Review: John Legend, Evolver

Watching the Braves game, a late West Coast game against the Giants in San Francisco in case I get bored, I’m about to review another disappointing album by an artist that I like, hoping that my opinion will change. The victim this time around is Evolver by John Legend, silky-smooth R&B singer who branched out from doing background vocals on Kanye songs to becoming a star in his own right. The only problem is that the selling out is overshadowing whatever integrity he has gained from his first two albums, and I’m giving another listen to his third effort to make my final decision. Is JL an artist in his own right, balancing mass appeal with his artistic roots like Alicia Keys, or is he just a pliant tool of people with real talent, like Kanye West and (gulp) Will.i.am. Let’s trouver!

1. “Good Morning (Intro)”

And we’re off! Birds are chirping and John Legend is waking up a lady with his sweet sounds.

2. “Green Light” feat. Andre 3000

Trite lyrics and beat. Hasn’t JL done this song 70 times already? … Andre 3000 (!) doing part two of the chorus… I think what I don’t like about this is that JL’s found a formula and is treading water with his parts on this song… Andre 3000! Rapping! “What kind of girl do you think I are/The kind you meet in a bar?” Saves the song. Maybe this beat was more appropriate for a rap than an R&B song…. Not a good sign when a guest upstages you on the first song of your album.

3. “It’s Over” feat. Kanye West

Chorus is catchy. JL’s hooks are their best when they sound like Stevie Wonder with an 808 machine (I’m pretending I know what an 808 machine is)… These first two tracks feature less piano and more funk and synthesizers… I think Andre did some of the background vocals… Kanye with the Auto-Tune, so his verse is more sing-songy. Very good as usual, but he doesn’t upstage JL like 3000 on “Green Light”… Wikipedia says Pharrell wrote this song with Kanye, so that explains the beat: mechanical, funky, above average.

4. “Everybody Knows”

A single… Acoustic guitar with some light electric… Mellower song than the first two… The bridge got really sugary… In the chorus, I really like how he delivers the “nobody has it easy” line, makes it hit home more… I’d say this is tied with #3 as my favorite so far.

5. “Quickly” feat. Brandy

More synths… Lyrics are about the world falling apart, so we should get together, for, you know… Brandy! Another Kanye connection with this appearance; she was featured on a song on Late Registration out of nowhere… Song continues with the “end of the world” theme to expound on the need to drop the pretense and jump in the sack… The first verse is good because it vaguely mentions some current events to set the theme, but then it gets boring pretty fast.

6. “Cross The Line”

Will.i.am produced this, so I’m prepared for a giant bag of shit or simply a Ziploc full of it… JL is trying to get out of the “Friend Zone” with some chick… Lyrics are weak, but the chorus is catchy… I think this album’s strategy is to base everything around the hooks and to fill in the blanks later, which is making all of these songs sound pretty generic without much heart.

7. “No Other Love” feat. Estelle

Reggae… Can Estelle bring this song up to an “American Boy” level? … Basic love song, including the cliché-braggart line about having bagged a lot of chicks before, but you’re the one for me… Okay, Estelle’s turn… Affecting a Jamaican accent, kind of like Mariah Carey did in a song with Damian Marley, but without the humor… I do like Estelle, but this song is boring. Is this album just background music? Is John Legend’s career just background music?

8. “This Time”

Here’s hoping this song can liven things up a bit… Uh-oh, piano ballad… JL runs into an ex-girlfriend and trying to get her back. “This time” it’ll be different… Picking up girls in the bar aren’t cutting it anymore, Sally, I want you “this time”… I’m mature now, I won’t hold myself back like last time… Who wants to bet the next song is about cheating on someone? … There are strings in this one… Braves got some runs, down 3-6 bottom of the 7th. McCann is really the heart of the team now since Chipper can’t play five games in a row… The orchestration sounds like a Disney ballad, not a good sign.

9. “Satisfaction”

Good beat… She’s pulling away from him this time… Why you doin’ this baby? Why you so cold? I just want to be loved… Will.i.am on this one again… Here’s the problem: he’s a little too smothering, or maybe she’s just tired of this. Overall, my man JL doesn’t understand… Brian McCann Bat Day on June 7, by the way… Synthesizers on this track, as well. This must be the trend that Will.i.am is piggybacking this time. I can’t stand Will.i.am, but he can make a catchy tune, and this is pretty good. The lyrics, comme d’habitude, sont the problem, but I do like this one more than the last one.

10. “Take Me Away”

Some island drums on this one. JL, you’re really annoying me. Did you set out to make sure all your songs are played in dentists’ offices? … Fucking bullpen… I think this song is about a vacation romance, or at least the breezy sound makes me imagine that. So, the song is at least setting a mood… What happened to the JL of his first album, with interesting stories and characters that were different shades of grey?

11. “Good Morning”

Motherfucking bullpen. 6-3 San Francisco with only one out… I’m glad I left the Braves game on listening to this shit… What happened to the JL of his second album, with someone that still sounded inspired? There have been warning signs leading up to this album, of course. With his voice and temperament, the syrupy ballads were always present, but they were at least juxtaposed with some excellent pop gloss (“Heaven”). Even the slower songs (“Save Room” and “Ordinary People”) came straight from the heart, not from Will.i.am’s bag-o’-sell-out.

12. “I Love You, You Love”

Co-written by the guy from Dire Straits… I should be done ranting, but I guess I have to reassess JL’s other albums. I do remember thinking that I only liked a handful of tracks on each, so I shouldn’t be so surprised by this effort, but I’m just disappointed. I think this stems from my belief that JL has the charisma, voice, and the Kanye West universe to really be something of consequence, and this whole album has been underwhelming… This is a slower song, like most of the album

13. “If You’re Out There”

This is from an NBA charity commercial… JL’s saving the cheesiest song for last… I can really see him just doing movie soundtracks. That’s what this sounds like… We can all join together in love. Gag me… We need to look in ourselves first. Fork to the eyeball… This song is crescendoing in tandem with the San Francisco bullpen putting the hammer down on the Braves in the 8th… This song is over. Yes!

Conclusions

Wow, I just shat on John Legend for 50.7 minutes, but it had to be done. At best, these songs are nowhere close to his first two albums. It seems that he’s been pushed into becoming more sanitized and mainstream, even more than he was before, by the record company, and he’s more than willing to do it. There’s just no personality on this album, except for the two rappers with very strong personas who put their stamp on everything they do. I won’t necessarily skip most of these songs if they come up randomly on iTunes, only if I’m busy and not really paying attention to the music. Tracks #2, 9, 12, and 13 will be Nexted; I won’t delete “Green Light” because of Andre 3000.

John Legend, I won’t be buying your next album.