Just Cox

After 10 years, Clive Davis is letting one of his better discoveries leave the nest to find her own way. On her website, Deborah Cox describes the parting of ways as “amicable.” Although an amazing talent in her own right, she owes a lot to Davis for taking her under his wing. Described by those in the business as a “hit-maker,” Davis is responsible for kick-starting the careers of Barry Manilow, Bruce Springsteen and Whitney Houston, among others.

Davis nurtured Cox’s talent as a singer and songwriter and turned the Toronto native into a household name worldwide. Cox’s final album for Davis’s J Records is simply entitled Remixed. It’s basically a greatest hits package with a cherry on top. Cox’s dancefloor hits of the past several years have been remixed by some of the best in the business, namely Hex Hector, David Morales and Junior Vasquez. The tracks are strung together continuously which makes for great listening. Classic Cox tunes on this release include “Nobody’s Supposed To Be Here,” “Absolutely Not” and “Who Do U Love,” as well as a fun cover of Phil Collins’ “Something Happened On The Way To Heaven.”

Cox is a vocal powerhouse. I attended a taping of an Anne Murray special at the CBC studios in Toronto a few years ago solely because Cox was the scheduled guest artist. I endured take after take of Murray crooning some of her old songs just for the chance to see Cox perform live. As the taping ran into overtime, the CBC basically held the audience as prisoners until filming was completed. But let me tell you, Cox was certainly worth the wait. She belted out a couple of songs and stole the show from Murray as they did a duet on “I Can See Clearly Now.” Several of us finally managed to escape through a fire exit after Cox’s portion of the taping was over.

Cox has been branching out as an artist lately. She starred in the film Love Come Down, which premiered at the Toronto Film Festival in 2000. She also toured across North America in a musical play entitled Love On Lay-A-Way. The show, which co-starred Martha “It’s Raining Men” Wash, played Toronto earlier this year. Probably highest on Cox’s list of achievements is the birth of her son, Isiah, in July of this year. One can only hope that her decision to split with producer Clive Davis will bring her growth and inspiration as she looks for a recording contract elsewhere.

REMIXED.

Deborah Cox.

J Records. $18.99.