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It’s easy to forget that Randy Jackson has had quite a long career in the music industry, having produced for and performed with a wide range of artists in the last twenty-five years. Nowadays, most folks immediately associate him with his role as a judge on American Idol. Honestly, the reality show juggernaut has seen better days, but its impact on mainstream music is undeniable. So it’s no surprise several guests artists on Randy Jackson’s Music Club Volume One have ties to the popular singing competition, including fellow judge, Paula Abdul.

Now, as laughable as the idea of Paula Abdul singing again may be, “Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow” actually isn’t nearly as bad as I expected. It’s certainly a serviceable track as for as upbeat pop records go. Still, Abdul’s voice is over-produced within an inch of its life, and I don’t even want to think about her performing the song live. Like most of Joss Stone’s work, her contribution to the album “Just Walk on By” sounds as though she’s struggling to prove she’s got enough soul in her voice to pull off the tune. Even more confounding is the track “Like A”, with rap group Crunk Squad, featuring Ghostface Killah. Even without completely wasting Ghost’s talent, the track fails from sloppy production and amateurish rhymes, mixing thug romance with stripper music. If there had to be some form of rap/hip-hop on the album, I would have hoped for something better.

In fact, much of Randy Jackson’s Music Club suffers from a collection of odd musical collaborations, where everyone is just playing things too safe. Tracks like “Something To Believe In” with Van Hunt, Jon McLaughlin, and Jason Mraz, just feel too much like they’re only aspiration is to notch a place on the top 40 charts. There’s nothing genuine behind it. Furthermore, listening to tracks like “I Understand”, I’m baffled as to why Mariah Carey even appears on it. It’s a “blink and you’ll miss it” scenario, as she appears very briefly providing backing vocals for all of three seconds. 

American Idol alums Katherine McPhee and Elliot Yamin provide one of the few sparks of life on the album with “Real Love”, benefiting greatly from Jackson’s production, accentuated by the soulful hand claps and funky bass guitar. It’s one of the few times where it feels like the artists are actually having fun while they create the music. There’s a youthful energy beyond McPhee and Yamin’s vocals that holds your attention. Another standout is “Wang Dang Doodle”, a Howlin’ Wolf cover performed by Sam Moore, Keb’Mo, and Angie Stone. The down-home country soul track has the playfulness of a casual jam session without sounding unfocused. You will definitely be asking yourself, what exactly is a “wang dang doodle”?

Lacking any real focus or purpose, Randy Jackson’s Music Club Volume One is just an all-around bad album with only a few bright spots. The music is regretfully boring, hollow, and at points just plain confusing. Aside from putting Paula Abdul’s “drunk and whacked out on pills during interviews” behind in front of a microphone again, there’s nothing daring or adventurous about it. What’s even worse is the frightening prospect that there might be a Volume Two!!

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