***1/2 Robin S.

FROM NOW ON

(Big Beat/Atlantic)

Best known for "Give Me Love," the biggest diva-style house hit ever, Robin S., on her third CD, goes back to her roots in lusty, lowdown gospel singing, and she makes her voice matter. A contralto as husky as Mavis Staples -- but free of Staples's mountain of affectations -- Robin S. sends her messages of togetherness, hard work, and thankfulness in love direct, solidly, jubilantly to the listener, without bending herself around corners or climbing chimneys. The acrobatics of diva certainly do amaze the style's fans: but the new Robin S., face to face with the solemnity of "In This Together," the golden glow of "Shine On," and the rejoicing of "It Must Be Love," "Midnight," and "It's Not Enough," rises to the melody without having to dangle her voice from the high wire. Plainness and fortitude? The old soul verities? Yes indeed!

-- Michael Freedberg