Search - Color Me Badd :: Cmb

Color them badd.

H3@+h | VT | 03/14/2006

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Most likely when someone tosses out the term boy-band, N'Sync or Backstreet Boys come to mind. However, Color Me Badd was doing their thing years before those two groups, and much better. Ok, so New Kids On The Block were around too, but they weren't as badd. These guys have a "Best Of" out also, but the best of that is basically right on this album. Included is their biggest hit "I Wanna Sex You Up". That track was in the movie "New Jack City", and is also here in reprise form. Other hits were "I Adore Mi Amore", "Thinkin' Back", and the extremely catchy "All 4 Love". The bottom line is that these guys were so badd they were good, and where else are you gonna get George Michael, Terence Trent D'Arby, Vanilla Ice, and Kenny G on the same album?"

Joyful in a much more innocent way than current boy bands.

D. Mok | Los Angeles, CA | 04/26/2000

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Color Me Badd burst onto the scene in 1990 with a buoyant song from the New Jack City soundtrack, "I Wanna Sex You Up". A bouncy beat with nice vocals drove this song to #2 on the charts, setting the stage for this album which, despite three Top 2 hits, never garnered that much attention.But Color Me Badd made some great radio singles, the best one being "I Adore Mi Amor", showcasing the different styles of the four singers: Ranging from low and smoky to high and nasal, from gyrating imp to seductive gentleman. The other chart-topper, "All 4 Love", was pretty silly, but notable for being the song that broke Mariah Carey's #1 singles streak by keeping "Can't Let Go" at #2. CMB's songwriting and performances somehow all seem fresher and less calculating than the manufactured pop of forerunners New Kids on the Block or current darlings Backstreet Boys, and by not pretending to be street or tough, Color Me Badd wins points for honesty. They were kids singing about love and teen troubles, and their vocal prowess (and diversity, a weak spot in the current boy bands who generally can sing but all sound alike) helped make the recordings work within modest confines."

If just for the kitsch factor ... Color Me Pleased.

Wyslawa | United States | 09/12/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"So I'm in between cities and I just moved into my parents place for the first time since the mid-90s. I start looking through my ancient tape collection, and I find the Color Me Badd debut. Forgetting the melody for which they were famous, I pop in the tape, I hear "I Wanna Sex You Up" and I am instantly transported to the land where In Living Color and Beverly Hills 90210 are the hippest shows on television, the San Francisco earthquake recently happened, LA Gears were the sh*t, and my best friend just dared me to walk through the park. At night and alone. With a boy.



And surprisingly, the music ain't that bad! (VH1 reveals they were discovered by Kool & The Gang, which means they can't be that horrible!) I am grooving on the a cappella twist, the paradoxically provocative yet innocent lyrics ("Make sweet lovin all night long/ I wanna sex you up/ Feels so right it can't be wrong"), and the drum machine! The ballads and the fast numbers are actually quite danceable; imagine the Fly Girls doing their hot little dance moves in the background.



I find the I can more easily admit to owning a Color Me Badd tape than an NKOTB tape, and their legitimate singing abilities and street cred (their first single "I Wanna Sex You Up" was on the "New Jack City" soundtrack) help in this. But actually "I Adore Mi Amor" is a surprise hit of the evening, one I keep rewinding again and again. See what another reviewer said about the showcasing of singing styles. (I'm down with the "seductive gentleman" voice myself.) I wonder how many couples chose this little number as their wedding song in 1992 (and how many will admit to it.) "Slow motion" also rules the school.



Shockingly, I think this tape is coming with me on my move. Color Me Badd deserves a revival among my twentysomething friends, who will surely squeal with delight when I drop these tracks. They will surely be riding the wave of the "Best of 90s" radio show coming to you in the next decade. Brace yourselves, CMB-haters!"