WHAT WAS VOX HUMANA?

My music question of the year so far is, "Why wasn't Vox Humana a bigger deal than it was 40 years ago?

This write-up just missed the 40th anniversary of Kenny Loggins' Vox Humana album, which was released, March 15, 1985. Rolling Stone Magazine's Don Shewey described it as, "... some of the most elegant hightech rhythm tracks to ever come out of Los Angeles."

Before I go further, let me say, I love Kenny Loggins. "This is It," "What a Fool Believes," "Celebrate Me Home" are songs that are the soundtrack of my childhood. "Footloose" isn't one of my favorites, but I remember it being a song that you heard every day and everywhere. It was associated with happiness and fun.

What I learned, sometime around 2002, during my early adult years, is that there was a thing called "Kenny Loggins fatigue." I was working as an assistant to a cool and artsy couple that I will lovingly identify as music snobs that were heavy into Coldplay. Somehow, Kenny Loggins' name came up and they hissed. They hated him for being the soundtrack king of the 1980s. Loggins was a sellout in their eyes.

I was stunned, because I'd never heard anyone show that kind of disdain for Loggins. To their point, Loggins did music for movies such as "Caddyshack," "Footloose," "Top Gun," "Over the Top," and "Caddyshack II." He even did a couple of albums inspired by Winnie-the-Pooh. If you were in your late teens and twenties during the 1980s and 1990s you may have been too cool for Kenny Loggins.

I on the other hand was a teen in the mid to late 1990s so my view of Loggins was a bit different. Also, as an African American, I can say that many of us have a bit of love for singers like Loggins and his co-creator Michael McDonald, along with other white crooners who showcased soul such as Hall & Oates, because we relate to their sound.

Let's get back to the subject of Vox Humana. Loggins was in the midst of a dominant run as his inspirational and passionate hit, "This Is It," co-written and featuring vocals by McDonald, earned him a Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal in 1981. The duo had recently won two Grammys for co-writing the song "What a Fool Believes" in 1980.

In 1984, "Footloose" dominated the airwaves and eventually sold over three million units. It stood out in a year that saw artists such as Prince, Tina Turner, Bruce Springsteen, Phil Collins, Madonna and Lionel Richie among many other legends release career defining records.

In 1985, when Loggins released Vox Humana it seems like it would've been as big of a hit as any other that he'd previously released. From 1977 to 1982, he released four full length albums, all of which reached 27 or higher on The Billboard 200. The first three sold over 1 million units, the latter three reached 16 or higher on the Billboard 200.

Vox Humana did sell over 500,000 copies but it didn't score as many hits as Loggins' earlier albums. The album made it to 41 on the Billboard 200. Vox Humana was very R&B. Loggins previously made appearances on R&B radio stations, with "This Is It," and another song entitled "Heart to Heart," which was a strong hit in 1983. For whatever reason, Vox Humana wasn't marketed to R&B stations or what is better known as "black radio."

Not pitching this album to black audiences may have been a massive mistake. Vox Humana's "I'm Gonna Do It Right," features The Pointer Sisters, who at the time were as big as any act in music, while being a trio of black women out of Oakland. El and Bunny DeBarge of the R&B band DeBarge also sang on the song "I'll Be There." In 1985, DeBarge rode the hit song "Rhythm of the Night" to number three on the Billboard Hot 100. They were being compared to The Jacksons and El was thought to become the next big Motown breakout star similar to Michael Jackson.

There's even a vocal assist by Earth Wind & Fire's legendary voice Philip Bailey on "At Last" on Vox Humana. These songs are all better with their guests, but Loggins wasn't ever overshadowed. Perhaps his best record on the album was "Loraine," which rivals any R&B classic by the aforementioned DeBarge.

Yes. "Loraine." That's the song. Why that song wasn't released as a single baffles me.

Vox Humana is not Loggins' best album. Not at all, but it is his most undervalued. Maybe it was thought to be too R&B. Thankfully, Loggins didn't imprison himself to one genre. He could do everything from rock, to soul, to children's songs.

In my mind, the legacy of Vox Humana plays out in albums that dominated the late 1980s when Loggins' was cooling off as a massive hit maker. As Loggins was inspired by Stevie Wonder, with his risks that he took vocally and with musical arrangements, the next generation definitely borrowed from Loggins.

George Michael's 1987 "Faith" album sold over 25 million copies around the world. The title track along "Father Figure," "Kissing a Fool" and "One More Try" are songs that are reminiscent of Loggins.

Another singer who may have been influenced by Loggins' Vox Humana is Al B. Sure!. While he didn't go on to dominate the R&B scene in the 1990s, many thought Al B. Sure! was on the way with his 1988 smash album In Effect Mode, which sold over two million copies. Vox Humana's final song "Love Will Follow" sounds it could've been the inspiration to Al B. Sure!'s "Naturally Mine" and "Oooh, This Love is So," which had women going crazy at the end of the 1980s.

Loggins fatigue may have been a thing as Loggins hasn't had a studio album in the top 50 since Vox Humana. Despite that Loggins' legacy has endured and collectively, he is currently beloved, admired and respected by fans and recording artists. Like he did for me as a child, he has made music that is the soundtrack of our lives, simply because he could. And yes, the world is better for the musical contribution of Kenny Loggins.

Artists to Watch

Jaistaxx

As I age, my time to check out new music seems to shrink by the second. My thirst to search for new hip-hop is even less. I love hip-hop but sometimes I feel like I'm hearing rappers say the same thing on every record. I've been taking this music in since the 1980s. We all got that friend that gets on our nerves sometimes, but we still love them. That's how I feel about hip-hop.

However, a bright side of hip-hop over the past two decades have been the women. Females have breathed more life and added more color into rap music. With that being said, I'm actively following the trajectory of a rapper that goes by the name of Jaistaxx.

She's a bit of a newcomer, but here is some background info on the Chicago based performer. Just two years ago, she was an All-American triple jumper on the Ohio State track and field squad. Another interesting fact is Jaistaxx is the daughter of Milwaukee Bucks legend Glenn Robinson. Yep, the 1994 number one pick of the NBA Draft and member of the 2005 San Antonio Spurs, also known as Big Dog. She even did a couple songs with her pops which can be heard below:

Jaistaxx's voice has a low register and is a bit menacing, without being too offensive. Is she super lyrical? Not just yet, but the best label I can use to describe her style of rap is, "Game Spittin'." That's a type of rap that was used to describe Baby aka Birdman from Cash Money records fame in the early 2000s. That same type of flow allowed him to sell millions of records behind the production of his musical partner Manny Fresh as a member of the Big Tymers.

As for Jaistaxx she is her own Manny Fresh. A one-woman band, she produces her own records and at a rather fast pace recently. I'm mostly impressed with her hard work, grit and growth in self-promotion. She's gone from having a few hundred streams on Spotify to having nine songs with at least 25,000 streams. Her song "Sit Back" is approaching 100,000 streams.

Sis the Singer

Sis the Singer is an evolving singer in the R&B genre who recently released the single "Good Good." Of her six singles available on Spotify, dating all the way back to 2017, "Good Good" has the best groove and is the most mainstream radio ready song that she's ever released. The song is proof that she is growing as an artist and is becoming more certain of her ability to express a designated emotion with charm and charisma.

Her prior release, "Ready" was a mix of seduction with a bit of a haunting feel as she instructed her romantic interest during a voyage of love making. It too was a building block on her way to something and somewhere that should end up gratifying to music lovers.

- Bandana Z