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Forum nameThe Lesson
Topic subject*2ND* Greatest R&B BoyBand/Group Of The 90s...
Topic URLhttp://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=5&topic_id=2686645
2686645, *2ND* Greatest R&B BoyBand/Group Of The 90s...
Posted by vee-lover, Wed Dec-31-69 07:00 PM
Even though they weren't my fav group, It goes w/o saying that Boyz 2 Men OWNED the 90s and was the standard, quintessential r&b boyband of the 90s which featured a boatload of groups...(the most probably since the 50s or 60s).

but

who would you say was 2nd?

The knee jerk reaction (for me) is to say New Edition but NE's reign was more 80s than 90s but I still had to include them because they were probably the musical influence for a lot of the groups in the poll. The 90s is when the members of NE starting branching out doing solo and other projects.

I think a case could be made for each group in the poll, though, as being the 2nd best r&b group of the 90s. They all were trendetters in their own way.

Poll question: *2ND* Greatest R&B BoyBand/Group Of The 90s...

Poll result (12 votes)
New Edition (2 votes)Vote
GUY (0 votes)Vote
Bell Biv DeVoe (1 votes)Vote
Toni! Tony! Tone! (4 votes)Vote
Jodeci (5 votes)Vote
Other (0 votes)Vote

  

2686657, new edition still IMO..
Posted by mistermaxxx08, Mon Apr-16-12 11:50 AM
i mean boyz 11Men got there name from them and all the spin off stuff NE did. Jodeci is next up however after there first album it wasn't nearly the same and i do dig the Hailey Brothers talent and devante was cool.

slim pickins though after a while
2686669, Boyz 2 Men were molded more after 'Take 6' than NE...B2M were
Posted by vee-lover, Mon Apr-16-12 12:06 PM
all better singers than anyone in NE...they weren't nearly as great of performers as NE but they had bigger songs, way more successful albums and really were their own group. Bell Biv Devoe had the spotlight in the 90s which is who TLC was formed after and a few others.


>i mean boyz 11Men got there name from them and all the spin
>off stuff NE did. Jodeci is next up however after there first
>album it wasn't nearly the same and i do dig the Hailey
>Brothers talent and devante was cool.
>
>slim pickins though after a while

Man, I think you're underestimating some of the groups that came out of the 90s, many of them were good they just didn't have longevity.

-GUY...was awesome for their short run and they were definitely sonic trendsetters
-Toni! Tony! Tone!...were incredible! for awhile everything they dropped was classic material
-Jodeci...1st group to have a real HipHop swagger and they were dope. That 1st album was one of the top 3 cds that came from the 90s from a boyband




-Mint Condition...VERY underrated
-After 7...
-Troop
-Hi-Five...
-Blackstreet...
-H-Town
-Dru Hill
-112
-Jagged Edge
-Silk


2686696, i liked Boyz11Men however they were only as good as the songs
Posted by mistermaxxx08, Mon Apr-16-12 12:54 PM
Babyface gave them and then where did they go?

and the thing is those acts you mentioned like Jodeci again a big name Producer in devante swing and then when KC and Jo Jo left Jodeci they did Mariah carey Hall mark lite pop for the most part.


Guy teddy riley dominated that sound and Aaron hall and damon were side partners and they had one important album.

thing is New Edition was never caught up with one Producer or one song or one big run, they had runs in various ways and you can't compare any other R&B group to them. New Edition for my money is still the 2nd most important Group in the Post Jackson 5 era because all of the off spring they Produced.

most 90's groups had either one big album or a few big songs and then vanished.
2687184, I'd say B2M were a mix of Commissioned and New Edition. N/m
Posted by bski, Tue Apr-17-12 01:45 PM



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2686784, But NOOOT for the 90's, they had already broke up!!
Posted by -DJ R-Tistic-, Mon Apr-16-12 04:28 PM
2686914, there home again album in 96 was numbetr 1 debut
Posted by mistermaxxx08, Mon Apr-16-12 08:16 PM
they held REM out of number 1. the album went double platinum. Hit me off was the big hit i still got the Shaq remix of it.

not to mention all the spin off acts they had then with BBD, Ralph,Johnny,Bobby all dropping solo albums and Ricky did as well.
2686664, Same arguement for NE you could make for Guy
Posted by spenzalii, Mon Apr-16-12 11:59 AM
I mean, NE did have a run in the 80s, but I think your line of demarcation with them is the 'Heartbreak' album, which blew them up. But that was what, 88? Yes they did their solo/BBD stuff and did 'Home Again' in 96. While they technically didn't break up through that time, how do you factor that solo work in to the group popularity?

