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"Where It All Begins" is the fifth studio album by American singer Lalah Hathaway. It was released on Stax Records and Concord Music Group on October 18, 2011.
Background
An homage to her father Donny Hathaway, the artwork for Where It All Begins features a collage of her father album covers, with Hathaway inserted in place of her father on most of them. In addition to family photos depicted throughout the booklet, the album features a cover version of Donny Hathaway's "You Were Meant for Me," the original of which was issued as a single a few months prior to his death. Where It All Begins also features a remake of the song "I'm Coming Back" with Rachelle Ferrell, originally recorded by Vesta Williams for her 1986 album Vesta as well a remake of Hathaway's own "I’m Coming Back," first released in 1991.
AllMusic editor Andy Kellman found that Where It All Begins "picks up where 2008'sSelf Portrait left off, though the pop-R&B-type moves – buzzing synthesizers, harder beats – are a little more pronounced. "If You Want To," a gleaming disco-funk track co-written by Rahsaan Patterson, is the best of that lot; the remainder of the album’s highlights are relatively subdued, led by the gliding, atmospheric title track – a stunning throwback to lyrically inward, sonically otherworldly soul-jazz of the '70s."
Elias Leight from PopMatters felt that "though tries her hand at a number of styles, her results are all similarly unimaginative. It is hard to pinpoint exactly where Hathaway goes wrong, but Where It All Begins is uninteresting. At a time when exciting new things are happening on many fronts of R&B, Hathaway offers a dull tour through the overdone and the bland."
Chart performance
Where It All Begins debuted and peaked at number 32 on the US Billboard 200 in the week of November 5, 2011, becoming Hathaway's highest-charting album yet. It also reached number seven on the Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, making it her second album to reach the top ten.
