Friday, December 7, 2007

BOYZ II MEN"Motown: A Journey Through Hitsville USA"Decca

WHEN YOU FOLLOW one album of cover songs with another, chances are you're hard-pressed to come up with either fresh material or a good reason not to follow Rod Stewart, Michael McDonald and Barry Manilow all the way to the bank. Whatever the cause, Boyz II Men are still in a sentimental mood on their harmonious but unremarkable new release, "Motown: A Journey Through Hitsville USA."

No doubt producer Randy Jackson brought a lot of ideas to the table when he oversaw this session, but an intriguing concept wasn't among them, since Boyz II Men have often acknowledged and displayed the influence of Motown artists. But more important, the album's tribute slant doesn't always pay off.

Sure, the Philly vocal group (now a trio) often sounds at home on Detroit turf, beginning with the opening salutes to the Temptations ("Just My Imagination") and the Four Tops ("It's the Same Old Song/Reach Out (I'll Be There)"). These performances, along with those that find Shawn Stockman, Wanya Morris and Nathan Morris covering "The Tracks of My Tears" and "Easy," are polished and pleasantly evocative -- but little more. By the time mimicry-flirting versions of hits by Michael Jackson ("Got to Be There"), Stevie Wonder ("I Was Made to Love Her") and Edwin Starr ("War") surface, the title of another track on the album, featuring Patti LaBelle, rings ironic: "Ain't' Nothing Like the Real Thing."

-- Mike Joyce

Appearing Wednesday at the Birchmere (703-549-7500,http://www.birchmere.com). This show is sold out.