Samantha Mumba - Gotta Tell You [Reissue, Special Edition] (2000/2001)

Following the demise of B*Witched, the Irish pop world was looking for a new young female to step into the fray. Enter Samantha Mumba, with her sparkling debut single "Gotta Tell You," which went straight to the upper echelons of the U.K. pop charts in the summer of 2000. Her debut album of the same name opens with that track, swiftly followed by her second single, "Body II Body" which came with David Bowie's seal of approval--he allowed her to heavily sample "Ashes to Ashes" for its central loop. The rest of the material is an even mix of sweet R&B and upbeat infectious pop, which beguile and enchant the listener. Gotta Tell You is an extremely confident debut, closing as it does with a rousing cover of the Motown standard "Signed, Sealed, Delivered"--a feat few girls Samantha's age could carry off with such aplomb. Debut albums rarely come this consummate. --Helen Marquis