Discipline – Janet Jackson

Well then, what can I say about Janet Jackson? I guess we all should know it by now: she’s Michael’s younger sister, she used to act on “Good Times” back in the day, she did a couple of albums in the early ’80s that remain somewhat hidden gems to the non hardcore Janet fans and oh, of course, she had some pretty big albums shortly thereafter. Particularly “Control,” “Rhythm Nation 1814,” “janet,” and “The Velvet Rope.” She of course switched from A&M Records to Virgin Records in 1993, and once again she does the same for this album, going from Virgin to Def Jam, where her boyfriend Jermaine Durpi is now the President…..of the label that is. Don’t get him confused with George W Bush – whatever you do. Anyhow, this is record number 10 from “Miss Jackson if you’re nasty,” and….I must say, I wasn’t really intending on picking this one up at all. However, after much consideration, I decided to take a gamble….so let’s see what this album has to offer. Beginning with an interlude…something that I usually don’t do in my reviews:

I.D.: Janet walks over to her computer and logs in. The machine then proceeds to makes a noise very similar to the one featured on Prince’s “Gold Experience” album and has a conversation with Janet. Yeah, that’s what I said: the computer is talking to her. She’s asked to choose a new playlist called “Discipline,” which is obviously the album we’re all about to hear. Before you know it, the next track begins.

Feedback: The first song on the album (also the first single) is just a great song that makes you wanna get up & groove for a while. The beat hits you pretty hard and Janet’s lyrics are all kinds of sexual. Exactly what you would expect from her, with lyrics such as, “strum me like a guitar, blow up my amplifier.” You may think that these phrases would be a little on the silly side, but actually they work….in fact I thought that it was quite a catchy chorus. Although, I must admit I’m not too thrilled with her telling me that her “swag is serious, heavy like a first day period.” I know this song is meant to be about sexual tension, but please, let’s not be so extreme. Rodney Jerkins was the main songwriter on this one.

Luv: This next one features quite a lot of heavy drums and synths programming….but not in the eighties sense, more in the late ’90s hip hop sense. Janet compares falling in love to driving down a highway and getting stuck in a very serious car accident – one where you smash into another vehicle, and it all goes up in flames. Personally, I think that’s quite a creative lyric, and if she actually wrote it herself, I would be surprised. Sadly, that’s not the case, as it was once again co-written by Rodney Jerkins.

Spinnin’: That’s enough singing for a while, now it’s time for Janet to say a little something into the mic. Specifically: “Love….the one thing that keeps you up & keeps you down, just spinning around & around….like a rollercoaster.” Gee thanks, Janet. With that it’s onto the next track.

Rollercoaster: Here’s another uptempo one with a big hard beat behind it. Basically she’s talking about how a guy takes her through all kinds of emotions, which she of course likens to riding on a rollercoaster or a ferris wheel at an amusement park. I was also obviously jumping to conclusions when I was listening to this album for the first few times, because I thought that it was going to be filled with Jerkins compostions, yet completely devoid of his unbelievably annoying catch cry of “Dark Child!!!!!” Guess what I heard him say at the beginning of this one? Yeah. Exactly that. Oh well. We can’t have everything I suppose.

Bathroom Break: So what? Is Janet gonna record herself takin’ a piss and a dookie now? Nah, thankfully it’s not like that – it’s just a conversation between her and one of her friends. It’s as though they’ve been dancing in a night club up to this point, and this track serves as literally a little break in between the songs. That’s what an interlude is, right? Anyhow, Janet’s just telling her friend that a lot of guys are trying to pick her up, but she’s of course refusing their offers. The interlude ends with her saying that they’re all gonna get back out on the floor & shake their booties and what not. Darn disk teasers. All righty then. Next song.

Rock With U: I remember when there was talk of a new Janet album and how she was going to supposedly sample her famous brother’s song of the same name. Fortunately that only proved to be a vicious, nasty, stinky rumor….well…maybe not, because the robotic voice saying “I want to rock with you” and Janet “oohing” the melody reminds me of that song quite a bit. Of course the lyrical content is along the same lines as what Big Bro was singing about back in the late ’70s….except she’s just saying stuff like: “Talk with your body, don’t say anything at all” and “strobe lights make everything sexier.” Musically it’s an almost techno sounding song.

