Search - Ciara :: Fantasy Ride

There's Promise But No Follow Through

Christian | California | 11/27/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"There are many things on Fantasay Ride that hit and miss. There are songs that push Ciara lyrically but then stiffel her growth wise. After her 2004 debut "Goodies", the R&B/Hip Hop performer had a strong buzz around her as the second coming of Aaliyah. With her 2006 follow up (IMO, her best effort to date, mainly because of the nearly perfect tune "Promise") "Ciara: Evolution", she seemed to be gaining on that previous momentum. I was expecting Fantasy Ride to add on to her growing catalog and craft out an actual sound for her. Like I said previously, there is material here that accomplishes that but also traps her in the status quo.



1.Ciara To The Stage 7/10- A nice mid tempo tune that vibes off of previous album tracks such as "Promise". As a matter of a fact this tune could have been titled Promise pt.II. Ciara speaks of how she is going to give her lover more and put on a show for him, thus the title being "Ciara To The Stage". This isn't the best track to start the album out on. It's a little to slow, and not the first song I wanted to hear from a performer like Ciara.







2.Love, Sex & Magic 3/10- One of the worst if not the worst track off of the album. Ciara and Justin Timberlake have absolutely no chemistry on this tune. They both might as well have been singing to walls. The tune is originally sung by Justin Timberlake for his smash hit 2006 "FutureSex/LoveSounds" album. This is the stifling step Ciara took for me. Recording someone elses B side for her album then releasing it as the first single for the album. The tune is heavy early 80's R&B disco influenced. A Klymaxx (The Men All Pause, Lock And Key) and Mary Jane Girls (Boys & Candy Man) influence can be heard on this tune. But sadly this tune doesn't live up to those R&B cornerstones.







3.High Price Feat Ludacris 5/10- Lyricaly shallow, vocally Ciara plays with her delivery in a way she hasn't done before. Featuring her collaborator for her 2005 smash hit "Oh", Laduacris. "High Price" sounds like it tried to build on that tune. Produced by The Dream, "High Price" is not the best Ciara/Dream collaboration. On the track Ciara boast about her many material belongings", proclaiming in the chorus "I got money, already holding". Ludacris doesn't add anything to this track that makes it better or worse, it's all pretty average.







4.Turntables Feat. Chris Brown 10/10-The album might as well have started with this track. This is the collaboration I wanted to hear from Ciara. Where "Love, Sex & Magic" lacked, this track more than makes up for. This is a very catchy up-tempo track from two of the best R&B performers today. On the tune Ciara speaks of a DJ(Chris Brown) that she wants to turn the tables on her to keep her dancing all night. Yeah, lyrically the song isn't superb but it's still a nice dance track that we have come to expect from Ciara. This should have been the first single and song for Fantasy Ride.







5.Like A Surgeon 10/10- Ciara keeps the momentum from "Turntables" going on this hot and very catchy mid-tempo tune. Upon the arrival of the beat, you can feel the evident Aaliyah "One in A Million" album influence, recalling such tracks as "One In A Million", "4 Page Letter" and "Are You That Somebody"(Doctor Dolittle Soundtrack). On this track Ciara plays the part of a surgeon while she is examining her lover hence the title. The lyrics are more suggestive here, and you see Ciara play the dominant role but in a more femmine manner, which works well for her here. This the Dream collaboration that works wonders for Ciara.







6.Never Ever feat.Young Jeezy 8/10- A nice mid-tempo tune that would have been better had it not featured rapper Young Jeezy who adds nothing credible to this song. The track samples the 70's hit "If You Don't Know Me by Now" by Melvin & the Blue Notes. This is one of Ciara's best slow tunes on the album. Ciara speaks of being in a relationship and a love that is one sided. When someone puts their all into making a relationship work but gets nothing back in return from their partner. Produced by Polow Da Don, this is another Fantasy Ride highlight.







7.Lovers Thing Feat. The Dream- 10/10- This is the collaboration is another that works between The Dream/Ciara.Like "Ciara To The Stage" this tune is in the vein of "Promise" but it works better here. Has a heavy 80's vibe. Lyrically this tune is one of the most superior tunes on the album. We see them play out a relationship near it's breaking point. ("My favorite line from the song, "today I may have lost my friend." simple but true.)





8.Work feat.Missy Elliot 7/10- A nice up-tempo track from the "1,2 Step" duo. It's in the vein of Madonna's classic "Vogue". In which Ciara and Missy declare that "a dance trend is coming back again". Then command you to "Work". The beat doesn't have a strong base line but the energy throughout the song makes up for that.





9.Pucker Up 6/10- I like Ciara's attitude on this track, but had it been moved to the begining of the album it might have felt more like an actual single contender rather than album filler. On the track Ciara speaks to her critics and "haters" cooing that they "can kiss her swag". Its' one of the better songs in which we can see Ciara alone and hold a song on her own, ala "Like A Surgeon". An average up-tempo track.





10. G is For Girl (A-Z) 5/10- Another Justin Timberlake collaboration, this works better than "Love, Sex & Magic". It has a heavy Timbaland influence. It's a pretty average tune.





11.Keeping Dancin On Me 4 1/2 /10- A mid-tempo track, a very forgettable tune.





12.Tell Me What Your Name Is 6 1/2 /10- A nice mid-tempo track, it's pretty much in the same vein as "Keep Dancing On Me". But this songs actually has a legs and gets somewhere. The song shows Ciara approaching a guy in the club.The production carries the song mostly.





13. I Don't Remember 10/10 - The best and most mature tune on this album. It's a mid-tempo track that sounds nothing like a typical Ciara song. In it Ciara tries to recall the night before in which she knows that she has aleniated her lover by getting drunk and acting out. This is the type of material Ciara needs to tackle.



It's not really that there are tracks on this album that don't work, it's that Ciara doesn't evolve on those tracks the way that someone 3 albums deep in their career should. It seems like she keeps taking steps back. I hope in the future we get to see Ciara tackle more heavy material and subject matters the way she does on "I Don't Remember" & "Lovers Thing" but stay faithful to her dance routes like on "Turntables" & "Work". This isn't her best album and I woudn't recommend this album for any new Ciara listeners. If you want to get a better idea of who she is as an artist get her second album Ciara: Evolution. But if you are a regular Ciara consumer, you probably already have this album."

Fantasy Ride

David J. Garza | 12/21/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Shes getting better with each new CD and has alot of great singers on this one with her."