Justin Timberlake Justified CD

Personnel: Justin Timberlake (vocals); Bubba Sparxxx, Clipse (rap vocals); Bill Pettaway, Benny Kenny (guitar); Damon Bennett (flute); Scott Storch (clavinet); Thaddaeus Tribbett, Nathan East (bass); Prescott Ellison, George "Spanky" McCurdy (drums); Vidal Davis, Frankie "Knuckles" Walker (percussion); Janet Jackson, Pharrel Williams, Lainie Aguilar, Timbaland, Marsha Ambroise, Tyrone Tribbett, Vanessa Marquez, Greater Annointing (background vocals); Brian McKnight; Charles Veal & The Southwest Chamber Orchestra.
Producers: The Neptunes, Timbaland, The Underdogs, Williams and Hugo, Brian McKnight.
JUSTIFIED won the 2004 Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album. The album was also nominated for Album Of The Year. "Cry Me A River" won for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.
With his debut solo album, Justified, Justin Timberlake borrows from Michael Jackson, from the Thriller-era getup and poses to the sharply modernized spin on the classic Off the Wall sound. To be sure, the sound of the Neptunes productions which dominate Justified is the best thing about the album; they have a lush, sexy, stylish feel that is better, more romantic than most modern R&B. Timberlake is a technically skilled vocalist, with a smooth falsetto. The songs are pretty on the surface -- apart from some flop Timbaland productions (which he redeems with the slinky funk of "Right for Me"), the sound of Justified works well. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Growing up is hard to do, as any teen pop idol will attest. Still, showbiz kids are nothing if not savvy, so they know it's better to make the jump than to idle as an idol, no matter how hard that jump may be -- and no matter how hard they try, it's hard to judge the distance, and they may miss their mark. With his debut solo album, Justified (face it, that title was a given), Justin Timberlake misses his mark slightly; he hits much closer than fellow Mickey Mouse Club alum Christina Aguilera did with her Stripped, but he's uneasy as a suave, mature loverman, particularly because much of his stance is borrowed directly (and rather improbably) from Michael Jackson. JT -- a shorthand nickname that's distressingly inevitable -- shamelessly borrows from Jacko, from the Thriller-era getup and poses to the sharply modernized spin on the classic Off the Wall sound. To be sure, the sound of the Neptunes productions which dominate Justified is the best thing about the album; they have a lush, sexy, stylish feel that is better, more romantic than most modern R&B. Too bad they're delivered by such a cipher. Though he's turned into a technically skilled vocalist, he's still too much of a showbiz kid -- all technique and surface, not much substance. His falsetto may be smooth, but it's utterly without character, which unfortunately describes the songs too: pretty on the surface, but devoid of memorable hooks. This means that what truly stands out is when he breaks from form and tries to prove how street and hip he is, delivering awful double-entendres like "I can think of a couple of positions for you" and "get real wet if you know what I mean" and exhorting the fellas and ladies to sing separately in a cringe-worthy affectation on "Senorita." When he sings that he'll "have you nekkid by the end of the song," he doesn't sound like a seductor, he sounds like a kid actor awkwardly assuming a new persona. This isn't without merit -- the sound, apart from some flop Timbaland productions (which he redeems with the slinky funk of "Right for Me"), works well, and if these cuts were songs instead of tracks, his bland falsetto would be fine. This sure isn't the musical immolation of Christina's ugly Stripped. Unlike that album, this suggests a direction Timberlake could follow in the future, given stronger songwriting collaborators. But Justified is just sound and posturing, with no core. [Bad packaging alert: the foldout booklet for Justified is merely stuck into the digipak for the album, with no sleeve or slot to house it;Rolling Stone (12/26/02, p.112) - Included in Rolling Stone's "50 Best Albums of 2002"
Rolling Stone (11/28/02, p.86) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...The Neptunes' brilliant, impertinent, full-body funk is, for the most part, what stays with you from JUSTIFIED..."
Entertainment Weekly (11/1/02, pp.66-7) - "...His smooth falsetto is an easy fit for the slinky quirks and rhythmic accents of the Neptunes and Timbaland...JUSTIFIED is a cohesive and fairly lean work..." - Rating: B
Q (01/01/04, p.83) - Ranked #5 in Q's "The 50 Best Albums of 2003" - "[T]imberlake deliver[s] a masterclass in playful, pop-friendly R&B..."
Uncut (1/03, p.115) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...On 'Let's Take A Ride' he offers to deliver you from your humdrum existence. Go with him..."