Bobby Valentino DTP PRESENTS BOBBY V

Personnel: Bobby V (background vocals); Bobby V (vocals); Kaleena Harper, Brooke Newman, Kalenna Harper (vocals); Tim Kelley (various instruments, guitar, piano, Fender Rhodes piano, keyboards, bass guitar, drum programming); Lamar Edwards (keyboards); Gary W. Smith , Gary Smith, Gary Smith (drum programming); Bob Robinson (guitar, acoustic guitar, electric guitar, 12-string guitar, piano, Fender Rhodes piano, keyboards); Annan Gause (guitar); Ludacris, Kevin KD Davis.
Audio Mixers: Tim Kelley; Kevin KD Davis; Jean-Marie Horvat; Leslie Brathwaite.
Recording information: 7th Day Studios, Atlanta, GA; Midas Studios, LA, CA; Moodswing Studios, Atlanta, GA; Record Plant, Hollywood, CA; The Ludaplex, Atlanta, GA; The Preacher's Kids Studio, LA, CA.
Photographer: Christian Lantry.
Soul man Bobby Valentino, the first R&B star on Ludacris's Disturbing Tha Peace label, may have seemed an overnight success when his hit "Slow Down" rocketed up the charts in 2005. However, there is a reason Valentino's self-titled album sounds more richly honed than most debuts. Like Anthony Hamilton, John Legend, and other R&B artists whose breakout records revealed a deeper history, Bobby Valentino knocked around the music world for years (primarily as member of the 1990s vocal group Mista) before Ludacris signed the Mississippi-born singer.
The experience pays off for Valentino on a record that frequently travels outside of standard R&B territory, as his capable voice occupies smooth compositions, with both passion and restraint. The catchy single "Slow Down" opens on an orchestral hook, before gliding into an ode that pulls off the feat of being both leering and courtly. "Never Lonely" features distorted, quirky stops and starts, but its strongest characteristic is its winsome melody. By the time "My Angel (Never Leave You)" comes around, Valentino has fully seduced the listener with his satisfying and sultry debut.

• Format: CD