| ck | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | November 22, 1988 | |||
| Recorded | January–September 1988 | |||
| Genre | R&B | |||
| Length | 49:26 | |||
| Label | Warner Bros. | |||
| Producer | Russ Titelman David Frank Chaka Khan Prince Chris Jasper | |||
| Chaka Khan chronology | ||||
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| Singles from ck | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
ck is the seventh studio album by American R&B/funk singer Chaka Khan, released on the Warner Bros. Records label in 1988.
ck was Khan's first album not to be recorded with Arif Mardin, instead it had with the exception of two tracks Russ Titelman at the helm as producer, with whom she had collaborated on hits like "Ain't Nobody" (1983), "Eye to Eye" from 1984's platinum-selling I Feel for You as well as "Tight Fit" from her previous album Destiny . Musically ck combined a variety of genres such as soul, R&B, funk, pop as well as two jazz titles and altogether the set was more laid-back, less hip-hop influenced and production-wise not as complex and synth-driven as I Feel for You and Destiny.
ck opens with Khan's cover of Stevie Wonder's 1970 hit "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours", again featuring the composer himself on harmonica, like on the 1984 hit single "I Feel for You".
One of the two tracks not to be produced by Russ Titelman was the funky and improvisational "Sticky Wicked", Khan's first proper collaboration with Prince after having covered his "I Feel for You" and turning it into a million-selling hit single. ck also includes a second Prince composition, a cover version of Sheena Easton's "Eternity" (produced by David Frank and Khan herself), and some ten years later Khan and Prince were to team up for a full-length album together, Come 2 My House .
ck includes one track written and co-produced by Chris Jasper, former member of the Isley Brothers, who was also responsible for writing and producing much of the Isley material from 1973 through 1984 before the Isley Brothers' breakup. Jasper can also be heard singing backing vocals with Khan on "Make It Last".
ck also features two recordings of jazz classics that since have become mainstays in Khan's live repertoire, "The End of a Love Affair", a tribute to Billie Holiday who first recorded the song on her 1958 album Lady in Satin , and Alec Wilder's "I'll Be Around", the latter with a guest appearance by trumpeter Miles Davis, who also features on the Prince track "Sticky Wicked".
Three singles were released from ck: Womack & Womack's Latino-flavoured "It's My Party" which reached number five on Billboard's R&B Singles chart, "Soul Talkin'" and "Baby Me" which reached Top 20 on the R&B chart, peaking at number 12. The ck album itself also charted higher than the preceding Destiny, reaching number 17 on the R&B Albums chart.
One title from the ck sessions was only released as a single B-side, "Everybody Needs Some Love" written by former Rufus member David "Hawk" Wolinski, producer Russ Titelman and Khan herself.
| Chart (1988) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (ARIA) [2] | 115 |
| US Billboard 200 [3] | 125 |
| US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard) [4] | 17 |
The Isley Brothers are an American family musical group originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, that began as a vocal trio consisting of brothers O'Kelly "Kelly" Isley Jr., Rudolph Isley and Ronald Isley in the late 1950s. With a career spanning over six decades, the group has enjoyed one of the "longest, most influential, and most diverse careers in the pantheon of popular music".
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Angela Lisa Winbush is an American R&B/soul singer-songwriter, musician and record producer who rose to fame first in the 1980s R&B duo René & Angela, also scoring hits as a solo artist. To date, Winbush has sold over 10 million albums and singles worldwide.
Christopher Howard Jasper is an American singer, composer, and producer. Jasper is a former member of the Isley Brothers and Isley-Jasper-Isley and is responsible for writing and producing the majority of the Isley Brothers music (1973–1983) and Isley-Jasper-Isley music (1984–1987). He is also a successful solo musician and record producer, recording over 17 of his own solo albums, including 4 urban contemporary gospel albums, all written, produced and performed, both vocally and instrumentally, by Jasper. He also produces artists for his New York City-based record label, Gold City Records. Jasper's keyboard and Moog synthesizer work was a primary ingredient of the Isley Brothers' sound of the 1970s and 1980s when the Isley Brothers were a self-contained band.
Isley-Jasper-Isley was a splinter group of the Isley Brothers formed in 1984 by brother-in-law Chris Jasper (keyboards), Ernie Isley, and Marvin Isley (bass), due to creative differences that arose among the group.
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The Woman I Am is the eighth studio album by American R&B/funk singer Chaka Khan, released on Warner Bros. Records in 1992. It was Khan's first studio album since 1988's CK and due to artistic differences between Khan and Warner Bros. Records it was also to be her final full-length release for the label. The entire album is dedicated to her friend Miles Davis, who died the previous year.
Come 2 My House is the ninth studio album by American R&B/funk singer Chaka Khan released on the NPG Records label in 1998.
Epiphany: The Best of Chaka Khan, Vol. 1 is a compilation album of recordings by American R&B/funk singer Chaka Khan, first released on the Warner Bros. Records label in 1996. Although the compilation, which reached #22 on Billboard's R&B chart and #84 on Pop, was given the "Vol. 1" tag, it remains without a sequel to date.
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Rufus featuring Chaka Khan is the gold-selling fourth studio album by the funk band Rufus and Chaka Khan, released on the ABC Records label in 1975. It remained on top of the R&B album chart for six consecutive weeks.
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