Can't Slow Down

Can't Slow Down

by Lionel Richie
Can't Slow Down

Can't Slow Down

by Lionel Richie
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Overview

On Can't Slow Down, his second solo album, Lionel Richie ran with the sound and success of his eponymous debut, creating an album that was designed to be bigger and better. It's entirely possible that he took a cue from Michael Jackson's Thriller, which set out to win over listeners of every corner of the mainstream pop audience, because Richie does a similar thing with Can't Slow Down -- he plays to the MOR adult contemporary audience, to be sure, but he ups the ante on his dance numbers, creating grooves that are funkier, and he even adds a bit of rock with the sleek nocturnal menace of "Running With the Night," one of the best songs here. He doesn't swing for the fences like Michael did in 1982; he makes safe bets, which is more in his character. But safe bets do pay off, and with Can't Slow Down Richie reaped enormous dividends, earning not just his biggest hit, but his best album. He has less compunction about appearing as a pop singer this time around, which gives the preponderance of smooth ballads -- particularly "Penny Lover," "Hello," and the country-ish "Stuck on You" -- conviction, and the dance songs roll smooth and easy, never pushing the beats too hard and relying more on Richie's melodic hooks than the grooves, which is what helped make "All Night Long (All Night)" a massive hit. Indeed, five of these songs (all the aforementioned tunes) were huge hits, and since the record ran only eight songs, that's an astonishing ration. The short running time does suggest the record's main weakness, one that it shares with many early-'80s LPs -- the songs themselves run on a bit too long, padding out the running length of the entire album. This is only a problem on album tracks like "Love Will Find a Way," which are pleasant but a little tedious at their length, but since there are only three songs that aren't hits, it's a minor problem. All the hits showcase Lionel Richie at his best, as does Can't Slow Down as a whole. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date: 10/25/1990
Label: Motown
UPC: 0737463605922
Rank: 65482

Tracks

  1. Can't Slow Down
  2. All Night Long (All Night)
  3. Penny Lover
  4. Stuck on You
  5. Love Will Find a Way
  6. The Only One
  7. Running With the Night
  8. Hello

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Lionel Richie   Primary Artist,Chant,Drums,Piano,Vocals,Keyboards,Lead Vocals,Synthesizer,Vocals (Background)
Greg Phillinganes   Primary Artist,Guest Artist,Vocals,Hollers,Synthesizer
Abraham Laboriel, Sr.   Guest Artist,Bass,Guitar (Bass)
Richard Marx   Guest Artist,Chant,Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Paulinho Da Costa   Guest Artist,Percussion
Calvin Harris   Vocals (Background),Chant
Alison Maxwell   Hollers
David Malvin   Hollers
Gabrielle Greig   Hollers
Jerry Montes   Hollers
John Michael Montes   Hollers
Marilyn Ammons   Hollers
Rejauna Lynn Green   Hollers
Ruth Diaz   Hollers
Sally Greig   Hollers
Sandy Dent-Crimmel   Hollers
Sheldon J. Cohn   Hollers
Sue Ann Butler   Hollers
Sylvia Genauer   Hollers
Tanya Greig   Hollers
Fred Tackett   Guitar,Guitar (Acoustic)
David Foster   Bass,Keyboards,Guitar (Bass)
Randy Stern   Hollers
Mitch Holder   Guitar
Jeanette Hawes   Chant,Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Wilbert Terrell   Hollers
Suzanne Stanford   Chant,Vocals,Hollers
Darrell Jones   Guitar,Hollers,Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Susan Wood   Hollers
Sonny Burke   Keyboards,Fender Rhodes
Dr. Lloyd Byro Greig   Chant,Vocals
David Egerton   Hollers
Diane Burt   Chant,Vocals
Melinda Chatman   Chant,Vocals,Hollers,Sound Effects
David Cochrane   Chant,Guitar,Vocoder,Synthesizer,Synthesizer Bass,Vocals (Background)
Janice Marie Johnson   Chant,Vocals
Deborah Joyce Richie   Chant,Vocals
John "J.R." Robinson   Drums
John Robinson   Drums
Brenda Harvey Richie   Chant,Vocals
John Hobbs   Piano,Fender Rhodes
Jeff Porcaro   Drums
Deborah Thomas   Chant,Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Nathan East   Bass,Guitar (Bass)
Michael Boddicker   Vocoder,Emulator,Synthesizer
James Anthony Carmichael   Chant,Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Dave Cochran   Guitar,Vocals,Saxophone,Synthesizer
Timothy May   Guitar,Guitar (Acoustic)
Darryl Jones   Guitar
Kin Vassy   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Louie Shelton   Guitar
Steve Lukather   Guitar
Billy "Bass" Nelson   Hollers
Paul Leim   Drums,Simmons Drums
Carlos Rios   Guitar,Hollers
Joe Chemay   Bass,Guitar (Bass)

Technical Credits

Calvin Harris   Recording,Mixing Engineer,Mixing,Engineer
David Foster   Composer,Producer,Recording Arranger,Rhythm Arrangements
Jim Cassell   Engineer
Karen Siegel   Mixing
David Egerton   Engineer
Melinda Chatman   Vocal Effect
David Cochrane   Arranger,Composer,Recording Arranger,Synthesizer Programming
Jane Clark   Engineer
Larry Fergusson   Recording
Fred Law   Mixing
Brenda Harvey Richie   Composer,Production Assistant
Greg Phillinganes   Recording Arranger,Rhythm Arrangements,Composer
Lionel Richie   Arranger,Composer,Producer,Vocal Arrangement,Recording Arranger,Rhythm Arrangements
Mark Ettel   Engineer
Jeremy Lubbock   Arranger,String Arrangements
James Anthony Carmichael   Arranger,Producer,Horn Arrangements,Recording Arranger,Rhythm Arrangements,String Arrangements
Brian Banks   Synthesizer Programming
Anthony Marinelli   Synthesizer Programming
Humberto Gatica   Mixing,Engineer,Recording,Mixing Engineer
Terry Christian   Engineer
Steve Crimmel   Engineer
Bernie Grundman   Mastering
Larry Ferguson   Engineer
Cynthia Weil   Composer
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