With Guy, you've got another 88 album whose influence is felt long after that. True, they had 'The Future' in '90, and recorded Guy III in , what, 99 (but nobody wanted to listen to that shit by then). But between Aaron's likited solo work and the whole NJS, how much of that was Guy as a group?

Personally I like either group over BIIM, but I think the timing of their popularity almost discounts their inclusion here, even though their influence was still felt in the 90s
2686675, good points but Guy did release a follow up to their 1st cd which
Posted by vee-lover, Mon Apr-16-12 12:16 PM
I thought was a very good cd, not as good as the 1st one but it had a lot of memorable tracks as well...and that is mainly why I included them.

As you pointed out, NE as a group didn't release anything in the 90s until 96 and that cd was ok at best.


>I mean, NE did have a run in the 80s, but I think your line
>of demarcation with them is the 'Heartbreak' album, which blew
>them up. But that was what, 88? Yes they did their solo/BBD
>stuff and did 'Home Again' in 96. While they technically
>didn't break up through that time, how do you factor that solo
>work in to the group popularity?
>
>With Guy, you've got another 88 album whose influence is felt
>long after that. True, they had 'The Future' in '90, and
>recorded Guy III in , what, 99 (but nobody wanted to listen to
>that shit by then). But between Aaron's likited solo work and
>the whole NJS, how much of that was Guy as a group?
>
>Personally I like either group over BIIM, but I think the
>timing of their popularity almost discounts their inclusion
>here, even though their influence was still felt in the 90s
2686688, I mentioned the second cd (The Future, '90). Did you miss it?
Posted by spenzalii, Mon Apr-16-12 12:41 PM
As you mentioned, it wasn't as good as the first, but it knocked. The thing is, by that point it was more about Teddy and NJS than Aaron singing or Guy as a group.

Now as far as BIIM being able to outsing everyone in NE, Ronnie, Mike and Ricky, I'll give you that. Ralph? Can't quite say that. Johnnie? Not a chance.
2686691, NJS is equally synonymous w/Guy, the group, as it is Teddy Riley
Posted by vee-lover, Mon Apr-16-12 12:50 PM
and that sound dominated the early part of the 90s which is why they deserve to be in this poll moreso than NE who were no loner the group ppl were checking for like they were in the 80s. The (early) 90s were more Bell Biv Devoe than NE...

and

as far as Aaron Hall's singing, Kellz, who went on to become the biggest contemporary r&b singer around, bit him harder than Tyson bit Holyfield which should tell you something abt his influence as a vocalist. It is true that those Guys cds were driven by their sound first and foremost but Aaron Hall's singing was a perfect compliment.

>As you mentioned, it wasn't as good as the first, but it
>knocked. The thing is, by that point it was more about Teddy
>and NJS than Aaron singing or Guy as a group.
>
>Now as far as BIIM being able to outsing everyone in NE,
>Ronnie, Mike and Ricky, I'll give you that. Ralph? Can't quite
>say that. Johnnie? Not a chance.

what?!?! lmao who in B2M wasn't a better singer than Ralph? Johnny Gil is a more appropriate comparison to the singers in B2M. All the members of B2M are classically trained singers and their 4 part harmony brought harmonizing back in r&b briefly.
2686715, Dunno about that. I think NJS was much more with Teddy than Guy
Posted by spenzalii, Mon Apr-16-12 01:47 PM
Yes Guy was where it started, but by time the 2nd album dropped, they were just seen as 'part' of NJS, not the driving force or influence behind it. That was mainly Teddy. Hell, some idiots would even think W-N-E before Guy. So their being considered an influential 'group' for the 90s still kinda comes into question in context of groups in the 90's, like NE

As far as Aaron's 'influence', yeah you can say Kellz took that and ran. You can also say (and I'm sure Mixxx will point out) Aaron did the same with Charlie Wilson so.... Still, it was Teddy that was the driving force behind the music and kept working, not so much Aaron doing solo work or being on a hook (though I still love Erick Seron's Welcome to this day).

