Lalah Hathaway - Lalah Hathaway

When Lalah Hathaway's self-titled debut album came out in 1990, there was reason to believe that she might evolve into one of the top female r&b singers of the 1990s. Donny Hathaway's daughter certainly had a lot going for her -- not only a big vocal range, but also plenty of charisma, passion, and charm to go with it. The material on this CD ranges from excellent to routine, depending on who's writing and/or producing a particular song. Hathaway doesn't always have fantastic material to work with, but when she does, the results are quite memorable. The producers/songwriters who really do Hathaway justice include Angela Winbush on "Baby, Don't Cry" and "I Gotta Move On," and Andre Fisher on "Smile" and "Somethin'." While those selections come across as personal, Hathaway slips into a routine, less-than-memorable urban contemporary grind thanks to Chuckii Booker on "Sentimental," and Craig T. Cooper on "Obvious" and "U-Godit Gowin On." Again, not everything on the album is a gem. But when Hathaway had strong material to work with, it was clear that she had a lot of potential. ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide

Name Credits 4-Reel Ensemble Al Schmitt Mixing, Engineer Al Singleton Assistant Engineer André Fischer Producer, Drums, Keyboards, Drum Programming, Percussion, Arranger, Synthesizer Angela Winbush Drum Programming, Synthesizer, Arranger, Producer, Programming, Keyboards, Vocals (Background), Engineer Anthony Jeffries Assistant Engineer, Assistant Antoinette Brown Voices, Clapping, Clappers Bullet Harris Clapping, Voices Cat Milkler Clapping Cat Miller Clapping, Voices Celestine Cloutier Clothing/Wardrobe, Wardrobe Chuckii Booker Arranger, Multi Instruments, Producer Craig Burbidge Mixing Craig T. Cooper Engineer, Producer, Arranger, Mixing, Multi Instruments Dan Hersch Mastering Darin Prindle Assistant Engineer David Roth Photography Dean Parks Guitar Deborah Cooper Clapping, Vocals (Background) Denise Stewart Clapping, Voices Dennis Stefani Engineer Derek Bramble Programming, Bass, Drum Programming, Producer, Keyboards Donald Griffin Guitar Doug Rider Engineer Gary Taylor Arranger, Programming, Producer, Keyboards, Synthesizer, Dmx Gerald Farwell Voices, Clapping Jai Diamond Clapping, Voices James Darrin Johnson Assistant Engineer James Weldon Johnson Assistant Engineer Jean McClain Vocals, Vocals (Background) Jean-Paul Mann Cover Photo, Photography Jeff Balding Engineer, Mixing Jeff Lorber Flute, Synthesizer, Strings, Programming Jeff Lorenzen Mixing Jeff Porcaro Drums Jeffrey "Woody" Woodruff Engineer, Mixing Jerry "Boogie" McCain Vocals (Background) Jerry Hey Arranger Jimmy Haslip Bass John Brown Executive Producer John Kirtland Clapping Josina Elder Voices, Clapping Karen Shellenberger Assistant Engineer Kelvin McKisic Voices, Clapping Kyle Bess Assistant Engineer Lalah Hathaway Vocal Arrangement, Vocals (Background), Vocals Larry Steelman Synthesizer Larry Williams Synthesizer Luis Conte Percussion Marc Hugenberger Synthesizer Marc Russo Saxophone Maria A. Manning Voices, Clapping Marsha Burns Production Coordination, Project Coordinator Melanie Nissen Art Direction Michael Hart Thompson Guitar Michael Mancini Engineer Michael Thompson Guitar Mike Scotella Assistant, Assistant Engineer Mitch Gibson Engineer Monty Seward Keyboards Neil Stubenhaus Bass Phaenicia Grant Voices, Clapping Randy Kerber Keyboards Richard McKernan Engineer Rob Seifert Engineer Robbie Casey Voices, Clapping Robert Biles Engineer, Mixing Russell Ferrante Keyboards Sam Riney Saxophone Shiro Stokes Voices, Clapping Stephen Harrison Assistant Engineer Steve Sykes Engineer Tara Posey Make-Up Tracy Veal Design Victor Joseph Clothing/Wardrobe, Wardrobe Wendi Williams Clarinet Wendy Williams Clapping Will Kennedy Drums William Kennedy Drums