Marques Houston Albums (4)
What The Critics Say
At the age of 25, Marques Houston considers himself a veteran. OK: roughly 15 years, from Immature's 1992 debut to Veteran, constitutes longevity in any field. It's also worth noting that Houston is one of very few R&B artists with mainstream appeal who first appeared during the early '90s. Though he has dressed this album as something of a significant occasion, it is not a great progression from 2005's Naked, but it is a progression nonetheless. There's a similar distribution of sexually forward roughneck tracks and heart-on-sleeve testimonies, with plenty of material that falls somewhere between the two extremes, but the overall quality of the songwriting and production work is greater than that of Naked and MH. After working beneath the surface, you can even hear Houston sound a little more like a mature adult -- "Pop That Booty" seems like a distant memory -- and he works the more romantic sentiments with enough conviction to indicate that he has more life experiences from which to draw. Several past collaborators are involved, including Rufus Blaq and the Underdogs, and Houston also teams up again with Ne-Yo (who co-wrote MH highlight "That Girl") on "Wonderful," one of the album's several standouts. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Whenever an album is titled Naked, the odds are pretty strong that it's the second or third release from a young solo artist who wants to get personal: "I wanted to give my fans a more intimate look at who I am"; "I called this album Naked because I'm not ashamed of my emotions"; "I just went through a lot of drama, and I'm an adult now, so these songs are very deep as a result." In Marques Houston's case -- a solo artist with a debut behind him -- the odds are pretty strong that he means "naked" in the physical sense, not the emotional sense. Naked is no deeper than 2003's MH, which most of his fans will find perfectly acceptable. It offers a similar mix of earnest slow jams and sexually frank club tracks. The best moments involve adequate production facsimiles of Just Blaze ("12 O'Clock"'s marching band punch), Kanye West (the blissful "All Because of You," laced with a smart Whispers sample), and the Neptunes ("Something Else," where Houston's falsetto is more Michael Jackson than Pharrell Williams). Another thing that works to Houston's benefit is the shorter running time: Naked's 11 songs are a lot easier to digest than MH's 17, which also means that there's better quality control. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
On the strength of the easygoing "That Girl" and the R. Kelly-produced "Clubbin'," Marques Houston's long-delayed solo debut, MH, got off to a strong start. Beyond that, there's the to-be-expected, sexually forward, "See how I've matured now" single in the form of "Pop That Booty," where Jermaine Dupri adds a verse that crosses a suggestive track over into raunchy territory. Though the upbeat club tracks gained most of the attention, the softer, more sincere tracks -- such as the sweet "Can I Call You," where Houston effortlessly flexes his considerable vocal skills -- are just as effective. Houston doesn't have much in the way of originality to offer, but he and his collaborators have put together a respectable album that should retain his original fan base while adding some new admirers. The fact that Houston co-produced and wrote a handful of the songs -- some of which are among the album's best -- bodes well for a future that he's been keeping in mind ever since the Immature days. (Remixes of "That Girl" and "Clubbin'" are appended to the album proper, sweetening the deal for fans.) ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide
