Pharrell Williams
G I R L
(Sony)

That damn Pharrell is so hot right now! In the past year he was part of most of the songs you never stopped hearing such as “Blurred Lines,” “Get Lucky,” and of course the Academy Award-nominated “Happy.” So it’s a perfect time to launch a new album, especially an album that features Justin Timberlake, Miley Cyrus, and our favorite French robots, Daft Punk.

The album, entitled G I R L, as you might expect, is filled with pop-friendly hooks, enticing beats, and near-perfect production. What else might one expect from the producer-of-the-moment? The songs have a definite disco-meets-R&B circa Michael Jackson’s Off the Wall with hints of reggae, classical, and hip hop mixed in and a nice pacing and range. The highlights, such as the upbeat “Brand New” (featuring Justin Timberlake), the reggae-influenced “Know Who You Are” (featuring Alicia Keys), and the aforementioned “Happy” are all really strong songs that have some staying power.

As you might expect from the title, the album lyrics focus on “the ladies” with a range of sentiment from feminist to take-your-pants-off-because-I’ve-never-felt-this-way-before. At times, it seems sincere, but not consistently. The album definitely has a few big hits and works for the whole family – the kids will love Pharrell and Miley on “Come Get It Bae,” while I’m more interested in “Gust of Wind,” as it seems the collaboration between Daft Punk and Pharrell is nearly always a fruitful one and even gramps might even appreciate the work with Hans Zimmer on the opening track, “Marilyn Monroe.”