Volume III Just Right is the third album by the English music collective Soul II Soul, released in 1992 through Ten and Virgin Records.[1][2][3] Its first single was "Joy".[4]
The album was produced by Jazzie B, who also rapped on three of the tracks.[8][9] Jazzie used several male vocalists on the album, including Richie Stephens.[10]
Entertainment Weekly wrote that "Jazzie has returned to the low-key feel of his first album with little deviation, except that he has turned to male singers, instead of his usual stable of divas, to revive his by-now-stale formula."[18]Trouser Press lamented that the collective had "devolved from a groundbreaking, if creatively unreliable, soul collective to a not particularly exciting R&B act."[3]The Gazette considered the album "background music at best," writing that "this is when groovy becomes generic."[23]
Rolling Stone noted that "the Seventies-obsessed string arrangements on Just Right are piquant and precise."[24]The Indianapolis Star stated that "Jazzie B. and his 'sound system' turn in a confident, entertaining and well-plotted blend of R&B, jazz, African and dance influences."[19] The Calgary Herald praised the "rich vocals, big fat beats, choral interludes, soul grooves and African wind instrumentals."[15]The Virginian-Pilot called the album "sluggish buppie pop with some vaguely hip elements grafted on," writing that it "offers little but a desperate pandering to the Quiet Storm."[22]
