Product Description In Search of...(New Version) .co.uk If at first you don't succeed...rerecord it! This is certainly what Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo aka N*E*R*D, aka famous production duo the Neptunes, have done with In Search Of.... This is a slightly reworked version of the duo's debut album released last year to limited acclaim. In fact this is more of a director's cut with the unfunny between track jokes taken out and the original funk, soul and hip-hop boosted by more live instrumentation. N*E*R*D have made their album more "neo-soul" putting In Search Of... in line with the slick, retro style of D'Angelo, Angie Stone and Jill Scott. It's a wise move. Their trademark sound of loud drum machines and minimal samples was wearing thin, even though it had propelled the likes of Kelis, Jay Z and Mystikal to platinum-style greatness. "Am I High" goes from a chilled groove into a piece of elasticated funk, "Baby Doll" is now a piece of kinky reggae and "Rock Star" is funked up with extra guitars and drums. There's more emphasis on musicianship and less on power. But it's not a complete success. In truth N*E*R*D have been allowed to go back and tinker with their work when less stellar groups would never have been afforded the chance. "Truth or Dare" is now overloaded with strings, synths and every other trick in the studio. Thankfully they haven't messed with "Provider", the album's best song and a soulful, Marvin Gaye-like paean to the moral quandaries of drug dealing. In Search Of... remains a good experimental hip-hop soul album. Version 2 just wins by a head by dint of being a fuller album, though the millions addicted to the raw Neptunes sound will always prefer the first.--Jake Barnes
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