*** Eric Benet, “A Day in the...

*** Eric Benet, “A Day in the Life,” Warner Bros. Benet is cut from the same silky cloth as smooth operators D’Angelo and Brian McKnight. The R&B; prodigy is clearly enamored of suave ‘70s soul, and on his second album he does a fine job of capturing its stately, luscious vibe. All of the tracks, with their well-mannered beats, swelling strings and multilayered harmonies, throw gentle butterfly kisses at the listener. Benet even pulls off a slinky, sexy version of Kansas’ schmaltzy 1978 ballad “Dust in the Wind.”

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Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent). The albums are already released unless otherwise noted.