Jessica Simpson

This re-release of Simpson's 2003 album features a handful of quality bonus cuts that further separate the newlywed singer from her teen pop beginnings. Simpson really belts them out here, successfully finding the middle ground between thundering adult contemporary ballads and straight-up dance pop.

Trained as a gospel singer, Jessica Simpson long ago learned subtlety was at direct odds
with testifying. Judging by Skin, her third album, it's a lesson she's still working through.
Her powerful voice is done a disservice by insipid songwriting and arrangements -- as on
the loathsome club track "Forbidden Fruit" and the uncomfortably stately ballad "You Don't
Have to Let Go" -- that consistently get in the way of her pipes.