>I pulled that CD out a while back... Ray & NJ beats could have
>been a disaster but he played it more from the smooth end and
>it kinda worked. As you said it didn't sell much but I don't
>think he embarrassed himself either (he waited until 2006 to
>do that) That album was closer to his Raydio days than just
>about every other solo album he dropped. Life is so Strange is
>still one of my favorite Ray tracks.

I think Ray did good on that record, derivative tracks be damned
I guess his heart wasn't really in it, by his own account, but he had some good songs on there.

"Love Is So Strange" has this weird Prince-in-the-1999 era opening but goes into some "Quiet Storm" joint that sounded like a '90s take on a Raydio mid-tempo jam. The lyrics on the title track made me laugh... he was doing the Johnny Gill but from an angle you didn't really hear in R&B too often. Listening to Ray in that mode gives me the impression that he was spitting game to music sometimes.

"And you know how I feel about you wearing makeup... the same way I think about you wearing clothes"

LMFAO!!!