2Nite: Here’s another techno, or “house” inspired type of song, with lots of dirty synthesizers and hard beats. Lyrically it’s all about wanting to have sex…. basically. She’s telling her man to dim the lights, forget about the time, and that her body is soaking wet, so he’d better take advantage of that while she’s still ready to go. Well, I’m sure it’s only a certain part of her anatomy that’s wet, but let’s keep it clean for the sake of this album review. All right now.

Can’t B Good: My immediate reaction to this song, was that it sounded exactly like something that Michael would’ve done back in the day….sort of like “Human Nature” or one of those types of ballads, where he was really singin’ his ass off in that sweet voice of his and was backed by a few programmed hand claps and dreamy keyboard riffs. Even her vocals sound uncannily like her brother’s on this cut. Well, I guess that only further proves the point that they’re siblings then doesn’t it? Anyways, this song is all about how Janet feels as though she’s beginning to fall in love with a certain fella out there. Why does she feel like it “can’t be good”? I don’t know. Probably because she fears she may get hurt again…..or maybe that it’s even the wrong guy she’s chosen and that she can perhaps see some bad traits in him. That doesn’t stop her from singing this song with a huge grin plastered on her face though……at least that’s what I can hear whenever I play this song.

4 Words: Another brief little interlude where Janet utters “four words: love, fate, hope, destiny.” Yeah sure. Whateva!

Never Letchu Go: Ballad #2 on the album features one of those somewhat stuttery drum beats, which, believe it nor not, actually go hand-in-hand with the guitarist who’s also featured on the track. At first I couldn’t work out if the man in question was former Prince guitarist Mike Scott, who has also played on some of her albums from back in the day, or even if it was Prince himself. I guess that one would be a little unlikely, but actually it’s the legendary Ernie Isley. That should tell you that this is actually a really great song from Miss Janet. Aside from that, she’s telling her boyfriend that she doesn’t want to lose him because she loves him/likes him too much, and that she doesn’t want to “give up on our fate.” That’s what they all say isn’t it?

Truth Or Dare: Just another little spoken introduction to the preceeding song. As the title suggests, it’s just a game of truth or dare that Janet is playing with one of her friends and some guy…..the girl dares her to talk about the greatest ex she ever had. Ooh, so daring!

Greatest X: Janet has officially made a hatrick! Other words, this is ballad number three on the record. And the third one in a row, at that, which begins with the sound of a heart beating. This was most probably done because of the fact that she feels as though her ex-boyfriend will remain in her heart forever. Even though they’re through, she still occasionally calls him up on his cell phone but leaves him no message, just to hear his voice. Sheesh, talk about a stalker! Seems like she’s still beating herself up over the break up. Move on Janet!!! That said, this is still a nice cut.

Good Morning Janet: Another little conversation between Janet and her computer. This one features her waking up and her computer asking her how she’s feeling. She goes onto say that she feels so much better now that she’s talked about whatever it was that was bothering her about her old flame. The keywords being “So Much Better” – that’s the name of the song that’s coming up.

So Much Betta: This song is possibly the ‘funkiest’ tune on the entire record. It’s also quite a sexy song to me. Perhaps what’s most interesting about it though, is that it’s quite Prince influenced as well, particularly in the vocal department, as she speeds up her voice and even runs it backwards at one point, which gives it a very cool type of vibe. Other than that she’s just telling a certain guy that she’s sick of being second best and that she’s so much better than the other woman in his life….or any other woman who will enter his life in the future…..sumthin’ like that anyway.

Play Selection: One of the last conversations between Janet and her machine. This time she selects a new playlist on her computer and brings us yet another new tune.

