Customer Reviews
I remember.... 
2008-08-01
I remember listening to this cassette tape with my mother and two older sisters on our many long car rides 2 PA 2 visit my Grandma when I was young (like under 10 y/o) & I loved it then and I LOVE it now. Of course I couldn't grasp the concept of R&B, blues, jazz, or scatting but I knew it sounded good. I LOVE Anita her voice and just the relaxing sound of her music! It you don't have Rapture get it because it's a classic.
Anita: The Goddess of Soul 2008-07-10
Anita's second album is one of the most greatest soul albums of the 80's. Her voice is so soulful and sensual. and whenever you listen to her voice, you just want to sit back, relax, and indulge in her smooth jazzy vocals. Here's my review of my favorite songs by the "goddess of soul."
1.) Sweet Love: This song is one of my very favorite songs by Anita. It sounds so sensual and jazzy.
2.) No One In The World: This is another one of my favorite Anita songs. It's so soulful and relaxing.
3.) Caught Up in the Rapture: OMG, this song is so jazzy and soulful. I luv it!
4.) You Bring Me Joy: Another great soulful song. Anita never sounded better.
5.) Mystery: This song has a very haunting rhythm and Anita's vocals shine on this song.
Anita's "Rapture" album is a classic soul album. This album is so amazing. You won't be disappointed at all.
rapture 
2007-12-13
One of her best cds loved it from the beginning to the end, heard a lot of songs that i loved and was happy to have them all on one cd
Essential R&B Masterpiece 2007-12-10
With only 8 tracks, "Rapture" might be easily overlooked. In reality, it is a musical treasure. It certainly ranks among the top albums of the 80's, and its surprising yet undeniable timelessness makes it arguably one of the best albums of all time. Anita Baker might be one of the most underrated yet thoroughly emotive vocalists of our time. She is subtle and understated when she needs to be, truly powerful and extraordinary when necessary, and soulful throughout. Tracks like "Sweet Love," "Caught Up in the Rapture," and "Same Ole Love" remain popular on R&B radio over 20 years after the album's release. This is an absolute classic, crossing generational boundaries - Believe it or not, I was born 3 years after this came out! Fans of R&B and jazz will not be disappointed. I highly suggest this album to any music collector.
Never tire of listening to. 2007-11-24
This album is one of my favorite albums of all time. I never tire of listening to this timeless classic.
The most essential album from one of soul's most enduring and beautiful talents 2007-10-05
Soul has been through a lot of changes of late, and if there seems to be an oversupply of young divas-in-waiting today, you can probably thank Anita Baker for it. Baker was one of the few singers that bridged the old school to the new, and this 1986 album was--and is--a true soul classic. An inspiration for everyone from Whitney Houston to Toni Braxton, Baker carved the way with soaring vocals and an effortless style on tracks like "Sweet Love" and "You Bring Me Joy." "Caught Up in the Rapture" was the anthem for many a lovestruck couple, and Baker sums it up best herself in the same song: "Nothing else can compare."
--Rebecca Wallwork
Pure Love Music 2007-07-30
This was Anita's second solo release, and it's pure magic. Few recordings have been made like this that express a woman's love so naturally and with such emotion.Going through track by track reviews is unecessary, every song is a gem. Anita was definitely in love with a brother when she made this recording. It sounds just as fresh today as it did back in '86.
Anita made much more beautiful music, but this is her modern day classic.
A wonder album in need of remastering 2007-05-26
When this album came out in 1986, Anita Baker injected radio with some much-needed soul. Quite simply, there was nothing like "Rapture" on the radio in the mid-'80s. Her smoky voice and jazzy songs were the opposite of the music of the divas of the day, Madonna, Whitney and Janet.
Twenty years later, the album's music has not aged a day at all. Sweet Love is one of the best radio singles to come out of the '80s, and Caught Up in the Rapture is right up there with it.
The only drawback is that after 20 years, the CD quality is not up to par in this day of sleek technology and remastering. Why this album remains in the vaults waiting to be dusted off and remastered remains a mystery to me. If any album from the '80s deserves to reissued, this is it.
Simply a must have... for all the true romantics out there. 2007-05-23
This is simply one of those recordings that is a must have for those who love first class, essential, Rhythm & Blues done by a gifted vocalist with a first class voice. She has that combination of range, power and knows when and how to use it.
Not to make you think that she is a jazz vocalist or that this is a jazz recording, which it is not, but the most obvious comparison I can make in richness of voice, power of delivery and inventive phrase, would be Sarah Vaughan. Trust me that is BIG company. That is a very good thing. Vocalists like that come along every few decades.
Most importantly she has the soul and heart of a true romantic. These songs just go straight to the heart of you. No vocal acrobatics at the expense of the song or the intended sentiment. When she belts it out, it is at the moment in which the intensity is necessary.
Most of these pieces are ballads and all are love songs but they are delivered with sophistication, sensuality, sincerity and power.
When I first heard this and then saw her perform this, she held me transfixed.
The poignancy of "No One In The Word", "Rapture", "Sweet Love", "Mystery" and "You Bring Me Joy" amidst good solid instrumentation, make these five pieces true high points and memorable R&B. The pieces have something that is often lost these days. That ability to shift to accentuate a point of mood and then back again.
There is a lithe sensuality throughout this recording that is missing from much of the so called quiet storm recordings where romance is lost for the schmaltz or sexuality.
There is a a balance. Throughout Anita delivers with as fine a voice as I've heard before or since. She has a beautiful rich voice. Round tones and an impressive range. When she belts it out she does so in context and not as a means on to itself.
More people should know of this recording.
Anita Baker is one of a kind and if you get just one Anita Baker recording, get this one, you won't be sorry.
Rapture... 2007-02-03
Loved it when it was on wax, love it even more that it's on CD. I can give Ms. Baker (of Chapter 8 fame) nothing less than five stars!