Make no mistake, I grew up with that sound and loved Guy. Loved Aaron's voice. But I can't sit here and say Guy, as a group, had much run or influence in the 90s much as I can't say NE as a group, had much run or influence in the 90s. Both acts had their biggest dray in 88, and while their effects could still be felt in one way or another, as groups it's hard to say they really fit this post.
2686737, You gotta realize Guy's influence though...
Posted by randomxxl, Mon Apr-16-12 02:32 PM
Guy influenced Jodeci, who later influenced Dru Hill. And of course, there's the R.Kelly swipe of Aaron Hall's steez.

Guy was dope in and of itself. Yes, NJS and Teddy blew up between the releases of Guy's 1st two albums, but that hype only helped build anticipation for that second album. Folks were GEEKED about The Future and it didn't disappoint. Yes, it was more polished than its predecessor and suffered from a bit of excess, but I daresay it was the last great NJS album ( I don't consider BBD's Poison album NJS, nor should you. lol)

I know this is a bit of a tangent to the original topic, but speaking for someone who came up during this time-I graduated high school in '88-I wanted to add my too sense.

Word...
2686750, ^^^good reply & let me add that while Guy didn't have as long a run
Posted by vee-lover, Mon Apr-16-12 02:56 PM
throughout the 90s as most ppl thought they would, no one can deny that they certainly had a lot of influence on the *early* to mid 90s...and it is visibly noticed in other groups as you mentioned as well as the NJS sound...

NE's influence, on the other hand, as a group wasn't as visible in the 90s it was the previous decade. The band only reunited in 1996 to record 'Home Again' because their solo projects weren't selling well. Most of their fanbase thought they were broken up for good and the band never really said they were going to do another record together...that is until they no longer had commercial success as solo artists.



>Guy influenced Jodeci, who later influenced Dru Hill. And of
>course, there's the R.Kelly swipe of Aaron Hall's steez.
>
>Guy was dope in and of itself. Yes, NJS and Teddy blew up
>between the releases of Guy's 1st two albums, but that hype
>only helped build anticipation for that second album. Folks
>were GEEKED about The Future and it didn't disappoint. Yes, it
>was more polished than its predecessor and suffered from a bit
>of excess, but I daresay it was the last great NJS album ( I
>don't consider BBD's Poison album NJS, nor should you. lol)
>
>I know this is a bit of a tangent to the original topic, but
>speaking for someone who came up during this time-I graduated
>high school in '88-I wanted to add my too sense.
>
>Word...
2686753, You boil it down a lot of acts either went from NE or Guy's line
Posted by spenzalii, Mon Apr-16-12 03:00 PM
BIIM were easily on the NE branch. Jodeci was in line from Guy. Most any other boy band in the 90s were in either camp or borrowed bits and pieces from wither what NE did or Guy did.

So Guy's influence never was in question. But as far was what they (and NE) did as a GROUP in the 90s doesn't quite work in the context of the original poll (*2ND* Greatest R&B BoyBand/Group Of The 90s...) Were both groups influence felt? yes. Did they do anything as a GROUP in the 90s? Not so much. Yes they both released an album (2 in Guy's case) in the 90s, none of which had nearly the impact as the albums they dropped in 88, and none of which really moved things, changed things, or influenced things in the 90s.

The fact that both groups influenced just about every male vocal group going forward from albums released in 88 by itself is impressive. And I admit, I banged the hell out of The Future and Home Again. But for this poll, I don't think either really fit because as groups they didn't do much in the 90s.

2686776, Jodeci
Posted by Coco la chapelle, Mon Apr-16-12 04:13 PM
2686783, Hard to call, I hate comparing a band to a singing-only group
Posted by -DJ R-Tistic-, Mon Apr-16-12 04:27 PM
TTT was the best band, with Mint riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight behind.

After Boyz, I'd say Jodeci easily, but I actually like Blackstreet's music more as a whole, mainly their arrangements and album cuts from those first two albums.
2687076, Toni! Tony! Tone!
Posted by godShiva, Tue Apr-17-12 08:38 AM
2687183, TTT was an actual band, not a vocal group. They don't count.
Posted by bski, Tue Apr-17-12 01:44 PM
After BIIM it's Jodeci.

NE was from another era and was the predecessor so you can't really compare em either.




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2687249, jodeci
Posted by Ezzsential, Tue Apr-17-12 03:47 PM
orever y lady, stay and freakin u are classics-tony toni tone was annovesary
what about boyz 2 men? please dont go. lonely heart and ill make love to u are classics-not to mention ohh ahh

"broken hearts develop a fear of flying"~keyshia cole
2687329, Jodeci......Impact....and so many groups bit off them
Posted by Record Playa, Tue Apr-17-12 06:20 PM