LISA LISA & CULT JAM - HEAD TO TOE

This isn't a regular album for Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam. Instead, it's a greatest hits CD of sorts. More like a thrown together compilation of a fan's favorite songs. Lisa Lisa was paired with Cult Jam back in '85 by production team, Full Force. In fact, the first record was actually called 'Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam with Full Force'. Anyway, after that first record, Full Force moved on to release their own material and further their producing goals. Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam became the vehicle they used to launch themselves forward. Irregardless of how the band came about, during their highpoint, they were all over the radio, MTV and pretty much everywhere you went.

Full Force readily embraced the "Minneapolis Sound" produced by Prince and various other groups coming out of the Midwest at the time. They were based in New York, but nevertheless wrote with dominate synth lines carrying the main melody and bass tracks with heavily mixed live and electronic drum sounds reverberated in the background. I quite liked a lot of the songs they were putting out. I never bought any of their records, but when I saw this in a bargain bin, I decided it was worth a couple bucks to get copies of some of my more favorite songs and also expose myself to more of what they'd done.

Sadly, I've come to realize Full Force is a hit and miss thing with me. I either love the track or hate it. The Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam material is no exception. Also notable is the absence of some of the band's more popular hits like 'Lost In Emotion'. This release seems haphazard and hardly worth the effort in the long run. Ballad wise, I find Full Force almost unendurable. Too often ballads can sound weak and complaining. The ballads on this disc seem to all fall into that category. 'Head To Toe' and 'I Wonder If I Take You Home' are the only decent Full Force tracks on the entire disc. The other dance tracks are generic for the period and don't stand out at all. Especially 'I Love What You Do To Me'. The first time I heard it, I thought I was listening to Bell Biv DeVoe. Extremely weak material.

The only other song worth mentioning from this release is the Clivelles & Cole track, 'Let The Beat Hit 'Em'. Clivelles & Cole are famous for C+C Music Factory, but also made a name for themselves as producers and for remixing later on. It's a strong track, but so far removed from the sound Lisa Lisa is known for, they eclipse her with their production. Still, it's a worthy ditty.

I think if you're out to purchase material from Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam, there must be a better, more complete singles collection out there somewhere. The point of greatest hits records is to actually include hits. If this CD were a dart game, I'd say whoever put it together missed the board altogether. Do yourself a favor and just download the single tracks you want and avoid this messy ensemble. My final word: MESSY.

LISA LISA & CULT JAM - HEAD TO TOE
01. Head To Toe
02. A Fool Is Born Every Day
03. Let The Beat Hit 'Em
04. Sensuality
05. Behind My Eyes
06. I Wonder If I Take You Home
07. Kiss Your Tears Away
08. Dance Forever
09. I Love What You Do To Me
10. This Is Cult Jam