He is noted for his sweet and soulful vocals. (Ap– July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Leave it to Luther to pull off the near-impossible.Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. In summary, SONGS is really one of the best pop cover albums in recent memory, and it never falls into the various traps that most records of this kind routinely do. However, even these tracks are perfectly listenable, and do not sound jarring out of place in the context of the rest of the album. "Going In Circles" and "What the World Needs Now Is Love" suffer slightly from intrusive arrangements, while the big hit "Endless Love" (#2 Pop, #7 R&B, #11 Adult Contemporary) never really hits it's intended mark due to the lack of vocal chemistry between Luther and duet partner Mariah Carey. The remaining three sections are only average.
Luther also turns in good renditions of "Evergreen" and "Since You've Been Gone," however, he cannot top the legendary versions by Barbra Streisand and Aretha Franklin, respectively. The best cover of all, however, is definitely his spin-tingling cover of "Killing Me Softly," which is even more haunting and heartbreaking than Roberta Flack's original, which is a terrific recording in it's own right. His renditions of "Reflections" and "Always and Forever" (#58 Pop, #16 R&B, #25 Adult Contemporary) are more soulful and sexier than the original classic recordings, and he adds much need personality to the groovin' "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now." Even more amazingly, Luther manages to brings a genuine poignancy to the generally bland ballads "Hello," "All the Woman I Need," and "The Impossible Dream." There's a pained beauty in Luther's interpretations that was completely glossed over in all the previous renditions. However, this is certainly not the only instance where Luther outdoes the original performer. That is certainly the case with his well-respected gospel-infused take on Steven Stills' "Love the One You're With" (#95 Pop, #28 R&B), which easily should have been a much bigger hit. Naturally, there's nothing here that matches his past landmark covers like "A House Is Not A Home" or "Superstar," but he does deliver a few a choice renditions that surpass the original versions. The song selection is well done for the most part, although I do wish that a few more chances had been taken with the arrangements. While SONGS isn't in the same league with Luther's eighties albums, it is his best album of the nineties. The public responded enthusiastically to the disc, sending it to the #5 position on the Hot 200 and to Double-Platinum status in sales. Seeing that Luther has always had such great success in cover songs, the fact that he would eventually record an all-covers album should not be that surprising. One can sympathize with Vandross' desperation for a big pop hit, for he is long overdue, but he ends up betraying his best qualities on this project. Vandross draws not from the great "American Songbook" composers like George Gershwin and Duke Ellington nor from the great soul-music composers like Smokey Robinson and Curtis Mayfield but from the melodramatic, overblown field of the pop-soul crossover hit. The singing is every bit as sumptuous as might be expected, but the song choices are a bit peculiar.
Nonetheless, the loudest applause at his concerts is usually reserved for his interpretations of Leon Russell's "Superstar," Stevie Wonder's "Creepin'" and Bacharach & David's "A House Is Not a Home." For fans who prefer to hear Vandross interpreting standards, the singer has devoted Songs to nothing but material by other writers. Luther Vandross is a much underrated songwriter, a master at capturing the moment in a possible romance when things can go either way.
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