Janet Jackson’s confident comeback album is a sprawling 17-track blast from the past. Not only does Unbreakable reunite the singer with Jam & Lewis, the producers of her 80s pomp, the excitably titled Burnitup! finds the lesser-spotted Missy Elliott on board. Modern R&B stars tend to cleave to a narrow set of preoccupations (sex, partying) and sounds, but Unbreakable throws any number of genres, tempos and themes at the wall, united by Jackson’s coo and an over-riding impression of seasoned professionals locked in a groove. There’s plenty of straight-up R&B – No Sleeep, Dammn Baby and Night find Jam, Lewis and Jackson on nicely updated form – but Lessons Learned, for one, is a country-leaning guitar ballad, one of a large handful of songs about hard-won maturity and making the world a better place that play more to the Oprah demographic.
