When It’s Right – The Anthology (1991-2007) is a first-of-its-kind 3CD anthology drawn from the nine solo albums recorded between 1991-2006 by award-winning multi-hyphenate singer, songwriter, producer and performer, the late Gerald Levert.

As the son of the legendary Eddie Levert, the founder/lead singer of The O’Jays, Gerald blended the time-honored traditions of 60s and 70s classic soul music with ’80s and ’90s lyrical themes and contemporary grooves to create a distinctive sound that appealed to global audiences for over a decade until his untimely passing in November 2006 at the age of 40.

Ergo, When It’s Right traces Gerald’s successful solo recording career, taking a deep dive into the three albums cut for EastWest America (1991-1998), four for Elektra (1999-2003) and two for Atlantic (2004-2007) and showcasing his multi-talented skills as a songwriter and producer, primarily working with musical partner Edwin ‘Tony’ Nicholas.

It features 45 tracks, including 20 US charted tracks including ‘Private Line’, Gerald’s No. 1 R&B hit and title cut of his million-selling 1991 solo debut set; ‘Baby Hold On To Me’, which featured his famed father, Eddie Levert of The O’Jays; 1994’s ‘I’d Give Anything’; and Gerald’s back-to-back 1998 pop/R&B hits ‘Thinkin’ About It’ and ‘Taking Everything’.

The rarities included are tracks such as ‘When It’s Right’, only available previously as a bonus track on the Japanese version of Gerald’s sophomore 1994 set, ‘Groove On’; a cover of the Rick James/Teena Marie classic duet, ‘Fire And Desire’, recorded with Sherena Wynn, released on a 1995 cassette single along with remix edits of ‘Can You Handle It’ and ‘I Wanna Be Bad’, all three tracks appearing on CD for the first time.

CD 1: School Me
1. Private Line
2. School Me
3. Baby Hold On To Me (with Eddie Levert)
4. Groove On
5. I’d Give Anything
6. Answering Service
7. Same Place,Same Time
8. Love Street
9. When It’s Right
10. Thinkin’ Bout It
11. That’s The Way I Feel About You (with Mary J Blige)
12. Taking Everything
13. Nothin’ To Somethin’
14. Mr. Too Damn Good

The first disc, labelled as School Me, opens on the straight up dance-soul of Private Line, the smoothness of the titular School Me, the velvety Baby Hold On To Me (with Eddie Levert) and then brings us the cultured funk of Groove On, the ballad that still gives me goosebumps today, I’d Give Anything, the timeless Answering Service, which are neatly followed by the the creamy R&B of Same Place,Same Time, the simply beautiful Love Street, the low slung When It’s Right, the emotional Thinkin’ Bout It, the disc rounding out on the dutiful collaboration that brought about That’s The Way I Feel About You (with Mary J Blige), the vibed Taking Everything, the pure R&B groove within Nothin’ To Somethin’ and the soulful blues of Mr. Too Damn Good.

CD 2: Baby U Are
1. Baby U Are
2. Spill A Little Love
3. Let Me Know
4. What Makes It Good To You (No Premature Lovin’)
5. Made To Love Ya
6. Dream With No Love
7. Funny
8. Closure
9. Stroke Of Genius
10. (They Long To Be) Close To You (with Tamia)
11. U Got That Love (Call It A Night)
12. Wear It Out
13. Didn’t We
14. Eyes And Ears (with Sean Levert & Eddie Levert)
15. Crucify Me
16. Everyday

The second disc, entitled Baby U Are, opens on the very same-named, and highly top notch titular song and then proceeds to bring us the shimmering Spill A Little Love, the R&B-imbibed Let Me Know, the powerfully beautiful What Makes It Good To You (No Premature Lovin’), before we are brought forth the definitive Made To Love Ya, the finger-snapping hipsway of Dream With No Love, the all-embracing Funny, and the passionate Closure.

Along next is the free-flowing R&B of Stroke Of Genius and the incredible, simply divine (They Long To Be) Close To You (with Tamia), and they are in turn backed by the harmonic U Got That Love (Call It A Night), the steamy Wear It Out, the Hip-Funk-R&B vibe within Didn’t We, the soulful brotherly love within Eyes And Ears (with Sean Levert & Eddie Levert), the disc rounding out on the slow funk groove of Crucify Me and the drum-led Everyday.

CD 3: Deep As It Goes
1. One Million Times
2. Click A Glass
3. In My Songs
4. DJ Don’t
5. Deep As It Goes
6. Can It Stay
7. Private Line (Radio Club Remix)
8. Can You Handle It (Remix Edit)*
9. I Wanna Be Bad (Remix Edit)*
10. School Me (Full Live Version)
11. Can’t Help Myself (Radio Remix)
12. Answering Service (Heavy D Remix)
13. Fire And Desire (ft. Sherena Wynn)*
14. Taking Everything (Soap Opera Remix Extended)
15. DJ Don’t (Remix ft Jaheim)

The third and final disc, labelled as Deep As It Goes, opens on the sweetly soulful One Million Times and the heartfelt Click A Glass, and they are seamlessly followed by the impassioned In My Songs, the upbeat funk of DJ Don’t, the spiritually emotional depth of both Deep As It Goes and Can It Stay, the remaining numbers remixes, duets and even a live cut of School Me. The stand outs here for me personally, being the aforementioned live track, the Radio Club Remix of Private Line, the Radio Remix of Can’t Help Myself, along with a Soap Opera Remix Extended cut of Taking Everything.

Created with expert project assistance and first class mastering by Donald Cleveland and stellar artwork by Roger Williams, this excellent overview of Gerald Levert’s legacy (executive-produced by SoulMusic Records’ founder David Nathan) features an in-depth, heartfelt essay by distinguished US writer Janine Coveney (who interviewed Gerald a number of times over the years) reflecting his contribution as a bridge between classic R&B and contemporary soul music and also includes a personal tribute from Dyana Williams, the renowned US broadcaster and media coach and quotes from respected US writer A. Scott Galloway.

Official 3CD Purchase Link