Thelma Houston - Qualifying Heat (1984/2020)

Thelma Houston's final MCA release pairs the singer with a host of production hitmakers including Glen Ballard and Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis. Though her potent but poignant vocals transition seamlessly to the synthesizers and drum machines dominating mid-'80s R&B, Houston is ultimately let down by the material, and Qualifying Heat proves as awkward and unsexy as its discomfiting cover photo. Given that Chaka Khan scored a comeback hit around the same time with a brilliant update of Prince's "I Feel for You," it's frustrating to consider what Houston might have done with comparable material. Tepid, stiff songs like "I Guess It Must Be Love" and "Shake You" are far beneath her considerable talents, and the overbaked production does her no favors, either. The album was Houston's last for six years, but she deserves little of the blame.