Cleveland natives
Jason Champion
and
Dave Tolliver
are
Men at Large
. The hefty young men are an electric act live, and producer
Gerald LeVert
(along with a handful of co-producers) effectively captured that heat.
LeVert
incorporates
comedy
,
hip-hop
rap
urban
soul
on a blue-plate selection of songs. It opens with a
skit, where
is looking for the two overweight lovers. The
tunes are snappy, danceable items, but the
ballads
are a different story.
are not typical '60s/'70s slowies; they're more like mini-dramas intended to evoke screams, not cool "oohs" and "ahhhs."
Champion
's expressive, demonstrative tenor is a jewel; he'll remind you of multiple exclamation points when he slides into falsetto. The infectious
"Heartbeat"
has a
reggae
beat, some slick raps, and a bass voice accenting the beat -- a real charmer. When you play
"So Alone,"
have a hankie ready. It was a modest
R&B
hit for the fellows. None of the other releases, unfortunately, did much to enhance their popularity. ~ Andrew Hamilton