Time was when the Grand Dame of hip-hop soul releasing a new album caused
a hullabaloo. Whippersnappers like Rihanna have ensured she doesn’t have it all her own way now, but ‘Growing Pains’ finds Blige on chirpier form, and the shiny, happy ‘Just Fine’ sees Tricky Stewart reproducing his ‘Umbrella’-honed knob-twiddling skills in style.
SW