Many people think that this is Usher's 3rd album - when in fact this is his 4th. Does he "bring back r&b" like he promised? Is it better than 8701?
Track-by-track review:
1. Intro Usher doesn't say much on this, its got a nice smooth chilled out r&b beat.
2. Yeah! Ft. Lil' Jon & Ludacris This was the first single from the album - although it never was meant to be, Burn was but due to the fact this tune blew up in the US this became the first single. This is a good track - but admittedly I didn't like it at first. For someone who was "Bringing back r&b" it seemed pretty silly to release this as the first single. Not to mention the rest of the album is nothing like this song.
Anyway this is a great club tune - with Lil' Jon's "crunk" trademark written all over it. I think User sounds a bit dodgy on this beat but its still a good track, but very over played. 9/10
3. Throwback A lot of people think this song is great but I hate it. I find it annoying and plus the producer, Just Blaze, reused the beat from a track by a rapper, i forget who. 5/10
4. Confessions (interlude) Of course you've all heard this, its at the beginning of the confessions video. Its a nice interlude with user singing over a piano backtrack.
5. Confessions Part II What, where was part 1 you say? Iy was a bonus on the UK edition,
and is now on the special edition in the US as well. A bit stupid if ask me.
Anyway when i first heard this track, I was like wow, Jermaine Dupri did a great job on the beat, it sounded like an old Jagged Edge track to me. And Usher's vocalsare top-notch. As for lyrics I think I'll leave that alone, lets just say Usher has some skeletons in his closet.. The only thing preventing me from given this track a 10 is that it was so overplayed it got annoying 9.5/10
6. Burn Yep, the track that was meant to be the first single. A lot of people call this "U Got It Bad Pt 2" - since it sounds similar. I think this track is well produced, and the vocals and lyrics are great too, usher sings mostly about breaking up when you don't feel the same way any more. Again very overplayed. 9.5/10
7. Caught Up This is due to be with 5th single, but with Fabolous on the track as well. This track is good, but not excellent. Usher sings about being caught up with a girl, like she has a hold on him. The production is good on this track also. 8/10
8. Superstar (interlude) Wow, this interlude has a very nice r&b beat.
9. Superstar Shame this isn't as good. Its still ok though. Ushers vocal asre good on this track He sings about his girl being his "Superstart" and Usher being her "No. 1 Fan". The beat on this track is ok. 7.5/10
10. Truth Hurts I think this song is nice. It has a great r&b beat. usher sings about how he suspects his girl of cheating - but then realises its his own guilty concience that is making him accuse her. Probably not a good single choice but this is one of my fave tracks. 9.5/10
11. Simple Things This song is OK but not great. Usher sings about "forgetting the simple things in life". I think this track is a bit annoying. 7.5/10
12. Bad Girl I think this is a track that sounds good at first but then gets annoying, especially with Usher singing "bad girl" repetively. This could've been a great track, but I think a mixture of an annoying chorus and annoying vocals, maybe the beat could've have been bettered a bit also. 7/10
13. That's What Its Made For A song with an ok beat about sex. Nothing great though. 7/10
14. Can U Handle It? A slow track focused a lot on vocals. Its not bad actually. Usher shows of his vocals a lot on this track. 9/10
15. Do It To Me It sounds like a nursery rhyme. Which is not good for a song about sex. 6/10
16. Take Your Hand A not so bad more upbeat track. Not sure exactly what this one is about, something like Usher isn't sure whether to stay with his girl or not. 8/10
17. Follow Me An ok song, kinda bouncy. There's also something wierd about Usher's vocals in the chorus. Not sure what this songs about either. 7/10
18. Whatever I Want (UK Bonus) A more upbeat track, a bit more old skool sounding. I like this track. 8.5/10
19. Confessions Pt I (UK Bonus) Yep, it does exist! A stunning r&b track, with smooth vocals and production from Jermaine Dupri. This is one of my faves. It probably won't grip you like Confession Pt II, but it a great track nonetheless. 9.5/10
Other songs you may know of, which are on the special edition except sweet lies, are:
My Boo (Duet w/ Alicia Keys) A very nice R&B track, with great production. Both artists deliver suberb vocals. This was the 4th single, even though it wasn't on the original version of the album. 9/10
Red Light The other Lil Jon track which didn't make it onto the original edition. Its exactly what you would expect from a Lil Jon track. If you've heard the track "Sugar Walls" by Jacki-O, the beginnning of this track reminds me of that. 9/10
Seduction Why oh why did they leave this of the album? Its a superb slow r&b track, definitely better than a lot of the tracks on the album. 9.5/10
Sweet Lies Another track left off the album, and put on the Yeah! single instead. This one is produced by the Neptunes. I think this is actually a nice track, would have been nice to have it on the album for more variance. I remember in an interview with trever nelson before the album was released, trever asked what happened to this track, and Usher basically said "If the productino isn't up to scratch, you've gootta to what you gotta do". I thought that was a stupid thing to say compared to his choice of tracks anyway; I think his real reason was at that time The Neptunes were very overplayed. 8.5/10
Conclusion I think this album is definitely good, but definitely overrated also. Its definitely progress from 8701 in terms of vocals. But otherwise I can't say it is better than 8701. I think there is just not enough variance, and its was very misleading to release "Yeah! as the first single, as it is basically the only club tune. Usher's cocky attitude - "Im bringing back R&B" (the article should be on mtv.com still) doesn't help much either.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
A CD is always more compelling when you know it's lifted from the artist's autobiography, ... more
and that's certainly the case withConfessions, Usher's first record since 2001's8701. The Atlanta singer's string of hits over the past decade have been decidedly...
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Nov 21st, 2004
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