| Guy III | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | January 25, 2000 | |||
| Recorded | 1998–1999 | |||
| Studio | Future (Virginia Beach, Virginia) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 61:46 | |||
| Label | MCA | |||
| Producer |
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| Guy chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Guy III | ||||
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Guy III is the third and most recent studio album from American R&B group Guy, released January 25, 2000 on MCA Records. The album reached number five on the R&B Albums chart and peaked at number thirteen on the Billboard 200 chart.
The origins of Guy III started as far back as 1995, when the trio reunited to record the song "Tell Me What You Like" for the soundtrack to the Fox television series New York Undercover . The recording prompted the group to record another album. While recording in Trinidad, the album plans came to a halt when lead singer Aaron Hall refused to record the song "No Diggity", which would end up becoming a huge hit for Teddy Riley's second group Blackstreet the following year. [1] The group reunited for a second time in 1999, recording the song "The Best" for the soundtrack to the Will Smith film Wild Wild West .
At the time of its release, not all of the members were on the same page for the release of Guy III. Founding member Teddy Riley remained hopeful that his group Blackstreet would record another album despite the friction between him and group member Chauncey Hannibal. Aaron Hall insisted on recording another solo album, while his brother Damion Hall was interested in an acting career. [2] However, in a 2012 interview with Vibe Magazine , Riley blamed the failure of the album on the label. In the interview, he said:
"We tried to do a Guy reunion album. But I don’t think the record company did the third album any justice. MCA didn’t really get us at that point. And they were promoting us like we were jazz artists. They took us everywhere else, but to our audience. You have to know your demographics for that group. They didn’t get us on BET like they were supposed to. They were trying to get us on VH-1, but they weren’t checking for us. We had our radio record, ‘Dancin’’, that couldn’t get on BET. It was just a failure." [3]
Their reunion turned out to be short-lived. By the time they released the second single "Why You Wanna Keep Me From My Baby", Riley left the group again. Only Aaron and Damion appeared in the video for the song. [4] In an ironic twist on the album, a few of the songs were co-produced by Walter "Mucho" Scott and Daryl "Dezo" Adams. The two men were former members of Basic Black, a group discovered by Riley's former mentor/manager Gene Griffin a decade earlier. Guy initially derided the group as being copycats on the song "Gotta Be A Leader"- a song from Guy's second album The Future . [5]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [6] |
| NME | [7] |
Guy III reached number five on the R&B Albums chart and peaked at number thirteen on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart. [8]
Keith Farley of AllMusic stated that "Guy III equals the extraordinary expectations that any new material from Guy provokes, occasionally exceeding their work in the past." [6]
| No. | Title | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Intro" | 2:35 | |
| 2. | "We're Comin'" | Wesley Hogges, Teddy Riley, Eric Williams | 3:00 |
| 3. | "Dancin'" | Delvis Damon, Edward Ferrell, Darren Lighty, Balewa Muhammad, Teddy Riley | 4:08 |
| 4. | "Rescue Me" | Daryl Adams, James Brown, Aaron Hall, Betty Jean Newsome, Teddy Riley, Walter Scott, Jamaal Smith | 5:58 |
| 5. | "Teddy's Jam III" | Teddy Riley, Roger Troutman, Larry Troutman | 4:48 |
| 6. | "Do It" | Antwone Dickey, Todd Gaither, Teddy Riley | 4:24 |
| 7. | "Why You Wanna Keep Me from My Baby" | Tony Rich, Teddy Riley | 5:01 |
| 8. | "Tellin' Me No" | Kazual, Teddy Riley, Walter Scott | 4:33 |
| 9. | "Not a Day" | Jacore Baptiste, Kandace Love, Teddy Riley | 3:17 |
| 10. | "Love Online" | Ray Hopkins Jr., Teddy Riley, Leon Sylvers III, Leon Sylvers IV, Alston Williams | 5:13 |
| 11. | "Spend Time" | Daryl Adams, Ricardo Brown, Edward Fletcher, Melvin Glover, Reggie Griffin, Teddy Riley, Sylvia Robinson, Walter Scott | 4:39 |
| 12. | "Don't U Miss Me" | Richard Fauntleroy, Julian Gilliam, Joi'e Chancellor, Teddy Riley | 4:20 |
| 13. | "2004" | Tony Rich, Teddy Riley | 3:27 |
| 14. | "Fly Away" | Terrell Burnside, Michael "Hype" Edwards, Daryl Marshall, Teddy Riley, Jamaal Smith | 3:17 |
| 15. | "Someday" | Aaron Hall, Donny Hathaway, Edward Howard, Teddy Riley | 3:06 |
Weekly charts
| Year-end charts
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Information taken from Allmusic. [12]
Lynise Walters, known professionally as Queen Pen, is an American rapper, record producer, and novelist. Born in Brooklyn, New York, she was discovered by record producer Teddy Riley at an IHOP restaurant in Virginia Beach. Riley later invited her to "spit lyrics" for Blackstreet's 1996 single "No Diggity", which became her and Riley's most successful recording. Walters signed with Riley's Lil Man Records, an imprint of Interscope Records to release her debut album: My Melody (1997), which spawned the single, "All My Love" peaking at number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album contained production largely handled by Riley and writing contributions from fellow Brooklyn native Jay-Z.
