From the Soul of Man

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	link

Critics uniformly lauded this album as a great leap from his debut on the scene two years prior to this largely mature effort.[1] 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.[2]

...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.[3]

— Vibe Magazine, 10/98, p.178

In the United States, the album peaked at number 71 on the Billboard 200. On Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, it reached number 15.[4] The lead single "Days Like This" peaked at number 84 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart. Re-released with soulful "Nuyorican soul" house mixes, produced by Masters at Work, the track climbed to number 26 on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. Second single "If I Lose My Woman" fared better on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart, peaking at number 15.[5] It also topped the Billboard Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles in early 1999 within 3 weeks of its appearance on the chart.[6]

Sales of the album took off again in 2020 after The Last Dance showed Michael Jordan discussing with reporters an advance copy of what Lattimore later confirmed was From the Soul of Man.[7]

• From the Soul of Man at AllMusic