Buy Now
| Buy on |
|
- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
-
Feb 27, 2014The album is loaded with luscious orchestration, motivational mantras and playful sex metaphors. Its taught 10 tracks bring to mind the record Justin Timberlake could have made last year, if he had dared to leave anything on the cutting room floor.
-
Q MagazineApr 23, 2014An album that manages to pile on fresh, innovative production without drowning out the frequently spectacular songwriting. [May 2014, p.118]
-
Mar 17, 2014By the mirrorball moment that heralds the lengthy coda to the closing ‘It Girl’, you’re left giddy and breathless, applauding a 20-year veteran who’s finally found his voice.
-
Mar 13, 2014If a long playing ode to the wonder of women was the driving concept behind G I R L, then of course, Williams has failed. If however, you want to hear an artist at the height of his popularity who’s all up in this place for a good time, then grab a hand and raise a cup (if you must), this G I R L will keep you entertained throughout.
-
Mar 7, 2014Girl is a simple, even slight record--and that's definitely meant as a compliment.
-
Mar 3, 2014Like Janet Jackson's Control and Madonna's Ray of Light before it, here is a record that should act as a shining light of how pop music should be done.
-
Mar 3, 2014G I R L not only represents a proper representation of his creativity, but, with high-profile guest spots (Timberlake, Cyrus, Daft Punk) and a number of radio-ready singles, it should also be a success on the charts and further his reputation as a pop icon.
-
Mar 3, 2014It's fun, frivolous, and low on excess.
-
Mar 3, 2014The most booty-shaking, speaker-twinkling, glitz-intensive pop-soul record to come down the turnpike in years, out-dazzling even kindred efforts by Timberlake, Bruno Mars, and Miguel.
-
Feb 27, 2014Williams is wise enough to know what he does best, and as the Prince-like finale, It Girl, embarks on its long instrumental fade--guitar riffs streaking out like fireworks while cowbells clang--you can't deny that this is the sound of an artist thoroughly enjoying himself.
-
Mar 4, 2014At what point does Pharrell’s disco pep begin to wear out its welcome? Probably around the 50-minute mark, but that isn’t an issue, since G I R L only runs 47.
-
Mar 3, 2014For most of G I R L, the singer reins in his freakier side for something more accessible, a logical, frothy if somewhat risk-averse follow-up to last summer's chart-topping singles.
-
Feb 27, 2014Ultimately, G I R L testifies to a woman's worth.
-
Mar 5, 2014While G I R L is too surface-level at times, it hits the target it’s aimed for.
-
Mar 4, 2014“Happy” is a strong ambassador for the mostly beguiling, sometimes meandering “G I R L,” Pharrell’s new album his first solo effort in eight years.
-
Mar 3, 2014G I R L may not be breaking many new boundaries, but it’s guaranteed to keep Williams in ludicrously large hats for some time to come.
-
Mar 5, 2014Those who aren’t giving Williams the time of day are missing out on some of the richest, most tasteful pop of a generation. And G I R L, his first solo album since 2006’s In My Mind, is 47 more minutes to back that up.
-
Mar 7, 2014While the immaculately blended pop smoothie that is G I R L goes down easy, its complacency is disappointing.
-
MojoApr 23, 2014Only a few moments--Happy, the Daft Punk-featuring Gust Of Wind and I Know Who You Are--sound truly out of the ordinary. [May 2014, p.86]
-
Mar 6, 2014It’s high-quality pop, but also highly disposable.
-
Mar 4, 2014So long as you don't expect Shakespeare and don't presume this to be a rap album, you won't be mad. It's pure pop done the way Pharrell does it.
-
Mar 3, 2014They're featherweight takes on retro-'70's pop soul, together creating just the summer album we need in a winter that won't quit. But if the album's puppydog need to please goes down with ease, it's effect evaporates nearly as quickly.
-
Mar 3, 2014This is pop music, and it's all in good fun.... I just wish the recipe would have included a touch more poetry.
-
Mar 3, 2014Like the latter’s Random Access Memories, it’s an enjoyable dance-pop album lacking a central focus. But one whose diffident charm makes a pleasant change from the overwrought wailing that routinely afflicts R&B.
-
Mar 3, 2014G I R L may have benefited from a few more introspective trips back to the drawing board.
-
Mar 3, 2014Over 10 tracks, then, no sackcloth is in evidence, just a coy, elfin who-me face, and songs that tone down the smut'n'grind of Pharrell's more R&B-oriented productions and turn up the knobs on his Michael Jackson fetish.
-
Feb 28, 2014Like Random Access Memories, it’s an enjoyable dance-pop album lacking a central focus. But one whose diffident charm makes a pleasant change from the overwrought wailing that routinely afflicts R&B.
-
Mar 25, 2014G I R L is safe, universal, and unforgivably dull. It should be a huge hit.
-
Mar 14, 2014Musically, this is a pleasant record, one that’ll soundtrack many a packed yet ultimately sensible party.
-
Mar 12, 2014It’s catchy and shows faint glimmers of his true talent, but it comes off like a tossed off, half baked batch of outtakes from sessions where his more impressive music was produced.
-
Mar 10, 2014G I R L sounds like the work of a much less interesting artist. But if Pharrell’s goal was to bring happiness to his listeners and vibrant tunes to the charts, then by all means he’s fulfilled his goal.
-
Mar 3, 2014Pharrell isn’t raising the game on G I R L--it’s a thoughtful, imaginative unit-shifter with some sincere themes running through it. But “different”? Not quite.
-
Feb 27, 2014From the orchestral string intro of ‘Marilyn Monroe’ to the funk-rock jam session that ends ‘It Girl’, G I R L is 45 minutes of warmed-over retro-pop pastiche, cribbing from Michael Jackson and Chic, from disco and yacht rock.
-
Feb 28, 2014The real embarrassment is that more than the work of his peers or his idols, mostly Pharrell’s just ripping off himself to seriously diminished returns.
-
Mar 3, 2014All of this is borderline insulting to its target audience, myself included. For a moment in “Brand New,” Williams lets us see his hand, and it subtly reveals how incredibly marketed and capital-centric this album is.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
-
Positive: 102 out of 166
-
Mixed: 37 out of 166
-
Negative: 27 out of 166
-
Dec 10, 2014
-
Mar 4, 2014
-
Mar 4, 2014