Disco de Jon Secada: “Better Part Of Me”

After a three-year hiatus, Jon returns will an album true to the style that made him a star. The great lead-off single "Stop" is one of his most dance-oriented tracks ever and really shows how he has expanded his repitoire. Other notable tracks include the upbeat dance "Love's About to Change My Mind", which sounds like it could have been recorded by the Backstreet Boys. Other good dance tracks "Better Part of Me" and "Speak to the Wind" sound like they could have appeared on Cher's "Believe" set. Of course there are the signature ballads "Break the Walls", "There's No Sunshine Anymore", and "When You're Gone" which really stand out. Since he was gone for so long and has said he auditioned a myriad of songs, it would have been nice to have a few more original tracks, although the Spanish track "Dentro de ti" is pretty good. Also includes a hidden bonus salsa remix of "Asi" (the Spanish version of "Stop"). This is a very good album, with catchy hooks, great vocals and decent lyrics, and will hopefully reintroduce Jon back into mainstream pop.

This album is really good and has Jon's smooth and commanding vocals on it. The Dance-Pop songs like "Papi" and the hit single "Stop" are really good. He really shines on the ballads such as "Break My Walls", "Lost Inside of You",etc., one see why one likes him so much. The album pretty stylish and really good overall. Don't sleep on this CD anyone, this quality music here!

I have to start by saying that I am a big fan of Jon Secada. His voice is one of the best out there, and he knows how to really deliver a song. However, none of the material on this CD comes close to the magic found in past hits such as "If You Go," "Mental Picture," "Do You Believe In Us," and "Too Late, Too Soon."

The only exception to this is the title track "Better Part of Me." I was blown away and pleasantly surprised that Jon decided to take his sound into a different territory: dance music. Better Part of Me is an excellent song, with some nice lyrical depth and a haunting chorus that will send shivers up your spine when the last note is reached. I repeated this one song over and over. The CD should have had more moments like this (but sadly didn't). With a few nice remixes, Better Part of Me could reach the summit of the dance charts. Speaking of remixes, it is strange that Sony opted to leave off the best remixes to "Stop" that permeated dance clubs for the past few months. My advice, find the dance remixes to "Stop" (they're wonderful) and wait for the remixes of Better Part of Me. Get your act together Jon so that Ricky Martin will be forced to sing back-up for you.

This is some of the best work that Jon Secada has ever done. He uses a combination of upbeat sounds as well as his incredible talent to sing soft music; the combinations of both make this CD incredible. I went to see Jon Secada at a free concert that he performed in NYC. The concert was amazing. It was like a dream come true to watch him sing ten feet away from me. I highly recommend this CD not only to fans of Jon Secada, but to all the people that get inspired by simply the words of a song. Not only are they amazing, but they also deliver a message in them. If you need some more information about his concerts and different events, go to www.secadafan.com. But for now order the CD, it will be worth your money.

I am very disappointed with this new album from Jon Secada. I felt that after spending 3 years writing and compiling songs for this new album, it should have been better and more "vintage Secada." I still feel that "Just Another Day," "Mental Picture" and "Too Late, Too Soon," are still better than "Stop." However, maybe this album will grow on me since I am a huge Secada fan from the start. I am a loyal follower, but often times the biggest fans are the biggest critics because we expect the best from our favorite artists. Jon may have been trying to reinvent himself for this new album and perhaps he may have done that, but if he keeps giving songs like "She's All I Ever Had" to the likes of Ricky Martin...he will remain lesser known than Ricky in the over all public. As a true Secada fan, I prefer artists to write their own songs and perform them as Jon has, thus Ricky does not get my respect and if Jon wants to look out for himself then he should keep his songs to himself. After listening to his album, I really do not feel any of the other songs are radio material and thus will hurt him in the long run. Also, the song "You Should Be Mine," sounds a lot like a song Brian McKnight would sing or one he already has. Jon needs to stick with the latin-style ballads because the r&b rhythms don't remind me of him, instead it makes me think of r&b artists. And if I was a singer/songwriter I would not want people listening to my songs to think of other artists. That is perhaps the worst thing an artist wants to convey in his work. The one thing that I liked most about Jon is the fact that he was unique in his material and as a singer, maybe I am just too stubborn, but I still support him and will continue to buy his albums.