
This, I think, is Robin Thicke’s fourth album and he still hasn’t quite decided what he wants to be – apart, of course, from a sex therapist (nice work if you can get it). Thankfully the rock excesses that dogged his first album have long gone but he still can’t work out whether he wants to be an R&B stud or a blue-eyed soul sex god. On this new 12 tracker he leans more towards the former and brings in some heavy hitters to help him make his case. His two “biggest” assistants are Jay Z and Snoop D. They add their usual tricks to, respectively ‘Meipie’ and ‘Its (Sex) In The Morning’ and both are really very good of their kind… but you’d expect that wouldn’t you? ‘Meipie’ is a great, light R&B bouncer with lyrics partly in French (why do so many Americans equate France with sexiness?), while ‘Morning’ has a great melody and Snoop offers his usual tongue-in-cheek rhyming, though it’s clear he’ll not keep it there too long! As explicit are the openers – ‘Mrs. Sexy’ and ‘Sex Therapy’, both languid builders. ‘Shakin’ It 4 Daddy’ is the big R&B party tune. A duet with Nicki M, it’s the kind of thing that Justin Timberlake does so well. The lead single, ‘Rollacoasta’ (a duet with Estelle) offers more of the same while ‘Million Dolla Baby’ rides along on a rolling sample from Marvin G’s ‘Trouble Man’. Soul fans will be disappointed that’s there’s nothing to match ‘Magic’ here, but ‘2 Luv Birds’ is a pleasing blue-eyed soul ballad and ‘Jus Right’ is even better. This one is clearly meant to be this album’s equivalent of the lovely ‘Lost Without You’, and like that one, this one could easily become a record of the week on Radio 2… both these cuts are far cry from the blatant opening salvos, but they show a side to Mr T that I for one would like to see developed.
(BB) 3/5