High Crime (album)

High Crime is the seventh studio album by Al Jarreau, released in 1984. While slightly lower in the charts than his 1981 Breakin' Away and 1983 Jarreau release, this album scored in the top 10 on the Billboard Jazz charts and top 50 in the Billboard 200. In 1986 the album received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. The album was certified Gold in 1986^[1]

As cited by AllMusic,^[2] High Crime is fueled by the hard-pushing hit from Jarreau's previous album "Boogie Down," producer Jay Graydon cranks up the energy level some more and comes up with a snazzy high-tech vehicle for his converted R&B singer. The sound is hotter, stoked by greater reliance upon synthesizers and electronically goosed rhythm tracks, and Jarreau's own vocals are more hectic, though again not much in the way of individuality is required of him. But the material this time isn't as strong—though "Murphy's Law" is pretty catchy with its flugelhorn punctuations—and so the reluctance to exploit the unique vocal talents of Jarreau is more glaring. The minor hit single of the album, oddly, is the mundane ballad "After All," an ominous harbinger of bathos to come from Jarreau down the road.

Track listing

Side 1

1. "Raging Waters" (Al Jarreau, Jay Graydon, Robbie Buchanan) - 4:25
2. "Imagination" (Al Jarreau, Jay Graydon, Clif Magness, Glen Ballard) - 4:45
3. "Murphy's Law" (Steve Kipner, Paul Bliss) - 4:06
4. "Tell Me" (Al Jarreau, Jay Graydon, Greg Phillinganes) - 4:33
5. "After All" (Al Jarreau, Jay Graydon, David Foster) - 4:18

Side 2

1. "High Crime" (Al Jarreau, Jay Graydon, Bobby Lyle) - 4:29
2. "Let's Pretend" (Jay Graydon, Richard Page, Steve George, John Lang) - 3:59
3. "Sticky Wicket" (Al Jarreau, Jay Graydon, Greg Phillinganes) - 4:16
4. "Love Speaks Louder Than Words" (Bill Champlin, Richard Feldman, Glenn Friedman) - 3:57
5. "Fallin'" (Al Jarreau, Jay Graydon, Nathan East, Marcel East) - 4:56

References

^[3]

1. ↑ RIAA. RIAA http://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&ar=AL+JARREAU&ti=HIGH+CRIME. Retrieved 3 September 2016.  Missing or empty |title= (help)
2. ↑ Ginell, Richard. "Al Jarreau High Crime". AllMusic. Retrieved 3 September 2016. 
3. ↑ http://www.allmusic.com/album/high-crime-mw0000190341