''Raw'' is the debut album by American singer

Alyson Williams Alyson Williams (born May 11, 1962) is an R&B singer who had a string of hit singles in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Some notable tracks include "Just Call My Name", "Sleep Talk", "My Love Is So Raw" and "I Need Your Lovin". Career The daugh ...

, released in 1989 on the

Def Jam Recordings Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop. The l ...

record label. It contains the singles "Sleep Talk" ( UK No. 17) "My Love Is So Raw" (UK No. 34) and "I Need Your Lovin'" (UK No. 8).

Critical reception

In a retrospective review for

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

, Craig Lytle gave the album four out of five stars, saying that " illiamscomes up with one outstanding effort after another as she covers the spectrum of R&B, jazz, dance, and rap."

Track listing

Note *Tracks 12 and 13 feature on the CD version only.

Personnel

Adapted from

. *Tony Adderly – drum programming *Toyce Anderson – stylist *Chandra Armstead – background vocals *James Austin – bass, drums *Vincent Bell – drum programming, percussion, producer, vocal arrangement *Joe Blaney – engineer, mixing * Blue Magic – guest artist, background vocals *Steve Breck – keyboards * Jocelyn Brown – guest artist, background vocals *Priscilla Burrel – background vocals * Mike Campbell – guitar *John Cooksey – drums *Bruce Davidson – photography *

Dennis Davis Dennis Davis (August 28, 1949 – April 6, 2016) was an American drummer and session musician best known for his work with David Bowie, playing on ten albums - including seven successive studio albums - during the singer's classic mid- and lat ...

– drums *

Max Ehrmann Max Ehrmann (September 26, 1872 – September 9, 1945) was an American writer, poet, and attorney from Terre Haute, Indiana, widely known for his 1927 prose poem "Desiderata" (Latin: "things desired"). He often wrote on spiritual themes. Educa ...

– liner notes * Lisa Fischer – guest artist, background vocals *Mike Ford – bass *Michael Gabriel – drums, keyboards *Fredrick Gordon – keyboards, piano, strings, vocal arrangement *

Omar Hakim Omar Hakim (born February 12, 1959) is an American jazz, jazz fusion and pop music drummer, producer, arranger and composer. He has worked with Weather Report, David Bowie, Foo Fighters, Sting, Madonna, Dire Straits, Bryan Ferry, Journey, Kate ...

– drums, guest artist *Connie Harvey – background vocals *

Vincent Henry Vincent Henry (born November 1953) is an American saxophonist and guitarist who plays jazz and R&B. Career Henry was born in New York and grew up in Harlem. He started venturing out to concerts and clubs on his own when he was 14. In the early 1 ...

– saxophone *Rod Hui – engineer *

Phillip Ingram Phillip Ingram (born 1958) is an American musician. He is perhaps best known as one of the founding members of the Motown Group "Switch" and is the younger brother of James Ingram. Biography Ingram was raised in Akron, Ohio. He came from a mus ...

– background vocals *Fran Jay – background vocals *Barry Sonjohn Johnson – bass *

Oran "Juice" Jones Oran "Juice" Jones (born March 28, 1957) is an American retired R&B singer. Biography Early life Jones was born in Houston, Texas, and raised in Harlem, New York City, New York. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1981, servin ...

– guest artist, primary artist *Abdul Kalig – producer, programming *Frederick Lewis – photography *Peter Lord – keyboards *Tommy McConnell – drum programming, engineer *Denzil Miller – guitar, keyboards, producer, programming *Ted Mills – primary artist, producer *Alvin Moody – bass, engineer, producer, vocal arrangement *Wendell Morrison – background vocals *

Najee Jerome Najee Rasheed (born November 4, 1957, New York City), known professionally as Najee, is an American Jazz-Smooth Jazz saxophonist and flautist. Early life Najee was born in the lower west side of Manhattan in New York City and lived his te ...

– guest artist, saxophone *

Nikki D Nichelle Strong (born September 10, 1968), known by her stage name Nikki D is an American rapper. Career Strong signed with Def Jam in 1989 and released her debut single "Lettin' Off Steam" the following year. It was produced by Sam Sever. The ...

– featured artist, primary artist *

Paul Pesco Paul Pesco (born May 13, 1959) is an American session guitarist, singer-songwriter, film score composer and record producer. Biography Pesco was born in Canandaigua, New York, to a Sicilian father (an opera singer and voice instructor) and Ko ...

– guest artist, guitar *Marc Raboy – make-up, photography *

Eric "Vietnam" Sadler The Bomb Squad were an American hip hop production team known for its work with hip hop group Public Enemy. The Bomb Squad is noted for its dense, distinct, innovative production style, often utilizing dozens of samples on just one track. Th ...

– producer *Bill Saxon – saxophone *Tony Sellari – art direction *Christopher Shaw – assistant engineer *

Hank Shocklee The Bomb Squad were an American hip hop production team known for its work with hip hop group Public Enemy. The Bomb Squad is noted for its dense, distinct, innovative production style, often utilizing dozens of samples on just one track. The ...

– producer * Russell Simmons – drum programming, producer, vocal arrangement *Chuck Stanley – primary artist, background vocals *Ty Stephens – background vocals *Bill Stephney – producer *Annette Taylor – background vocals *Lee Truesdale – background vocals *Elai Tubo – drum programming, remastering *

– liner notes, performer, primary artist, vocal arrangement, background vocals *Maurice Wingate – keyboards, producer, alto sax, vocal arrangement *Abdul Zurhi – guitar

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

External links

Official Charts Company''Raw''
at

Discogs Discogs (short for discographies) is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. While the site was originally created with a goal of becoming the ...

{{Authority control 1989 debut albums Def Jam Recordings albums