This Is Niecy

This Is Niecy is the debut album of American R&B singer Deniece Williams released on August 13, 1976 by Columbia Records. The album reached No. 3 on the Billboard Top Soul Albums chart and No. 33 on the Billboard 200. The album has been certified Gold in the US by the RIAA and Silver in the UK by the BPI.

Overview
The album was remastered and reissued with bonus tracks in 2013 by Big Break Records.

Critical reception
With a 4.5 out of 5 star rating, Andy Kellman of Allmusic declared "This Is Niecy is a great complement to Earth, Wind & Fire's Spirit, released the same year -- not only for its overlapping personnel, but also for its greatness." David O' Donnell of the BBC noted "what really shines from the album is Williams' distinctive soprano voice, range and acrobatic vocal ability which confirms her as one of the greatest R&B and soul singers of her time." Sheila Prophet of Record Mirror gave the album a four out of five star rating. calling This Is Niecy "a great first album", Prophet added "Niecy's voice combines the silkiness of Diana Ross with the exuberance of Linda Lewis".

Singles
Singles from the album were "Free" which reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart, No. 2 on the US Billboard Hot Soul Songs chart and No. 25 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Personnel

 * Deniece Williams – lead and backing vocals
 * Maurice White – drums, backing vocals
 * Freddie White – drums, percussion
 * Verdine White – bass
 * Al McKay – guitar
 * Jerry Peters – acoustic piano, electric piano
 * George Bohanon, Randy Aldcroft – trombone
 * Gale Robinson, Sidney Muldrow – French Horn
 * Oscar Brashear, Steve Madaio – trumpet
 * Ernie Watts, Plas Johnson, Ray Pizzi, Terry Harrington – woodwinds
 * Sidney Barnes – backing vocals

Production

 * Producers – Charles Stepney and Maurice White
 * Engineer – George Massenburg
 * Assistant Engineers – Steve Hodge and Dean Rod
 * Mastered by Mike Reese at The Mastering Lab (Los Angeles, CA).
 * Design – Ron Coro and Norm Ung
 * Photography – Ethan Russell and Jimmy Shea
 * Management – Cavallo-Ruffalo Management