The album was produced by Speech, who also sang on some of the songs.[6][7] He played most of the instruments on the album, and recorded it in his home studio.[8]Speech contains guest appearances from Pappa Jon, Laurneá Wilkerson, and Foley.[9][10]
Trouser Press thought that "Speech shows that he can still construct a lulling, even groovy song cycle, but at this point he just doesn’t have the lyrical chops to give it substance."[16]Entertainment Weekly determined that, "with its rapturous echoes of Sly, Stevie, and Prince, Speech by Speech, the boss of the defunct Arrested Development, is more arresting than anyone had a right to expect."[12] The Knoxville News Sentinel concluded that the album "restores some of the initial promise of his group Arrested Development before the band burned out in a blaze of self-importance a couple of years ago."[13]
Vibe called the album "a mess," noting Speech's "desire to become the male Tracy Chapman."[17]The Boston Globe praised Speech's "gift for poppy, smoothly persuasive hip-hop, rather than the gnashing, in-your-face variety."[18]The New York Times stated that "the sound is rawer and less produced and layered than Arrested Development's music... Where Arrested Development sounded like many streams flowing into a single river, the styles, beats and words on Speech all seem to flow from a single stream-of-consciousness."[8]
AllMusic wrote that, "where his former group sounded rootsy and gritty even at their most laid-back, Speech's record sounds slick, generally lacking in funk or dirt."[11]
Track listing
No.
Title
Length
1.
"Can U Hear Me?"
2.
"Ask Somebody Who Ain't (If U Think the System's Workin')"
3.
"Filled with Real"
4.
"Why U Gotta Be Feelin' Like Dat"
5.
"If U Was Me"
6.
"Impregnated Tid Bits of Dope Hits"
7.
"Let's Be Hippies"
8.
"Freestyle #8 from Speech's Vault"
9.
"Like Marvin Gaye Said (What's Going On)"
10.
"Hopelessly"
11.
"Insomnia Song"
12.
"Poor Little Music Boy"
13.
"Ghetto Sex"
14.
"Tell Me Something (Let Me Know)"
15.
"Runnin' Wild"
References
^Reynolds, J.R. (Dec 16, 1995). "Chrysalis set frees Speech to be solo act". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 50. p. 54.
^McCarthy, Anthony W. (9 Dec 1995). "Arrested Development breaks up: Speech on his own ... new father". Afro-American Red Star. Vol. 105, no. 17. p. B8.
^Verna, Paul (Feb 17, 1996). "Albums — Speech by Speech". Billboard. Vol. 108, no. 7. p. 87.
^Himes, Geoffrey (14 Apr 1996). "Speech's Latest Developments". The Washington Post. p. G14.
^Kot, Greg (9 Feb 1996). "Hip Hop Hunkers Down as New Albums Come Up Short". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. O.
^ abStrauss, Neil (25 Jan 1996). "The Pop Life". The New York Times. p. C19.
^ abLarkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 7. MUZE. p. 650.
^Deggans, Eric (23 Feb 1996). "Speech: Speech". Weekend. St. Petersburg Times. p. 13.
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