Jill Scott (Hidden Beach/Epic)
To make a live album after only one studio release takes some nerve, even for a performer as confident as Jill Scott. Still, the neo-soul singer-songwriter who made a name for herself with her killer 2000 debut, Who Is Jill Scott? Words and Sounds Vol. 1, quickly proves why she, unlike many of today's studio-enhanced artists, is the real deal. The first of this set's two CDs, which captures her in concert primarily at Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C., last August, actually improves upon the versions on Words and Sounds, with Scott, backed by an airtight band, boasting greater vocal chops, especially on the dramatic "He Loves Me (Lyzel in E Flat)." The second CD, though, features previously unreleased material that doesn't quite measure up—lyrically or musically—to the older stuff.
Bottom Line: Half-brilliant
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