Libra

Toni Braxton's enduring importance as a soul crooner comes from her remarkable range, but not necessarily in the way you might imagine. While many R&B singers can dance and flit about from octave to octave stretching their voices to the limit, Braxton's special charm lies in her emotional range. She can soar with the sultry, high-pitched allure that inspired later seductresses like Mya and Ashanti, dive into smooth-wanderings of sweet confusion like Anita Baker, stand hip-hop tough like Mary J. Blige, or even plumb the hazy, jazzy depths of Billie or Ella . A little over a decade into Braxton's career, her sixth album, LIBRA, finds the singer at her adventurous best breathing soul into tales of love: some falling into love, others fading away from it, still others basking in its silky center. Braxton opens LIBRA with boundless energy on "Please," an arresting danceable ballad recalling the glory moments of her early days, and follows it by shifting back and forth from sweet Isley Brothers-esque throwbacks like "What's Good" to the drum-and-bass-heavy accusational fire of "Take This Ring." LIBRA finds Toni Braxton still going strong in 2005 with a sensual, gratifying record.