Cee-Lo

A founding member of Atlanta's Goodie Mob, Cee-Lo returns with his second solo album, delivering the eclectic, soulful hip-hop that has become his trademark. He channels his inner Al Green on "Let's Stay Together" (featuring Pharrell), while Ludacris lends a hand on the cartoonish jam "Childz Play."

The intro, where he refuses to start until he's done chuckling over the failure of his baby boy to pronounce "soul machine," sums up a guy neither as humble nor as special as he thinks. Half God's gift to hip-hop, half man of the people, he never quite puts all his good tracks together or across. These include trademarked Timbaland and Ludacris collabs, love song and friend song and antigangsta rave, the one at the beginning where he wishes he "could write one song to right all wrongs" (which who wouldn't?) and the one at the end where he swears he'll "die trying" to do just that (which he won't). (Grade - B+)