"With this stellar 1995 effort, Belle finally had songs to match her lovely voice. The pit many R&B/soul artists fall into is taking on mediocre material and hoping the oohs, aahs, and drum beats will carry them through. Belle stacked the odds greatly in her favor here by covering beloved, melodic soul standards. She shines."
Her best work
twentyfour | Chicago, IL USA | 07/08/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This CD was not the best received CD of her Columbia/Sony years, but it was her best work to date. Most people that I know who like Regina Belle tell me that this was her weakest CD and "how dare she remake all those classics," but to record EVERY song on this CD and be creative and make it her own is amazing. I wish Regina was on TOP like she was for some time. Her voice..... makes me melt."
Great
Laura J. Griffith | Kansas | 01/05/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I love this album but had it on cassette so I got with the program and got the CD"
REGINA DELIVERS A T.K.O ON THIS CD!
Jay Siekierski | STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. USA | 10/31/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Regina Belle who possesses one of the purest & most exquisite voices on the R&B scene is back with a new CD,
Reachin' Back (Columbia). This is Regina's tribute to one of her strongest roots, the Philadelphia Sound. This music is not
over produced & overcooked. The arrangements & production are simple and do justice to this girls splendid voice, you can
feel every note that she sings! For the real thing, checkout her covers of "Love T.K.O", "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind This Time),
& "I'll Be Around". This girls gonna be around for a long time!"
Nostalgia with a modern twist...Gorgeous !
Just in Miami | Florida | 09/07/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"In the back of most people's mind there's a place--usually a dimly-lit, music-filled, smoke-clouded place--where certain memories reside. That first fumbling kiss, for instance. Or a clumsy, halting, but oh-so-sweet slow dance.
Regina Belle has found the key to unlock memories like these on "Reachin' Back," a collection of certified soul classics.
As you might expect from a woman who's made it her life's work to sing songs like these, Ms. Belle has good taste in material--witness her inclusion of two great Spinners tracks, "Could It Be I'm Falling In Love", and "I'll Be Around ".
On both, her strong, sinewy alto voice explores numerous vocal possibilities. Here, she's wrapping her finely-honed low register around a drawn-out vowel; there, she adds a quiet, almost inaudible gasp to the end of a phrase.
This terrific woman is a SOUL singer, first and always, and she's singing some of the world's best soul songs.
Other highlights include a truly passionate rendering of The O'Jays' "Let Me Make Love To You ", as well as an almost spiritual reading of the Main Ingredient's "Just Don't Want To Be Lonely ", in which Belle reaches back into her prodigious talent--and her legendary pipes--and brings forth note after shining note of powerful soul.
There's no new ground broken on REACHIN' BACK. But hey, who needs new ground when you--and Regina Belle--are happy just to wander back into those precious places in the mind, where the magic memories dwell...
Experience Regina's SOUL !
P.S. A re-issue of this essential recording is mandatory !