Jennifer Love Hewitt Albums (4)
What The Critics Say
Jennifer Love Hewitt was teen pop before teen pop was cool, but she sat out its glory years of 1999-2001, concentrating on her film career and transition from adolescence to adulthood. Her 2002 musical comeback, BareNaked, is the culmination of her journey to womanhood and, appropriately, it doggedly avoids any comparisons with teen pop. Where Pink chose Linda Perry as the collaborator, J-Love hired Meredith Brooks, who certainly does move Hewitt far away from teen pop, firmly planting her into adult alternative pop with a record that wants to sound like Michelle Branch but can't shake the fact that it sounds like Meredith Brooks. This is not a bad thing, since it's well-crafted, appealing melodic acoustic pop, not nearly as provocative as the coy cover art and title, all earnestly sung by Love. If it doesn't ring as authentically as, say, Branch or Vanessa Carlton, it's because at her core Hewitt is a show-biz kid, and she still sounds a bit like she's putting on a show. But, thanks to Brooks' sturdy craftsmanship, it's a pretty good show all the same, with plenty of good MOR tunes and a winning, warm production that is only ridiculous on the hippy-dippy voice-and-bongo interpretation of "Me and Bobby McGee." Many critics have laughed this off because it's Jennifer Love Hewitt and because it is unabashedly square mainstream pop, but it's very good in its style and is a nice new beginning for a singer/actress that seemed to be stuck in dance-pop. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
'Jennifer Love Hewitt'
Release Date 9/3/1996
Tracks 12
Label Atlantic
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
She was doing it before Britney Spears, and she was doing it better. Teen princess Jennifer Love Hewitt attained a level of popularity based predominantly on her immensely likeable girl-next-door appeal. But before she became a household name with TV's Party of Five and as the heroine of the I Know What You did Last Summer movies, she was recording albums. This eponymous CD was her second American release, and though she poses no threat to the Celine Dions and the Lorrie Morgans of the world, her feathery light voice is more soulful than you'd imagine. The tracks on this album are all R&B-flavored pop and adult contemporary, and, though they're slickly produced, they complement Hewitt instead of overpowering her. Yes, most of the lyrics are the usual teen odes to love, loss, and longing, but there's a maturity to them as well that transcends most cookie-cutter pop. On "I Always Was Your Girl," she sings "You put your friends through hell/that's why we get along so well," obviously not capitalizing on the "nice" girl image she was on the cusp of practically owning; on "Cool With You," she pines to right a relationship so that all can be cool again; and on "It's Good to Know I'm Alive" from the House Arrest soundtrack (in which she starred) she sings with such joy and abandon, you'll want to sing along, too. Depending on your threshold for harmless, white-bread teen pop, this album could be a welcome addition to your collection because, frankly, it makes you like her even more than her image did in the first place. ~ Bryan Buss, All Music Guide
