Lisa Stansfield Album: “So Natural [Bonus Tracks]”

WHY? This Cd Was Not Released In The USA Is Unbelieveable! Lisa Had Just Came Off Two GREAT Cds (AFFECTION & REAL LOVE) And Was In Her Glory! This Cd Is Filled With Great Songs..."Marvellous & Mine", "Little Bit Of Heaven", "In All The Right Places" & "Too Much Love Makin'" Are All Amazing & Classic Lisa! Buy It Now That You Can!

Lisa Stansfield's cd "So Natural" is one of the most addictive of her releases. It is a definite must for any die hard fan. The fact that it was only released abroad makes it even more special to the avid collector. The songs are very heartfelt and her tone is throatier than in past releases. I highly recommend this release to anyone looking for the best of LISA....

I once read a magazine article with Lisa Stansfield in which she "apologised" to her fans for this album, saying she got too self indulgent with the songs and "lost the plot"...all I can say is that if this shows Lisa at her most personal, then please, please, can we have more of the same?

This is the only album by Lisa Stansfield that I REALLY like, the others all struck me as rather safe and formulaic. But here, the songs are full of great melodies, instrumentation, soul, and of course, Lisa's wonderful voice. As soon as the lush title track is over, the 2nd song "Never Set Me Free" surprises you immediately with its languid tempo and 70's lounge influenced horn instrumentation. It's a seductive and sexy number that keeps you swaying along all the way through it. And it's not the only one. For a similar vein try "Sweet Memories": just as easy on the ear, and a bit more bittersweet lyrically. Even better is "She's Always There", a really poignant and touching ballad about a loyal but mistreated woman. Again, a great shuffling rhythm and as always, outstanding vocals from Lisa. For uptempo numbers, the album is well served by "Too Much Lovemaking" and "Marvellous and Mine", the latter being a personal favourite, with a really tight and funky beat to it. Actually, the production of all the songs is very economical all round, which sounds like a criticism, but I am being positive here, as I think it makes for a surpisingly effective minimalist and lean feel, with not an ounce of fat on any of the tracks. Cutting away unnecessary elaboration leaves the songs crisp and immediately catchy, and it's a trend I would love to see other artists try and emulate. My least favourite track on the album is one that seems a common favourite, going by other reviewers opinions of this album - I don't like the re-working of the John Barry song "In All The Right Places" (from Indecent Proposal), that appears on this CD, which does not hold a candle to the classier and slightly darker version that appears on the original soundtrack CD (also with Lisa as vocalist). Still, you could also buy that soundtrack, as it's a great album as well! But Lisa Stansfield fans - don't pass up this album. I've only mentioned a few tracks by name, but nearly every song is a winner. Lisa should let her intuition guide her more often, in my opinion, if this is the result.

Record companies are strange at times, Lisa's third cd didn't get a US release because the label felt this wasn't commerical enough for the US market and asked Lisa to make some changes and she said NO! and so the cd wasn't released here! and what a shame because this a great cd! Lisa's voice is smooth on this project and the songs! The arrangements have a more mellow, jazzier grooves. Thanks to some smooth jazz radio stations 'Never Set Me Free' & 'So Natural' got some good airplay, every time these songs got played the dj would get phone calls as to where to get these songs and he had to say it's on an import cd, this proves that this cd would've done well here if the proper promotion was behind it! thanks to Tower records we were able to get this! 'Goodbye', 'Be Mine', 'Marvellous & Mine' are just some of the highlights on this cd! I highly recommend this cd!!

Despite having no US hits and being generally scarce here, this is almost certainly the most solid and beautiful album that the always-desirable Lisa Stansfield has made. Unquestionably one of the most stylish and talented white soul divas ever, the robustness of this album is something to savor from beginning to end, and it shifts flawlessly between the shimmering ballads that she's best known for and a few slightly more uptempo but no less stylish dance-poppers. The beautiful ballads "I Give You Everything" and "Goodbye" are particularly good, though there is no song on the entire album not worth hearing.