Record Review - 4 May 16 2001

They took away J.T. Money's group, the Poison Clan, then took away his first solo offer, from LaFace Records. But Money landed on his feet in Atlanta's north side, using ATLiens like Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs and Dallas Austin to produce his rollicking 1999 pimp-u-mentary, Pimpin' on Wax.

Now Money is back with his surprisingly good sophomore effort, Blood, Sweat and Years, eschewing pimping in favor of more general party joints. In the vein of his previous hit "Who Dat!?," Money packs percolating tracks, busy with bass lines and more percussion than a Tito Puente concert.

While no track stands alone, there's plenty of call and response woofing going down on Blood, in songs such as "War," "Hi-Lo" and "Where My Thugs At." Money breaks off some country grammar on "Lil' Charlie," a hokey hip-hop pokey, and gets funkadelic on the reflective "Father to Son," which interpolates Earth, Wind and Fire's classic "That's the Way of the World."

Though party anthems are great and all, what will keep Money on your mind is his great vocal rhythm, the way he layers lines in and around beats while maintaining his engaging passion. Basically, he sounds like he's having fun. And isn't that all we want???