''I Know'' is the eleventh studio album by American R&B singer and songwriter

Luther Vandross Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Known for his sweet and soulful vocals, Vandross has sold over 40 million records worldwide. He achieved eleven consecutive P ...

, released in August 1998 (see

1998 in music This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1998. Specific locations * 1998 in British music * 1998 in Norwegian music * 1998 in South Korean music Specific genres * 1998 in classical music * 1998 in country music * ...

), and his only one for

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a record label owned by Universal Music Group. It originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman. It grew to be a worldwid ...

. It serves as his first album since fulfilling his contract with

Epic Epic commonly refers to: * Epic poetry, a long narrative poem celebrating heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation * Epic film, a genre of film with heroic elements Epic or EPIC may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and medi ...

after the release of his album ''

Your Secret Love ''Your Secret Love'' is the tenth studio album by American R&B recording artist Luther Vandross, released by Epic in October 1996. The album's title track won the Best Male R&B Vocal Performance and was nominated for Best R&B Song at the 39t ...

'' (1996). The album features guest appearances from artists such as Cassandra Wilson,

Guru Guru ( sa, गुरु, IAST: ''guru;'' Pali'': garu'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: traditionally, the guru is a reverentia ...

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, Pop musi ...

Brandy Brandy is a liquor produced by distilling wine. Brandy generally contains 35–60% alcohol by volume (70–120 US proof) and is typically consumed as an after-dinner digestif. Some brandies are aged in wooden casks. Others are coloured with ...

, Marcella Precise and Bob James. The album's title track earned Vandross two nominations at the

41st Grammy Awards The 41st Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 24, 1999, at Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1998. Lauryn Hill received the most nominations with 10, setting a record for the most no ...

including for Best Traditional R&B Performance for the aforementioned album and

Best Male R&B Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance was awarded between 1968 and 2011. The award has had several minor name changes: *In 1968 it was awarded as Best R&B Solo Vocal Performance, Male *From 1969 to 1994 it was awarded as Best R&B V ...

for the album's single. The album debuted and peaked at number twenty-six on the US ''Billboard'' 200 album chart, becoming his first album since '' Give Me the Reason'' (1986) to chart within the top 40 of the albums chart. The album also peaked within the top ten of the

R&B Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated J ...

chart, reaching number nine. It was later certified

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

(RIAA) in late 1998.

Critical reception

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

editor Tim Sheridan found that on Vandross' "Virgin debut, he eases into his groove once again. Whether he's dealing in the easy, gospel-inflected pop of album opener "Keeping My Faith in You" or the jazzy hooks of the title track, Vandross is in command. While the faux hip-hop of "Get It Right" seems a bit forced, the disc is strong overall. R&B doesn't get any glossier." Paul Verna from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' felt that ''I Know'' was "a testament to what a real love song should be, rather than the bump'n'grind workouts that tend to masquerade as '90s romantic music." In a lukewarm review for ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...

'' Tony Scherman wrote that "despite his having sold 20-plus million records, the latter-day king of R&B romance lacks the distinctiveness, the instantly recognizable sound of the genre’s true heroes ..Treacle then, treacle now."

Track listing

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:I Know (Album) 1998 albums Luther Vandross albums Albums produced by Luther Vandross Albums produced by Marcus Miller Virgin Records albums