GENRE
R&B/Hip-hop
RECORD LABEL
Hollywood CHART ACTION
Album came in at No. 14 and contains the Top 10 pop hit "Leavin'"
REVIEWED BY Bob Hoose and Bob Smithouser
Jesse McCartney
Departure
JULY 2008
A guy assures a girl leery of romance that he'll treat her better than her last boyfriend did ("Not Your Enemy"). "My Baby" is the kind of girl "you could only ever pray for," but ...
This pair's mutual attraction is primarily physical ("The red of her lips/So hard to resist the curves to her hips/... She said, 'I'd love to love you all through the night'"). McCartney propositions a woman for a one-night stand ("Rock You"), grieves the loss of an ex for her sexual prowess ("How Do You Sleep") and eyes a female's backside with plans to steal her from her current beau ("Leavin'"). "Into Ya" is the most graphic come-on, complete with panting and groaning. "Makeup" and "It's Over" also place a premium on relational heat. The singer can't bring himself to leave a girl he knows is bad for him on "Relapse." Lest anyone accuse him of modesty, "Freaky" asserts, "A party ain't a party if I'm not in the party."
McCartney sees this disc as a Departure. We might've called it Logical Progression since it furthers the hormonal evolution ignited by tracks on his 2006 effort, Right Where You Want Me. Young people still on the 21-year-old's bandwagon would be wise to jump off.
