Track Listing

1. Finally Made Me Happy - Macy Gray, Natalie Cole
2. Shoo Be Doo
3. What I Gotta Do
4. Okay
5. Glad You're Here - Macy Gray, Fergie
6. Ghetto Love
7. One For Me
8. Strange Behavior
9. Slowly
10. Get Out - Macy Gray, Justin Timberlake
11. Treat Me Like Your Money - Macy Gray, will.i.am
12. Everybody
13. AEIOU
14. Breakdown - Macy Gray, Romika

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #51093 in Music
• Released on: 2007-04-02
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 51 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
For a while there, the helium-voiced Macy Gray seemed to be coasting instead of crashing down the walls between funk, rock, and R&B the way scads of breathless music pundits once said she would. That was before will.i.am and a handful of other skillful knob-twisters entered her life. Now, multi-genre destruction and utter domination once again seem possible: Big, as its title suggests, is a huge record--bold in all the right places and subdued where it needs to be; scruffy around the edges but slick below the surface; at once nonchalant and reckless to the bone. Gray, in her way, is a vocal Timbaland--it's tempting to think she's too imposing to make a random-seeming hook-up work, but she stretches her singular gift around pretty much any collaborator a producer can throw at her, and with style to burn. On Big, those tossed on for the challenge include Natalie Cole, who lights up opener "Finally Made Me Happy"; Nas, who gives up the grit likably on "Ghetto Love"; and Fergie, who coos efficiently throughout "Glad You're Here." As vibes go, the one given off here is cool, casual, and slightly crazy--all Macy, in other words. She does her thing up right, and she does it Big. --Tammy La Gorce

Customer Reviews

Macy is (finally) back to her best!
The first album- superb. The second- not great. The third- I didn't even bother buying. The greatest hits-OK. However none match up to Macy's latest offering 'Big':
1.Finally Made Me Happy- A superb start and single- possibly rivals I Try.- 10/10
2.Shoo Be Doo-An excellent song and the second single. 9/10
3.What I Gotta Do- slightly forgettable 6/10
4.Okay- very odd. 7/10
5.Glad You're Here- uptempo number featuring Fergie- 8.5/10
6.Ghetto Love- rap mixed with Macy. 8/10
7.One For Me- A strong ballad. 8/10
8.Strange Behaviour- A quirky, but brilliant song. 10/10
9.Slowly-A good song, bit of an album filler. 7/10
10.Get Out- Strong song. 7.5/10
11.Treat Me Like Your Money- Excellent. Features a sample of You Spin Me Round by Dead and Alive. 9/10
12.Everybody- Another excellent tune. 8/10
13.So What- An odd end to the album- certainly one of the weaker songs. 6/10

Great song writing
After a superb first album Gray seemed to lose her way a bit for her next two LPs. With this one however - her fourth - she's right back on track. I'm someone who listens to a lot of albums but "Big" was easily one of my favourite from 2007, if not my favourite. After the first listen I thought it was kinda average, but after getting to know each track the quality of the song writing became apparent. Admittedly, Macy's subject matter is limited - it's either a met-someone-new song, a break-up song, or a get-back-together song - but she does so much within those boundaries. Each song is its own unique story, and each fully realised. Put simply, Macy Gray is a master of emotion. Although, like I said, all her songs are very similiar, each one just oozes pure, raw, straight-from-the-heart emotion. And surely that's exactly what SOUL music should be about. Whether you'll like it is a different matter. If you liked Amy Winehouse's second album (Back to Black), chances are you will. It's a rare gift to be able to combine melody and rhyme with clear, strong conceptual work, but both Gray and Winehouse seem to be modern masters at the craft. There's a few songs at the end I found a little ropey and it's maybe not for everyone, but if you like soul music that's determined to explore the phenomenon of love from every angle, then this is for you.

Enjoyable New Direction
Macy Gray's voice will always be distinctive and there will always be those who love her and those who hate her, but I reckon she might win over a few converts with this album. Smoother and more soulful than her previous efforts, I found it demanded my attention on first listen. A thoroughly enjoyable album in my view and Macy's most memorable since her debut.