Blackstreet is an American R&B group founded in 1991 by record producers Chauncey "Black" Hannibal, and Teddy Riley. The group has released four albums with Interscope Records until 2003. They achieved relative commercial success leading up to their 1996 single "No Diggity", which peaked atop the Billboard Hot 100 for four weeks.
New jack swing, new jack, or swingbeat is a fusion genre of the rhythms and production techniques of hip hop and dance-pop, and the urban contemporary sound of R&B. Spearheaded by producers Teddy Riley, Bernard Belle, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, new jack swing was most popular from the late 1980s to early 1990s.
Guy is an American hip hop, R&B and soul group founded in 1987 by Teddy Riley, Aaron Hall, and Timmy Gatling. Hall's younger brother Damion Hall replaced Gatling after the recording of the group's self-titled debut album. The group released their debut album, which went on to sell over a million copies and was certified double platinum. In following their success, the group released their second album The Future in 1990, which also charted with successful singles and received platinum as well. Following their nearly decade long split, the group returned with their third album before the 2000s millennium, which charted with their hit single "Dancin'".
Edward Theodore Riley is an American record producer and songwriter credited with the creation of the R&B-hip hop fusion genre new jack swing. He is the founder and lead singer of the musical group Blackstreet, as well as its predecessor, Guy. The genre also gained popularity from artists who heavily utilized Riley's production and songwriting, namely Michael Jackson, Bobby Brown, Heavy D & the Boyz, Keith Sweat, Hi-Five, and the Jackson 5, among others.
Aaron Robin Hall III is an American singer and songwriter. Hall rose to prominence in 1988 as a member of the R&B and new jack swing group Guy, which he founded in the late '80s along with Teddy Riley and Timmy Gatling, who was later replaced by Hall's brother Damion Hall. In 1988 Guy released their debut album, which went on to sell over a million copies and was certified platinum. Hall provided lead vocals on songs like "Groove Me," "I Like," and "Piece of My Love." He currently resides in Los Angeles with the occupation as a personal dog trainer. Aaron Hall is currently on tour with Guy.
"I Get Lonely" is a song by American singer Janet Jackson from her sixth studio album, The Velvet Rope (1997). It was written by Jackson, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and Jackson's then-husband, René Elizondo Jr. It was released on February 24, 1998, by Virgin Records as the album's third single. The track is a departure from Jackson's signature brand of crossover dance-pop and R&B into a pure R&B and soul vibe. Lyrically, it expresses loneliness and the desire for an estranged lover. A remixed version of the song featured American R&B group Blackstreet.
"No Diggity" is a song by American R&B group Blackstreet as the first single for their second studio album, Another Level (1996), featuring Dr. Dre and Queen Pen. Released on July 29, 1996 by Interscope, the song reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and in Iceland and New Zealand. It ended "Macarena"'s 14-week reign atop the Billboard Hot 100. In the United Kingdom, the song peaked at number nine. "No Diggity" was the final number-one single of Cash Box magazine. The track sold 1.6 million copies in 1996 and won the 1998 Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. It uses samples from Bill Withers's "Grandma's Hands". The music video for the song was directed by Hype Williams.
