Jessica Simpson Irresistible CD

Japanese version featuring a bonus track. Jessica's spring, 2001 LP establishes her as a maturing songwriter and as a young woman now spreading her wings. Features a duet with Marc Anthony ('There You Were') & a musical contribution from 98 Degrees member Nick Lachey.

Personnel includes: Jessica Simpson, Marc Anthony (vocals); Mats Berntoft, Chieli Minucci (guitar); Paul Sheyne, Jeanette Olsson (background vocals).
Producers include: Louis Biancaniello, Sam Watters, Rhett Lawrence, Ric Wake, Rodney "Darkchild" Jenkins.
Engineers include: Dave Scheuer, Steve MacMillan, Paul Foley.
Japanese edition contains one bonus cut.
Jessica Simpson pretty much throws out any aspirations to be mature with her second album, Irresistible. And, in a sense, who could blame her? Her debut, Sweet Kisses, was pretty much stalled on the charts until the dazzling, "Jack & Diane"-sampling neo-bubblegum "I Think I'm in Love With You" was promoted to the stratosphere (hitched to Dawson's Creek, among other things), thereby proving the axiom that teens singing teen pop should be marketed to teens. So, that's what Irresistible is, at least on the surface, with Simpson looking like she stepped out of a Maxim photo shoot on the cover, filled with frothy, sugary pop tunes. There still are remnants of the middlebrow Simpson showcased on Sweet Kisses, notably in a fine duet with Marc Anthony called "There You Were," plus a misguided cover of the gospel standard "His Eye Is on the Sparrow" that concludes the record. Still, this takes up very little of the actual record, since these two cuts are surrounded by glossy teen pop that is designed to sound state-of-the-art, but winds up sounding curiously dated, as if it should have been released two years earlier than it was. And that's not necessarily a bad thing, at least on the surface, but apart from the opening double-punch of "Irresistible" and "A Little Bit," none of the songs register as songs -- they're just stylish background music. So, it's a bit of the inverse of Sweet Kisses, which was too heavy on ballads, and, like that record, this is the work of pros, so it sounds fine as it plays but it lacks a song as strong as "I Think I'm in Love With You" to anchor it -- so it floats away from memory. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Jessica Simpson was just 17 when she made her successful debut album. This followup makes it plain that she and her music have matured, with tracks ranging from straight-up, danceable pop to harder, groove-laden funk, R&B, ballads, and even gospel. Collaborating with such notables as Marc Anthony, Nick Lahey of 98 Degrees, Walter Afanasieff (Celine Dion) and Corey Rooney (Jennifer Lopez), Jessica is claiming her stake in the industry with this release.
The title track lives up to its name, a slice of hook-filled R&B-flavored pop. The same goes for "A Little Bit," where Simpson demands that her man takes care of his share and that "a little bit goes a long way." "There You Were" (a duet With Marc Anthony) is a well-crafted ballad. The other ballads hold up just as well, particularly "For Your Love," in which Jessica sounds like a seasoned veteran. On harder tracks like "Hot Like Fire" and "What's It Gonna Be," Simpson asserts herself and refuses to be played by a playa. Jessica's been singing gospel since she was young, and goes back to her roots on "His Eye Is On The Sparrow," piping out a large dose of soul.

Q (Summer/01, p.110) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Not bad at all....'A little Bit' and 'What's It Gonna BE' are multi-layered treats..."