Song:All Cried Out
Album:Allure
This cover of the 80s hit All Cried Out was a top five hit in 1997 for the girl group Allure. It was their only big hit. The group was a failure despite high powered music industry connections. Alia Davis, Lalisha McLean and Akissa Mendez were classmates at LaGuardia High School for the Performing Arts in New York City. Alia's friend Linnie Belcher made them a quartet. Their big break came when they auditioned for Jean-Claude "Poke" Olivier of the Trackmasters production duo. Trackmasters had a label set up at Columbia. Meanwhile, Mariah Carey was starting Crave Records and she wanted to sign Allure. Columbia set it up as a joint deal. These connections got Allure special guests including Nas, LL Cool J, 112, and Raekwon. The first single Head Over Heels featured Nas and it was a top 40 hit. But the second single, a cover of the 1985 Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam hit All Cried Out, reached #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. It featured the popular group 112. The record was produced by Mariah Carey, her usual producer Walter Afanasieff and Cory Rooney who is best known for producing Jennifer Lopez. The album was certified Gold. The album is available as a budget CD. The problem was Crave Records closed in 1998. Allure signed with MCA for the 2000 CD Sunny Days. They didn't get the same promotional support at MCA so there were no hit singles and the album went nowhere. Linnie left Allure and they were a trio. In 2004, Allure released an album on a label owned by NBA star Ron Artest. When that didn't work out, Allure released a 2010 album on their own label. They signed with a label owned by rapper MC Shan. A single was released in 2012 but there was never an album. It doesn't look like Allure is active. I looked at their Twitter and they last performed Feb. 2017. That's also the last time they tweeted. I think Allure was expected to be a much bigger deal. Here's the video for All Cried Out by Allure featuring 112.
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