Part 2: 8701 - Usher
Released in July 2001, hence the name, 8701 shines as a relaxed, chilled out, and well produced album. From the opening bars of the first song, the album springs to life, and flows seamlessly through each track, making it an album than can be listened to from start to finish, with barely a need to skip any songs.
The album's best songs fall into two categories, firstly, slower paced songs such as 'U Got it Bad', and 'Can You Help Me', whose sparse instrumentals leave Usher free to provide a masterclass in vocal gymnastics. The second category is made up of faster paced songs such as 'You Don't Have to Call', with its bouncy beat that perfectly suits its message of moving on after the end of a relationship. Other high-quality upbeat songs on the album are 'Pop Ya Collar', and 'TTP', and the accompanying videos for these songs are a treat for any dance fans. The man is undoubtedly talented, and his dancing shows how his hero Michael Jackson influenced him.
8701 is not without its faults, and a couple of songs fail to hit the same heights as the others. These are 'Hottest Thing', which is maybe too much of a standard R&B song, with not much to say, and 'U-Turn', maybe some kind of attempt to create a new Macarena, but which lacks the catchiness needed to start a dance craze.
Those songs apart, 8701 is a classic album, with a tracklist of great songs; an album which runs the full range of emotions, and has a song for every mood.
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