Usher - Confessions

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 treated soul sample provides a nostalgic tint that complements the wistful, regret-filled tone of the lyrics. A small batch of Jam & Lewis productions, including the effortlessly gliding "Truth Hurts," continue to help raise Usher's loverman stock. Another pair -- the upbeat "Caught Up" and the aptly titled "Burn" -- also rate as some of the vocalist's best moments yet. He's been doing this for ten years now. Numerous chart hits have spun off each of his albums. Needless to say, the time is right for the phrase "just another" to be banned from use when discussing him. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide

Name Credits Aaron Spears Producer Andre Harris Mixing, Producer Anthony Mandler Photography Arthur "Buddy" Strong Producer Bobby Ross Avila Drum Programming, Guitar, Vocals (Background), Keyboards, Wurlitzer, Strings, Piano, Producer, Scratching, Moog Bass Brian Frye Engineer Bryan-Michael Cox Producer D.L. Warfield Layout Design, Design Dante E. Barton Engineer Darcy Aldridge Vocals (Background) Darrale Jones A&R Delicia Hassan Production Coordination Donnie Scantz Engineer E Bass Guitar Ghian Wright Assistant Herb Powers Mastering Ian Cross Engineer Iz Drums, Producer, Scratching, Moog Bass, Keyboards, Guitar, Percussion, Bass James "Big Jim" Wright Wurlitzer, Producer, Bass James Lackey Producer Jan Smith Vocal Coach, Vocal Producer Jason Boyd Vocal Producer Jermaine Dupri Producer, Mixing Jimmy Jam Producer, Fender Rhodes John Frye Mixing John Horesco IV Assistant, Engineer Jon Smeltz Mixing Jonathon "Lil' Jon" Smith Vocals (Background), Mixing, Producer Juan Johnny Najera Producer Just Blaze Producer Ken Lewis Guitar, Engineer, Mixing Kevin "KD" Davis Engineer L-Roc Keyboards LaMarquis Mark Jefferson Bass Larry Cox Keyboards Manny Marroquin Mixing Mark Pitts A&R Mark Vinten Engineer Matt Marrin Engineer Patrice "ButtaPhly" Stewart Vocals (Background) Paula Patton Vocals (Background) Phil Tan Mixing Rich Harrison Instrumentation, Producer Richard Furch Mixing Robin Thicke Instrumentation, Producer Ryan Toby Vocal Producer Ryan West Engineer Sandy Garrett Vocals (Background), Vocal Producer Serban Ghenea Mixing Tadd Mingo Assistant Terry Lewis Producer The Trak Starz Engineer Tim Roberts Assistant Tony Maserati Mixing Usher Raymond Producer, Executive Producer, Vocals (Background) Valdez Brantley Producer Vidal Davis Mixing, Producer