Posted on Sun, Aug. 06, 2006

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Rapper fails to top himself

Pharrell turns out respectable solo album, but anticipated first effort falls short of Neptunes

Malcolm X Abram

Beacon Journal

IN MY MIND
Pharrell Williams
Star Trak

Pharrell Williams, aka the more visible half of the hit-making production duo the Neptunes, aka Skateboard P, is one of the most high-profile and successful beatmakers of the past decade.

The Neptunes' production style -- lean, '80s funk-inspired beats with few samples, odd drum sounds, old school synths and often a hook sung by Williams -- has become immediately recognizable and much copied. Besides his production wizardry, Williams also fashions himself a rapper and singer, and on his much-delayed debut solo album, In My Mind, he proves adequate if not quite impressive at both.

Naturally, given the sheer number of artists he has helped to make successful, big-name guests -- including Gwen Stefani, Snoop Dogg, Jay-Z, Nelly and Kanye West -- appear on more than half of the disc's 15 tracks. Their presence is usually welcome, but it is unmistakably Williams' show, for better and for worse.

The record is split between hip-hop and R&B tunes, and it's the former that tend to work better though Williams' lyrics and much of his subject matter won't scare any other rappers. Raspy S--- is another discussion of gold diggers and hangers-on, while the sparse head-nod-inducing Keep It Playa with Slim Thug is yet another tune about haters. Williams reteams with Snoop Dogg for another smooth song about a special lady, but it's not on par with their earlier hit collabo, Beautiful.

It's not all hip-hop cliches, though, as the autobiographical Best Friend finds Williams opening up about the deaths of friends and family, and the laid-back You Can Do It Too extols the virtues of believing in oneself.

The R&B half (linked by the Prince-influenced 8-minute Young Girl/Really Like You with Jay-Z) is steeped in the '80s and reveals that Williams does have more than the charismatic Curtis Mayfield/Prince falsetto he uses on other folks' records.

But tracks such as the corny come-on slow jam Take It Off (Dim the Lights), whose chorus includes the couplet ``I can help you slide your panties off, ooh your booty's so soft,'' show how limited he is as a vocalist. The R&B tracks also show the debt he owes to Prince and Mayfield as well as Michael Jackson (Number One with West) and Stevie Wonder (the piano-driven Stay With Me with Pusha T).

In a fickle pop world, the Neptunes' production style has proven to be both durable and malleable for a variety of artists. In My Mind isn't just a vanity release, and it doesn't feel like Williams threw a bunch of unfinished tracks together, laid down some vocals and called it a record.

But for those not completely enthralled by his considerable charm, the album is a lot of Pharrell in one sitting. And though an average Neptunes/Pharrell groove is better than many other beatmakers' best, there aren't enough standout tracks to elevate the album to the status of some of his past work.