Make It Last Forever is the debut album of American R&B recording artist Keith Sweat. It was recorded at INS Recording and Power Play Studios in New York City. Released on November 24, 1987, the album went to number one on the Top R&B Albums chart for three weeks, and number 15 on the Billboard 200. Make It Last Forever was one of the earliest R&B albums to showcase the up-and-coming new jack swing sound, as it was mostly produced by Sweat himself and music producer Teddy Riley.
Another Level is the second studio album by American R&B group Blackstreet. Released in September 10, 1996, it was the first album with new members Eric Williams and Mark Middleton. They joined the group after replacing departed members Dave Hollister and Levi Little. Another Level was also the first Blackstreet album released under Interscope Records' new distribution deal with MCA Music Entertainment, Inc. after the company was dropped by Time Warner several months before the release of the album.
Blackstreet is the debut studio album from American R&B group Blackstreet, released in 1994 on Interscope Records. The group was formed by Riley with Chauncey Hannibal after the dissolution of Teddy Riley's former group Guy. The other members of Blackstreet - Joseph Stonestreet and Levi Little - were session singers alongside Hannibal on Bobby Brown's third album Bobby, an album that was mostly produced by Riley. They recorded one song for the soundtrack of the Chris Rock film CB4 called "Baby Be Mine". Before they could record an album, Stonestreet left the group and was replaced by former Force One Network singer Dave Hollister. When they re-recorded "Baby Be Mine" for their self-titled debut, Hollister's vocals were added on the album version of the song.
Finally is the third album from R&B group Blackstreet. It was released on Interscope Records on March 23, 1999. Finally was the only album to feature Terrell Phillips, after the departure of Mark Middleton. After the success of their multi-platinum last album Another Level, their label allowed them a bigger budget for the next album. Finally was recorded at Teddy Riley's studio Future Recording Studios based in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Originally given the working title Get Higher, the album was scheduled for a November 1998 release until it was pushed back to March 1999.
Level II is the fourth album by R&B group, Blackstreet, released on March 11, 2003. It was their first and only album released on record label DreamWorks Records. The album's title was a reference to its members' best known line-up during their most successful album, 1996's Another Level. Two of the members returned for the recording of Level II. Mark Middleton returned to the fold after he was replaced by Terrell Phillips on 1999's Finally to launch a gospel music career. Dave Hollister returned on the song "Bygones", as he also left the group to start his solo career.
Leon Frank Sylvers III is an American singer, songwriter, disc-jockey, record producer and multi-instrumentalist. He was a member of the family group The Sylvers and became one of the most successful producers in black music in the late 1970s to the mid-1980s through his association with Dick Griffey's SOLAR Records. Artists such as J Dilla, Dr. Dre, and Madlib have sampled songs written and produced by him.
Guy is the 1988 debut studio album by American R&B band Guy. Released on June 14, 1988 by Uptown Records. It was produced by group member Teddy Riley and manager Gene Griffin. The album peaked at number 27 on the Billboard 200 chart. In July 1994, it was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, for shipments of two million copies in the United States. In 2007, to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the album, Geffen Records reissued the recording complete with a remastered version of the original album and a second CD of remixes.
The Future is the second studio album by American R&B group Guy, released in November 13, 1990, on Uptown Records. It was their last album before their reunion a decade later.
Personal is the debut studio album by the American vocal group Men of Vizion. It was released on June 18, 1996, via Michael Jackson's record label, MJJ Music, after a demo tape was played to him by producer Teddy Riley. The album has been described as a "sumptuous blend" of vocal R&B and "90s production techniques", that alternates between smooth ballads and new jack swing.
“Heaven Can Wait" is a song recorded by Michael Jackson, originally released on his 2001 studio album Invincible. The song was written by Jackson, Teddy Riley, Andreao Heard, Nate Smith, Teron Beal, Eritza Laues and Kenny Quiller.
"Booti Call" is a song by American R&B group Blackstreet, recorded for the group's self-titled debut album (1994). The song was released as the second single for the album in July 1994.
"Before I Let You Go" is a song by American R&B group Blackstreet, recorded for the group's self-titled debut album (1994). The song was released as the third single for the album in November 1994. The song was notable for featuring lead vocals from Dave Hollister who joined the group upon the album's release.
