So
much for the rumors that Usher and his bride are on the skids. Here I Stand, Ush's fifth studio album,
practically shouts that his wandering eye is finally at rest, and fidelity is
job one. Nothing stymies a player's libido like talk of children, but here they
are: His infant son coos on the interlude "Prayer For You," and on the elegant
sexytime jam "Lifetime," he sings, "Your mama and my mama want some grandbabies
tonight." The "tonight" presumably refers only to the conception, but Usher
sells the line like his lady's womb is some kind of Easy-Bake Oven—he's
just that eager. But this is not the Usher whose Confessions did boffo numbers in 2004. To that
end, there's "Love In This Club," the rowdy Eurodisco single, an ode to public
copulation and an obvious pander to fans of the Usher of old. He sounds much
more convincing on syrupy ballads like the Dre and Vidal-produced title track,
which lyrically and musically sounds more passionate and more adult than Usher
ever has. The guy's in love, so even on "Trading Places," when he talks about
serving his woman a breakfast of toast with jelly and orange juice, it sounds
sexy, not quotidian. A ball and chain has never given anyone such a lift.