The 1: The first thing that we hear on this next track, is Missy Elliott saying, “Tell me how long is it boo/ 7 inches yeah that will do.” Personally I was more than just a litte disturbed by that particular lyric, cuz y’know, a lotta straight guys don’t really wanna hear that. I also wasn’t too impressed with the fact that “Gucci” was misspelt in the lyrics sheet, (ie: “let’s see what’s behind them GutchieUnderwears.” Yet another thing I really don’t wanna see). Once I get over those three slight disappointments, I was relatively satisfied with what was left: generally quite an upbeat type of track that was all about Janet wanting to be the right one for a pending boyfriend. Again, Ernie Isley is featured on this song, this time providing us with a blistering guitar solo towards the end.

What’s UR Name: If I were to describe this song,I’d say….that it’s a very laid back type of R’n'B song where Janet is approaching a man & just asking him what his name is. You may even say that she’s “picking him up.” Well, you know, not literally but that’s usually the expression that people use to say that they’re being ‘asked out,’ or are in the process of being asked out on a date. I’m sure you get the idea.

The Meaning: This interlude runs for about a minute and fourteen seconds. It features Janet definining the word “discipline” in a somewhat sexual manner, as it sounds a bit like she’s about to throw her head back & have a great big orgasm. It’s funny how words like “chastise” and “punish,” among many others, sexually arouse this woman in a very big way. Whatever floats your boat I guess.

Discipline: Ah! The title track. Janet’s man is the one who is totally in control here, and by the sounds of things, he gets a little preterbed whenever he catches her pleasing herself, because she has to wait for him. No two ways about it. So she asks her “daddy” to spank her for being such a bad little girl. Musically it’s a very slow & seductive type of track with plenty of crackles from an old vinyl record. Beautiful.

Back: One last interlude, which features Janet’s computer telling her that she hopes she enjoyed her journey, but now it’s time to go back. OK. Cool. Whatever.

Curtains: With a title like that you would probably be expecting this song to be the equivalent to a curtain dropping at the end of a concert….and in a way it is that type of track, but actually she’s comparing that particular scenario – or rather a concert in general, to more or less taking somebody home for some sex. She wants to video tape it and make it a Pay-Per-View event. Says she’ll even have the guy screaming “encore” when she’s through. I’m sure a lot of her hardcore fans would be freaking out over what she’s describing here…..in a good way though!

Let Me Know (Bonus Track): The final song on the album is again quite a dance orientated type of song which sees Janet playing the role of some kind of sex kitten. As I’m sure we all know by now, this is nothing new from her….although she sings about wanting to wear her boyfriends favourite G String, or thong if you like, and that’s certainly something that I wouldn’t mind seeing for myself actually. Other than that it’s a decent closing song. I’m guessing that it was originally the “hidden track,” but they decided to just make it a “bonus” one instead. Why waste all that space when you can have a full song in its place? Good idea.

What’s The Verdict?: Good question. First of all, and I know there are a lot of folks out there who will agree with what I’m about to say wholeheartedly, and that is: Janet Jackson really needs to give up the whole “sex kitten” act, along with all of that ’sexy’ cooing that she does on each and every album she releases. That’s the one thing that really bothered me while I was listening to this thing. Why? Because I feel like we’ve heard that stuff many times before. I think it’s time for something new from Janet. In a way you could probably say that she’s getting closer to that, cause this is a very different type of sound from her – it’s mostly a very “futuristic” type of album, full of Timberland inspired beats and what have you. It was also quite surprising to see that Janet didn’t write any of the songs on the record whatsoever…..actually that really shouldn’t have been my reaction – a lot of “artists” out there are guilty of doing this, and they’ve become huge stars regardless. Hell, it’s even a well known fact that Jam & Lewis wrote a lot of her biggest hits in the ’80s and the ’90s. I see it as being quite unfair that such singers are being labelled as “artists,” when in reality, nothing could be further from the truth, as they’ve had almost nothing to do with the songs that they’re singing, or even the entire album. That said though, “Discipline” is still a pretty decent album from her overall. I’m predicting that there will be some huge hits lifted from it.