Faith Evans - Keep The Faith (Bad Boy Entertainment) Faith Evans is clearly qualified to sing the blues. Widowed by the vicious hip-hop rivalry between her husband Notorious BIG and Tupac Shakur, Evans' troubles were staple fare of urban music rags.
The pain of her husband's death was clear on last year's monster hit I'll Be Missing You, the Sean 'Puffy' Combs track that was blessed by Evans' haunting vocals.
Like that track, Keep The Faith is saved by her voice. Sweet, strong, soulful and deeply etched in emotion, this chanteuse's voice brims over with the kind of passion so devoid in R & B today.
The loss of her husband is all over this album, mournful songs like the minimalist My First Love and No Way, featuring soulstress Kelly Price.
Fortunately, this is not all sad. In the tradition of the title, there are songs about revelling in love, and about moving on from your problems. Particularly striking is the minimalist hip-hop beat, piano tinkles and feel-good vibes of title track Keep The Faith.
Overall, R & B fans who kept the faith are unlikely to be too disappointed.