Love Goes All the Way

by Justin M. Kantor Going for a decidedly more pop direction on her junior album, Shannon and producers Robbie Buchanan, Patrick Adams and Russell Taylor enhanced her club-friendly style with edgier, more universal strokes. Artistically, the concept worked reasonably, but commercially, it was ill-fated -- perhaps this merging of club and pop was ahead of its time. The single "Prove Me Right" made a tiny dent on the R&B charts, but its clever synchronizing of rock guitars and synthesizers with a dance floor-ready bottom deserved much more exposure. Equally overlooked, the emotive (if slightly glossy) title track brings to mind a merging of a Chaka Khan melody and a Whitney Houston arrangement. True, Shannon doesn't have nearly as much vocal power as either diva, but her restrained, sensitive treatment of the lyric is ultimately just as real. Ironically, the two pure dance numbers that are contained, "Dancin'" and "Sabotage My Heart," don't live up to the caliber of earlier hits like the perennial favorite "Let the Music Play" and "Do You Wanna Get Away." They're produced only somewhat satisfactorily, and the melodies don't pack much punch. Otherwise, the mixture of pop, R&B and dance is a success.