MACY GRAY - The Id (2001) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Macy Gray's throaty, somewhat strangled growl was a large reason why listeners were captivated by her debut album. They also loved the way the classicist songwriting was wrapped in fresh, colorful grooves and an idiosyncratic personality, sexy in its bohemian funkiness. On How Life Is became a word-of-mouth smash as much with the traditional urban R&B audience as it was with suburban college kids and NPR listeners, which left her with the freedom to do what she wanted on her second record, The Id. Here, Macy Gray lets her freak flag fly, almost to the detriment of everything else. Layers of overdubs are piled onto the record -- endless backing vocals, bubbling drum machines, loops, glistening synths, and gurgling guitars -- giving the record the appearance of a widescreen '70s soul fantasia filtered through postmodern hip-hop. Unfortunately, it's more appearance than reality, since there's not enough structure to support what the record wants to be. It often sounds good, often like a bright, contemporary take on Riot- and Fresh-era Sly Stone, but plays better in small doses. Over the course of the album, there's just too much effort in demonstrating Gray's "freakishness," culminating in the Germanic stomp of "Oblivion," and she just doesn't seem to have that much to say outside of cheerleading for "freaks" like her. So, it's an uneven second album, but there are moments that live up to the debut, such as "Sexual Revolution," "Boo" and, best of all, the Erykah Badu duet "Sweet Baby," easily the highlight of the album. There are just not enough of them to make this an entirely successful sophomore effort. by Stephen Thomas Erlewine  
Tracklist :
1    Relating To A Psychopath 4:48
Backing Vocals – Erica Yancey, Marina Bambino
Percussion – Davey Chedwiggen
Synthesizer [Casio], Piano [Stylophone] – Zac Rae
Synthesizer [Moog], Claves – Jeremy Ruzumna
2    Boo 4:25
Backing Vocals – Latina Webb, Lejon Walker
Synthesizer [Casio], Electric Piano [Rhodes] – Zac Rae
3    Sexual Revolution 4:45
Backing Vocals – Erica Yancey, Jane Lopez, Printz Board, Steve Baxter, Tim Izo Orindgreff
Drums – Isaih Avila
Strings – Lily Haydn
Synthesizer [Moog] – Jeremy Ruzumna
4    Hey Young World Part 2 4:03
Co-producer – Ahmir '?uestlove' Thompson, Kiilu Grand
Drums – Herb Graham Jr.
Featuring – Slick Rick
Guitar – Zac Rae
Mixed By – Ahmir '?uestlove' Thompson
Strings – Darryl Swann
5    Sweet Baby 3:49
Electric Piano [Rhodes] – Darren Johnson
Featuring – Erykah Badu
Guitar – John Frusciante
Strings – Charles Veal Jr.
Synthesizer [Farfisa] – Keefus Ciancia
6    Harry 3:10
Clarinet – Tim Izo Orindgreff
Drums – Herb Graham Jr., Isaih Avila
Guitar – Dustin Boyer
Organ – Tim Carmon, Zac Rae
Percussion – Davey Chedwiggen
7    Gimme All Your Lovin' Or I Will Kill You 4:45
Backing Vocals – Pamela Williams
Flute – Tim Izo Orindgreff
Synthesizer – Jeremy Ruzumna
Synthesizer [Moog], Organ [Whirly] – Keefus Ciancia
Voice – Jeremy Ruzumna
8    Don't Come Around 4:37
Backing Vocals – Marina Bambino
Co-producer – Raphael Saadiq
Featuring – Sunshine Anderson
Flute – Tim Izo Orindgreff
Guitar, Strings – Raphael Saadiq
Organ – James Wooten
Strings – Charles Veal Jr.
9    My Nutmeg Phantasy 4:55
Backing Vocals – Lejon Walker, Marc Cross, Pamela Williams
Bass – Lonnie "Meganut" Marshall
Clarinet – Tim Izo Orindgreff
Claves – Billy Preston
Drums – Dion Murdock
Featuring – Angie Stone, Mos Def
Organ [Whirly] – Jeremy Ruzumna
Sitar – Gabby Lang
Synthesizer [Kurzweil], Organ [Whirly] – Keefus Ciancia
Synthesizer [Moog] – Zac Rae
10    Freak Like Me 3:38
Synthesizer, Organ [Whirly] – Zac Rae
11    Oblivion 2:49
Backing Vocals – Thom Russo
Mixed By – Thom Russo
Organ – Brian J. Durack
12    Forgiveness 5:17
Clarinet – Tracy Wannamoe
Percussion – Darryl Swann
Synthesizer [Wurlitzer], Clarinet – Zac Rae
Trombone – Tom Ralls
13    Blowin' Up Your Speakers 1:07
Clarinet – Tracy Wannamoe
Percussion – Darryl Swann
Synthesizer [Wurlitzer], Clarinet – Zac Rae
Trombone – Tom Ralls
14    Shed    4:17
Credits :    
Backing Vocals – Audra Cunningham Nishita (pistas: 6, 7, 9, 11), Darryl Swann (pistas: 7, 9, 11), Dawn Beckman (pistas: 1, 3, 6 to 11), Fannie Franklin (pistas: 6, 7, 9, 11), Stephanie Alexander (pistas: 1 to 3, 6, 8, 11), Sy Smith (pistas: 1 to 3, 6 to 9)
Bass – Dave Wilder (pistas: 1, 4 to 7), Mike Elizondo (pistas: 2, 3, 8, 10 to 13)
Drums – Ahmir '?uestlove' Thompson (pistas: 4, 6, 8), Victor Indrizzo (pistas: 1, 2, 5, 6, 9 to 13)
Guitar – Arik Marshall (pistas: 2, 3, 6, 7, 12, 13), Darryl Swann (pistas: 1, 2, 7, 9, 10, 12, 13), Jinsoo Lim (pistas: 1, 3, 4, 9, 10)
Horns – Printz Board (pistas: 3, 7 to 9)
Keyboards [Chamberlain] – Zac Rae (pistas: 1, 2, 4 to 7, 12, 13)
Organ – Billy Preston (pistas: 5, 8, 9), Jeremy Ruzumna (pistas: 1, 5 to 7, 10, 12, 13)
Percussion – Ahmir '?uestlove' Thompson (pistas: 3, 4, 6 to 13), Frank "Knuckles" Walker (pistas: 6, 10 to 13), Marina Bambino (pistas: 1, 3, 5)
Piano – Jeremy Ruzumna (pistas: 1, 4, 8, 10), Zac Rae (pistas: 4, 5, 9, 10, 12, 13)
Saxophone – Tim Izo Orindgreff (pistas: 3, 7, 9)
Scratches – DJ Killu Grand (pistas: 4, 6, 9, 12, 13)
Trombone – Steve Baxter (pistas: 3, 7 to 9)
Trumpet – Printz Board (pistas: 3, 7 to 9, 12, 13)