Track Listing

1. Boy Is Mine
2. Angel Of Mine
3. Inside
4. For You I Will
5. First Night
6. I Keep It To Myself
7. Street Symphony
8. Ring Da Bell
9. Misty Blue
10. Gon' Be Fine
11. Cross Da Room

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #48177 in Music
• Released on: 2001-04-02
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .22 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
Brandy may have scored the first hit with the infectious catfight "The Boy Is Mine", but make no mistake: Monica owns that song. In the battle of the cute teenage soul songbirds, Monica Arnold wins hands down because she can sing her ass off and because she has better songs. Monica's corner includes the vastly underrated producer Dallas Austin, who kicks in with edgy, moody cuts like "Street Symphony", a cautionary tale set to an orchestral groove, and "Ring da Bell", which plain-out flows. Unfortunately, this being the big-bucks world of 1990s R&B, Monica is also saddled with de rigueur Diane Warren-David Foster exercises in ersatz soul and overwrought hokum. Why anyone would want to remake Richard Marx's "Right Here Waiting" is a mystery, but let's just say that Monica also has the smarts to cover Dorothy Moore's classic remake of the adult ballad "Misty Blue", thereby evening the score a bit. It's a tribute to Monica's voice, a womanly alto of real shading and substance, that she can transform schlock into something that comes close to emotion. All of which makes The Boy Is Mine easy on the ears and secures Monica's further ascension. --Amy Linden

CD Description
This College Park, Atlanta native began singing in her church choir when she was merely four years old. If you look at it from that perspective, the young singer is practically a veteran. She certainly sounds it on THE BOY IS MINE, a spicyR&B offering that brims with precociousness. Though Monica's got the vocal chops to carry the album alone, she's not afraid to expand the sonic palette a bit by working with a couple of carefully chosen guest artists. The title tune finds her in a duet with another young R&B sensation, Brandy, and the two women's voices make a perfect match. On "Gone Be Fine", Monica injects a little hip-hop into the mix, calling upon the substantial rapping talents of Outkast. Clive Davis himself co-produced THE BOY IS MINE, proof positive that Monica's talents have inspired as much confidence from the musicindustry as they have created admirers among R&B listeners.

Customer Reviews

Perfect
Monica's second album has to be one of the best RnB albums I've heard. It contains 3 US number ones - 'The Boy is Mine', 'The First Night' and 'Angel of Mine', plus the fantastic ballad 'For You I Will', taken from the Space Jam soundtrack. However, the best track on the album is 'Street Symphony', which has a stirring orchestral arrangment and is guarenteed to send shivers down your spine. The majority of the songs are produced by Dallas Austin, whom Monica sweetly dubs her 'father'. It also features production from Rodney Jerkins Jermaine Dupri and David Foster. Vocally, Monica blows other young RnB divas out of the water - its hard to believe she was only 16 when she recorded this album. Essential for fans of RnB.

Monica shows Brandy how to make an album
Monica and Brandy are responsible for one of the top r'n'b tunes of all time with 'The Boy Is Mine'. However, it was Brandy who seemed to get all the attention when their albums were released at pretty much the same time. While Brandy's album was a good album it didn't seem to have the killer hooks and maturity that came with Monica's 'The Boy Is Mine' album.
The album includes the singles 'The First Night' an uptempo R'n'B track warning men that she doesn't get down on the first night, 'Angel Of Mine' a cover of the old Eternal track, 'For You I Will' and the title track and Brandy duet 'The Boy Is Mine'. With the exception of 'The Boy Is Mine' the singles that were released were probably the weakest of the tracks on the album. The cover of 'Misty Blue' is absolutely stunning sung with the maturity of someone twice her age and while the cover of Richard Marx 'Right Here Waiting' lets the album down a little she more than makes up with it with the fantastic 'Street Symphony'.

Total bliss!
My recommendation is to light some candles, run a bath and put this album on. This bitter sweet album will have you tingling inside without a doubt. The hairs stood up on my neck when I heard the first bit of "Street Symphony" and what followed was an abundance of beautiful tunes and each tells a story of it's own. I didn't think "Angel of Mine" (originally by Eternal) could be any better but Monica proved me wrong, "Across the Room" is guaranteed to have you singing into your hairbrush and "For You I will" is a great conclusion to a wonderful album.