From the Mind of Lil Louis

From the Mind of Lil Louis
Studio album by
Lil Louis
ReleasedDecember 1989 (1989-12)[1][2]
Studio

Royal Recorders
(Lake Geneva, Wisconsin)

Lake Recording Studio
(Maywood, Illinois)
GenreChicago house
Label
Producer
Lil Louis chronology
From the Mind of Lil Louis
(1989) 		Journey with the Lonely
(1992)

From the Mind of Lil Louis is the debut album by the American house musician Lil Louis. It was released in December 1989 through Epic Records and FFRR Records.[1][2]

The single "French Kiss" peaked at No. 50 on the Billboard Hot 100; it peaked at No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart.[3][4]

Production

The album's tracks were written and produced by Lil Louis; he also played most of the instruments.[5] The album sides are titled "Dance" and "Romance", with the song "Insecure" composed as a ballad.[6] Lil Louis's father, who had played as a sideman with Bobby Bland and B. B. King, sings and plays guitar on "Lil Tanya".[7][8] Larry Heard aka Mr. Fingers contributed production work to the album.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[9]
Calgary HeraldB+[10]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[11]
Ottawa Citizen[12]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[13]

The New York Times thought that Lil Louis "has created a breakthrough album for house music by turning a genre usually heard amid the public revelry of the dance floor into a private, interior playground."[6] The Globe and Mail wrote that the album is "a wonderfully eclectic blend of street vocals, soulful riffs and top-rate instrumental work."[8] The St. Petersburg Times deemed the album "a bold debut," writing that "the sound is of spare, brooding jazz, uniquely subdued and shot through with Louis' smoldering sexuality ... The music's sensual appeal is awesome, as physically in tune with the times as Prince ever was."[14] The Calgary Herald declared that "when a new artist cops tricks from Prince, George Clinton and Laurie Anderson, you know he's on the right track."[10]

AllMusic called the album "a triumph," writing that "Larry Heard's input on tracks like 'Blackout', 'Tuch Me' and '6 A.M.' is stellar."[9] Listing From the Mind of Lil Louis as an "Essential" album of house music, Spin praised the "propulsive" and "pastoral" conceptual sides.[7] Mixmag included "French Kiss" on its list of "30 of the Best Chicago House Tracks," and wrote that "I Called U" and "Nyce & Slo" were also "unmissable."[15]

Track listing

LP version

Side one: "Dance"

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."I Called U"Lil Louis6:22
2."Blackout"Lil Louis6:05
3."Tuch Me"
5:07
4."French Kiss"
  • Lil Louis
  • Karlana Johnson
6:02
5."Wargames"Lil Louis3:04

Side two: "Romance"

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."6 A.M."Heard3:47
2."Nyce & Slo"
  • Lil Louis
  • Riley Evans
5:32
3."Insecure"Lil Louis6:23
4."The Luv U Wanted"Ferranté-Eric4:36
5."Brittany" (featuring Joi Cardwell)Phyllis Coleman2:32
6."Lil Tanya"Bobby Sims2:35

CD & cassette version

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."I Called U"Lil Louis6:23
2."Blackout"Lil Louis6:06
3."Tuch Me"
  • Lil Louis
  • Heard
5:09
4."French Kiss"
  • Lil Louis
  • Johnson
6:03
5."Wargames"Lil Louis3:05
6."It's the Only Thing"
5:18
7."6 A.M."Heard3:47
8."Nyce & Slo"
  • Lil Louis
  • Evans
5:33
9."Insecure"Lil Louis6:24
10."The Luv U Wanted"Ferranté-Eric4:37
11."Brittany" (featuring Joi Cardwell)Coleman2:33
12."Lil Tanya"Sims2:35
13."6 A.M." (Reprise)Heard3:39
14."I Called U" (Reprise)Lil Louis2:58

Personnel

Adapted from the album's liner notes.[16]

  • Lil Louis – production, executive producer, arranger, mixing (all tracks), keyboard programming, drum programming, percussion, lead vocals on "Tuch Me" & "Insecure"
  • Larry Heard – co-production on "Tuch Me", "6 A.M.", background vocals & additional keyboard programming
  • Die Warzau – co-production on "It's the Only Thing"
  • DeWayne A. Powell – executive producer
  • Shawn Christopher – lead vocals on "French Kiss"
  • Ferranté-Eric – co-production & performer on "The Luv U Wanted"
  • Antigua/Jade – vocals on "The Luv U Wanted"
  • Joi Cardwell – piano on "Brittany", acoustic piano, violin
  • Bobby Sims – lead guitar
  • Peter Black – piano & keyboard solos
  • Alfonzo Hunter – alto saxophone & additional horns
  • Cei Bei – background vocals
  • Anthony Wonsle – keyboard solo on "Insecure"
  • Tyson Bell – bass guitar
  • Luiz Ewerling – acoustic drums
  • Jennifer Wilcox – various conversation pieces
  • Recording and mix engineering by Die Warzau at Chicago Recording Company, Chicago Trax Recording, River North Recorders & Universal Recording Studios (Chicago, Illinois); Royal Recorders (Lake Geneva, Wisconsin), except "Tuch Me", "6 A.M.", "Nyce & Slo" & "Insecure": recording co-engineered by Jerry "J.J." Jordan at River North Recorders; "French Kiss": recording & mix engineered by Julian Herzfeld at Chicago Trax Recording & Bob Kaider at Lake Recording Studio (Maywood, Illinois)
  • Christopher Austopchuk – art direction
  • Mark Burdett – design & front cover typography

References

  1. ^ a b Schlager, Ken, ed. (December 9, 1989). "Album Releases" (PDF). Billboard. New York: BPI Communications. p. 48. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 9, 2025.
  2. ^ a b Dalton, David, ed. (December 9, 1989). "From the Mind of Lil Louis" (PDF). Music Week. London: Spotlight Publications. p. 20. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 9, 2025.
  3. ^ "Lil Louis". Billboard.
  4. ^ "Lil' Louis Full Official Chart History". Official Charts.
  5. ^ Hoffmann, Frank W. (July 24, 2005). Rhythm and Blues, Rap, and Hip-hop. Infobase Publishing.
  6. ^ a b Freedberg, Michael (April 29, 1990). "You Can Dance to It, But Is It Worth a Listen?". The New York Times.
  7. ^ a b "Essentials". Spin. SPIN Media LLC. June 24, 2010.
  8. ^ a b Niester, Alan (18 Jan 1990). "From the Mind of Lil Louis". The Globe and Mail. p. C8.
  9. ^ a b "From the Mind of Lil' Louis Lil' Louis". AllMusic.
  10. ^ a b Tremblay, Mark (25 Jan 1990). "Recent Releases". Calgary Herald. p. C3.
  11. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 5. MUZE. p. 238.
  12. ^ Erskine, Evelyn (26 Jan 1990). "From the Mind of Lil Louis". Ottawa Citizen. p. C6.
  13. ^ The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 424.
  14. ^ Volk, Steven (11 May 1990). "Sound Bites". Weekend. St. Petersburg Times. p. 16.
  15. ^ "30 of the Best Chicago House Tracks". Mixmag. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
  16. ^ From the Mind of Lil Louis (liner notes). Lil Louis. Epic. 1989.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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