"Just the Way You Like It" by The S.O.S. Band

Song#:  2009
Date:  08/11/1984
Debut:  87
Peak:  64
Weeks:  10
Genre:  R&B



Pop Bits:  After their second and third albums failed to generate any significant singles, this band got a new lease on life thanks to the newbie production team of Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis. Their fourth album, On the Rise, hit #7 at R&B and went gold thanks to two R&B Top 10 hits courtesy of Jam & Lewis. The production team assisted the band once again for their next album Just the Way You Like It. This title-track first single was another success at R&B getting to #6. Like their previous two R&B hits, the song made it to the Pop chart, but couldn't bust into the upper reaches. Although the album would hit #6 at R&B, sales were not as strong as On the Rise and the LP missed out on a gold certification.

ReduxReview:  This song is very similar to their #2 R&B hit "Just Be Good to Me," which was also done by Jam & Lewis. I'm sure that is not a coincidence. It seems like another case of "hey, that one worked - can we have another one that is similar?" That is fine, but unfortunately this one is not as good. It nearly sounds like a weak attempt at a "part 2." And once again, Jam & Lewis take the song out to an unnecessary 8+ minutes on the album. The single version plays so much better. It's still good quality Jam & Lewis, but it doesn't rank among their top hits.

ReduxRating:  6/10

Trivia:  Jam & Lewis had a good chunk of this song done, but it still lacked lyrics and a vocal. The duo ended up taking a break to get something to eat. They decided to hit up one of their favorite establishments - The Waffle House. While there, they happened to notice the company slogan that was printed on the door. It said "Just the way you like it." With that stuck in their minds, the duo returned to the studio and finished this song.

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