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| | Jermaine Stewart : Word Is Out - Listen, Review and Buy at ARTISTdirect |
 | | The title track, with its crunching, big-beat chorus, is one, and the sleek, sexy club cut, "I Like It," is another, while the lack of a backbeat is probably all that kept the brilliant piano ballad "Brilliance" from breaking through. |
 | | Sometimes Stewart's nods to the hit parade are a bit too overt: the pumping beat and squealing rock guitar of "Get Over It" crowd Shalamar's "Dancing In The Sheets" a bit, and "Debbie," with its twangy hook, has a definite "Footloose" feel. |
 | | But Stewart's energy and warmth make it impossible to dislike any of these ten skillful songs, and later fans who missed this early chapter in his development are in for a pleasant surprise on first listening. |
| www.artistdirect.com /nad/store/artist/album/0,,169106,00.html (261 words) |
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