/early-'60s soul-tinged sensibility."[10]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Back to Stay"3:55
2."Prisoner of Love"4:40
3."I'll Prove It to You"4:09
4."Runaway"3:21
5."Unfinished Business"3:47
6."Crazy Over You"4:27
7."Let Me Be Your Hero"4:00
8."Take Me Back"3:59
9."Two of a Kind"2:55
10."She's an Entertainer"3:25

References

  1. ^ "Jet's Top 20 Albums". Jet. Vol. 74, no. 16. Jul 18, 1988. p. 62.
  2. ^ "Gregory Abbott Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
  3. ^ MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1998. p. 2.
  4. ^ "The Number Ones: Gregory Abbott's 'Shake You Down'". Stereogum. January 27, 2021.
  5. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2010). Top Pop Albums (7th ed.). Record Research Inc. p. 15.
  6. ^ "The top 20 black singles in the pop music...". News. UPI. June 17, 1988.
  7. ^ a b Duncan, Amy (1 June 1988). "Rock/Pop/Jazz". Arts. The Christian Science Monitor.
  8. ^ a b Milward, John (16 June 1988). "Gregory Abbott: I'll Prove It to You". USA Today. p. 4D.
  9. ^ Wolff, Carlo (30 June 1988). "Gregory Abbott I'll Prove It to You". The Boston Globe. p. A8.
  10. ^ a b "Gregory Abbott I'll Prove It to You". AllMusic.
  11. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 1. MUZE. p. 16.
  12. ^ a b Johnson, Connie (22 May 1988). "Shake Down Artist". Calendar. Los Angeles Times. p. 61.
  13. ^ a b Tucker, Ken (5 June 1988). "Gregory Abbott I'll Prove It to You". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. E10.
  14. ^ Brown, Joe (27 May 1988). "Between Soul Roles and a Rocky Place". The Washington Post. p. N25.