From the Soul of Man

“	...FROM THE SOUL OF MAN is heightened by the strength of Lattimore's impressive voice, which effortlessly transform from a deep, smoky alto into a bright falsetto--always sounding pure and sublime.^[1]	”
—Vibe Magazine, 10/98, p.178

Critics uniformly lauded this album as a great leap from his debut on the scene 2 years prior to this largely mature effort.^[2] The album opens with the first single "Days Like This," an introspective midtempo R&B track with avant garde electronic inflections. "Days," along with 7 other tracks on the album were co-written by Lattimore.

A highlight is Lattimore's faithful and yet individual cover of Donny Hathaway's "I Love You More Than You'll Ever Know," first heard on Hathaway's landmark Extension of a Man album. Lattimore also reimagines The Beatles' "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" as a soulful ballad that closes with a hypnotically layered arrangement of background vocals. "Who knew that 'While My Guitar Gently Weeps' could be so sexy?" remarks Michael Gallucci.^[3]

Adding synergy to the album was the bonus inclusion of the gently soaring ballad "Love Will Find A Way," a duet with Heather Headley from the Disney movie The Lion King II: Simba's Pride.

[edit] Chart performance

Sales

The album peaked at #71 on The Billboard 200 album chart. On Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums the set reached #15.^[4] The lead single "Days Like This" peaked at #84 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart. Re-released with soulful "nuyorican soul" house mixes by Masters At Work, the track climbed to #26 on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. The second single "If I Lose My Woman" fared better on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart, peaking at #15. ^[5]

Airplay

Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Recurrents airplay chart saw the original release of "Days Like This" shoot to #20 on the charts.^[6] The dance remixes of "Days Like This" reached #26 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart. ^[7] "If I Lose My Woman" topped the Billboard Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles in early 1999 within 3 weeks of its appearance on the chart. ^[8]