Usher Confessions: Special Edition CD

Includes 4 New Tracks Prev.#Ari 52141



This is an Enhanced CD, which contains both regular audio tracks and multimedia computer files.
Personnel: Usher (vocals); Ludacris, Lil Jon (rap vocals); Thicke, Rich Harrison (various instruments); Bobby Ross Avila (guitar, piano, Wurlitzer piano, keyboards, Moog synthesizer, programming, vinyl scratches); Daniel Marino (guitar); James Wright (Wurlitzer piano, bass); Jimmy Jam (Fender Rhodes piano); Larry Cox, L-Roc (keyboards); LaMarquis Jefferson (bass); IZ (drums, percussion, vinyl scratches); Sean Garrett, Darcy Aldridge, Paula Patton (background vocals).
Producers include: Just Blaze, Valdez Brantley, Jonathan "Lil Jon" Smith, Usher raymond, James Lackey.
This is an Enhanced CD, which contains both regular audio tracks and multimedia computer files.
Personnel: Usher (vocals); Ludacris, Lil Jon (rap vocals); Thicke, Rich Harrison (various instruments); Bobby Ross Avila (guitar, piano, Wurlitzer piano, keyboards, Moog synthesizer, programming, vinyl scratches); Daniel Marino (guitar); James Wright (Wurlitzer piano, bass); Jimmy Jam (Fender Rhodes piano); Larry Cox, L-Roc (keyboards); LaMarquis Jefferson (bass); IZ (drums, percussion, vinyl scratches); Sean Garrett, Darcy Aldridge, Paula Patton (background vocals).
Producers include: Just Blaze, Valdez Brantley, Jonathan "Lil Jon" Smith, Usher raymond, James Lackey.
Personnel: Usher (vocals); Alicia Keys (vocals); Kanye West, Lil Jon, Ludacris, Shyne, Twista (rap vocals); Bobby Ross Avila (guitar, strings, flute, piano, Wurlitzer organ, keyboards, drum programming, scratches, background vocals); Craig Love, Dan Marino, E Bass, Ken Lewis (guitar); Stevie Wonder (harmonica); Jimmy Jam (Fender Rhodes piano); James "Big Jim" Wright (Wurlitzer organ, keyboards); L-Roc, Larry Cox (keyboards); Darcy Aldridge, Sandy Garrett, Patrice "ButtaPhly" Stewart, Faith Evans, Tony Tolbert, Paula Patton, Jonathon "Lil' Jon" Smith, Usher Raymond (background vocals); Iz (guitar, keyboards, drums, percussion, scratches).
Audio Mixers: Jermaine Dupri; John Frye; Manny Marroquin; Ken Lewis ; Jon Smeltz; Jonathon "Lil' Jon" Smith; Andre Harris; Phil Tan; Serban Ghenea; Tony Maserati; Vidal Davis.
Audio Remixer: Jermaine Dupri.
Recording information: Baseline Recording Studios, New York, NY; Blue Jay Studios, L.A., CA; Brandon's Way Recording Studios, LA, CA; Chicago Recording Company, Chicago, IL; Circle House Studios, Miami, FL; Doppler Studios, Atlanta, GA; Enterprise Studios, LA, CA; Flyte Tyme West, Santa Monica, CA; Hitland, Atlanta, GA; Lacoco Studios, Alpharetta, GA; Larrabee North, North Hollywood, CA; Larrabee Sound West, West Hollywood, CA; Oven Studios; Record One Studios, LA, CA; Right Track Studios, New York, NY; Rondor Studios, LA, CA; Sony Studios, New York, NY; SouthSide Studios, Atlanta, GA; Studio Atlantis, LA, CA; The Hit Factory, New York, NY; The Record Plant, LA, CA; The Village Recorders, LA, CA; Underlab Studios, LA, CA; Wavelab Recording, Philadelphia, PA; XXX Studios, Paris, France; Zac Digital, Atlanta, GA.
Photographer: Anthony Mandler.
Confessions' most detracting factor is its length. At an hour in duration, it could be stripped of five songs and be far more powerful, especially since no one would have to do any wading to get to the meaty parts. On the other side of the coin, the smartest move Usher makes here is in allowing the Lil Jon-produced "Yeah!" to take its rightful place as the only club track; any attempt at doing something stylistically similar would've failed miserably in its presence. "Yeah!"'s crunk-meets-R&B foundation, featuring an instantly addictive eight-note keyboard vamp and one of Usher's most muscular turns, is so absorbing that Ludacris' 1500th guest verse floats by with little notice. The following "Throwback," produced by Just Blaze, sounds like it was made for the sole purpose of trailing Alicia Keys' "You Don't Know My Name." Like that hit, "Throwback"'s sensitively tRolling Stone (4/15/04, p.151) - 3 stars out of 5 - "[Songs such as 'Yeah' create] sensual panic by combining Usher's jumpy attacks with [Lil Jon's] sublime, frayed beats."
Entertainment Weekly (3/26/04, p.72) - "The vocalist reveals his new-found maturity by opening with the grittiest song he's ever done....The ensuing track glides smoothly between club-friendly hip-hop soul and ballads." - Grade: B+p
Q (p.107) - 3 stars out of 5 - "[H]e's a fully grown R&B sensation....[With] addictive R&B hooks and all-dancin', all-lovin' subject matter boosted with hot production tweaks."