Rating: NNN
What’s most remarkable about crooner Craig David isn’t that he’s been designated the great British R&B hope. It’s how blatantly American the Londoner sounds. On the belated North American release of his Born To Do It debut, David doesn’t stray far from the standard R&B themes, but there is a certain style and bounce to his jilted love stories that sounds fresh when compared to the rote mumbling of folks like R. Kelly. Where David could use some help is in the songwriting department. Without access to big-name U.S. producers, he’s stuck singing over the same unimaginative and dated hooks track after track. If he intends to make it on this side of the pond, David needs better beats.
