This Is Me. . . Then

Though a staple of the more commercial dance floors and occasionally achieving something more credible – as with the dance re-mix of the r’n’b hit ‘Play’ – Jennifer Lopez remains more famous on this side of the water for her movie work. She’s never attained the commercial or indeed critical heights of the likes of Destiny’s Child or any number of black female artists and This Is Me… Then appears to acknowledge that fact with a shift to more soulful, even disco-influenced numbers.

The good news is that this album echoes the sumptuous production values of ’70s outfits such as Shalimar, while nodding in the direction of her New York roots with steals from Grandmaster Flash era hip-hop. The album also contains a sizeable quota of love songs, many of which wouldn’t be out of place on a Bill Withers or Diana Ross album. This however brings its own problems.

‘The One’ is practically a carbon-copy of a certain Stylistics’ tune and even the presence of LL Cool J on ‘All I Have’ can’t disguise its ordinariness. Single ‘Jenny From The Block’ featuring Styles and Judakiss could be a Destiny’s Child out-take from the Survivor sessions.

The bad news is that this is a schizophrenic offering that will neither please Jennifer Lopez’s previous pop audience nor ensure her elevation to Diva status. Let’s hope her movie career remains hot, because This Is Me… Then is frankly a bit of a bummer.