Keith Sweat Will Make You Last Forever

Keith Sweat’s debut turned thirty-five yesterday (Thanksgiving), and we’re about to remind the folks why he and Teddy deserve their flowers.

Soul music had been split into two camps before the release of Make It Last Forever: the revered old guard ('70s survivors Luther Vandross, the Isley Brothers, Frankie Beverly & Maze, Cameo, and Patti LaBelle were still staples on what was still remarkably coined the "black" charts), and the massive crossover of Pop-based icons Michael Jackson, Prince, and Whitney Houston. The arrival of Sweat and Riley shifted the dynamic entirely. New Jack Swing, developed by Riley, combined the streetwise bravado of hip-hop with the classic gospel and blues-fueled chords, and it was first heard on Make It Last Forever. It had the energy of youth, the drive of ambition, and the seductiveness of an effortless charm. The kids who grew up listening to DJ Kool Herc’s records suddenly had music of their own to connect with.

With synthesizer Pop/R&B from the 1980s, the sound is a high point of the New Jack Swing period. Teddy nailed the sound, and Keith brought it to life with his composition and singing. This kind of record immerses you in its universe and leaves you wishing you could hear the B-sides and other takes. They've got you when you're really into this album and digging the synthesizer lines on tracks like In the Rain. It also has a fantastic duet with Jacki McGhee, the title track. It seems Keith and her voices were born to harmonize with one another. Either the studio engineers played a cruel joke on us, or these two vocalists squandered a golden chance to create their own "Alexander O'Neal & Cherelle"-style duo with many more songs.

Keith Sweat's debut album, produced by industry veteran Teddy Riley, is widely considered a classic of the late '80s and a watershed moment that inspired several subsequent talented musicians. The former has, on occasion, been criticized for resorting to blatant pleading and baby talk to get what he wants. However, it's the secret behind Make It Last Forever, and it's the recipe that will enable Sweat to outlive many of his contemporaries far into the next decade. But it was Riley's brilliance that provided Sweat's affecting lyrics with such a powerful vehicle. Riley, a church-raised pianist, and boy wonder, influenced artists as diverse as Janet Jackson, Mary J. Blige, R. Kelly, and the King of Pop himself over seven years. Even more so than Guy's self-titled album, Bobby Brown's Don't Be Cruel was a commercial game-changer, and Michael Jackson's Dangerous was the worldwide sound of New Jack Swing. The first shot across the bow is Sweat's genre-bending Make It Last Forever. There was a new drug in town, and it looked like this. They were in high demand, and everyone wished they could attend.