Album review: Kelly Clarkson - All I Ever Wanted (4/5)

With All I Ever Wanted, Kelly Clarkson makes an all-holds-barred push to return her music to top 40 radio, following the relative failure of the darker, edgier and more personal material from My December, which was tarnished by her public spat with record exec Clive Davis over the direction of that project. He wanted her to work with the hottest songwriters and producers and produce another Breakaway; she wanted more control and to do something more personal. She got her way and delivered a set with only one hit ("Never Again"). Now Davis gets his way, assembling an army of today's greatest pop craftsmen, and all the right ingredients to get your songs on the radio are here:

Max Martin? Check. He's behind Clarkson's bubbly hit "My Life Would Suck Without You," currently riding high at top 40 radio (it's #3 and rising), and recently was #1 in both the US (her first since her first single) and the UK (her first ever). Pedigree and chart placings aside, it is a great single, repeating the winning formula of Clarkson's previous Max Martin-produced hit, "Since U Been Gone," but with even more energy and a poppier beat.

Kara DioGuardi? Check. The American Idol judge, who until that TV gig was better known as one of pop's hardest-working songwriters, is co-writer on "I Do Not Hook Up," a charging up-tempo, guitar-fronted pop song that finds Kelly declaring to her potential suitors that she is not an easy lay. DioGuardi is pretty much the only person invited back from My December, on which she co-wrote that album's most uptempo moment, "One Minute"--probably because she was also on board for Clarkson's wildly successful second album, Breakaway, for which she co-wrote half the songs, including the hit "Walk Away."

Ryan Tedder? Check. The songwriter and OneRepublic frontman responsible for his "Apologize," Leona Lewis's "Bleeding Love" and Beyonce's current hit "Halo," co-writes and produces four of the tracks here. Tedder's been getting a bit of flack lately since a lot of his songs sound alike, but is that really fair? That's a pretty common trick in pop music--Tedder just happens to do it well. So Clarkson gets slick ballad "Already Here," which yes, sounds a lot like "Halo" with its amped up drumset and layered strings backing, but that doesn't mean it's a bad song, allowing Clarkson to dial back her vocals a bit to a more restrained and higher register. Tedder deserves credit for stepping outside that "Bleeding Love" box on "If I Can't Have You," a frothy, in-your-face dance pop cut that finds Clarkson strutting around like Lady GaGa. Then there's "Save You," which halfway through turns back the knobs for a piano and strings interlude after which Clarkson turns up her pipes full blast, delivering an effectively emotional ballad. My favorite Clarkson/Tedder match up is "Impossible," an effectively moody upbeat piece backed by piano, synths and electric guitar with a beat reminiscent of Rihanna's "Umbrella."

On three songs, Clarkson works with the production-songwriting team of Louis Biancaniello and Sam Watters, with whom she hasn't been paired since her debut album's "Anytime." Their best effort is the title track, which, after the lead single, is my favorite song here. "All I Ever Wanted" has a great rock stomp and a powerful chorus with the electric guitars and Clarkson's voice at full throttle. While I'm expecting "I Do Not Hook Up" and at least one of the Tedder tracks to be future singles, I hope this gets a a shot. It's far superior to the other two tracks they collaborate on. "Whyyawannabringmedown" attempts a pop/punk style, which Clarkson doesn't quite nail. Sixties-inspired "I Want You" is too cutesy, a mismatch with the album's mostly rocky girlpower feel.

The album's showcase ballad is "Cry," a dramatic lament that effectively goes through the typical strings and electric guitar chorus highs and acoustic guitar verse lows you would expect from this kind of song. It will probably be a single too (the third I'm guessing). It's produced by Howard Benson, who with five of the songs here to his name, is the album's most-used producer. Another winner under his belt is "Long Shot," a very in-your-face piece of power pop verging on alternative rock. "Don't Let Me Stop You" is fine, but unexceptional, and I'm not really feeling the album's other '60s throwback, the lightweight "Ready." The album closes with gentle ballad "If No One Will Listen," which Clarkson produced all by herself.

In general, this is a very good pop album, which will achieve its purpose: returning Kelly Clarkson to a massive mainstream fan base. While I'm all in favor of that (if that's what she wants), I can't help but feel a bit bothered by how this is a retreat to the familiar. I was one of those who applauded Clarkson for taking a risk on My December, which I thought effectively proved that she was an artist and not just a product, a difficult label to shake given her origins on reality TV--one of the most manufactured forms of entertainment around. And I liked My December, which was wrongly accused of not having any fun songs (did they not listen to "One Minute," "Don't Waste Your Time," "How I Feel" or "Can I Have a Kiss?") and delivered some effective personal moments like "Maybe," "Be Still" and "Sober." I hope Clarkson isn't afraid to someday probe those dark elements of her personality again. Until then, I'll be content to rock out to All I Ever Wanted with the rest of them.

Best: My Life Would Suck Without You, All I Ever Wanted, Cry, I Do Not Hook Up, Impossible, Already Here, Long Shot