It's difficult not to view
Joanne
through the prism of
Artpop
, the 2013 album where
Lady Gaga
's expanding fame balloon finally popped. Ambitious but muddled,
debuted high but came crashing down to the ground, stalling out after the second single, the
R. Kelly
duet "Do What U Want."
Gaga
quickly retreated to the confines of cabaret, cutting a nicely accomplished standards album with
Tony Bennett
, a move that not only gave her the opportunity to work with a legend, but signaled that she considered
a step too far: The camp of
Cheek to Cheek
was elegant, not garish, an acknowledgment that she was once again back in control of her joke. It set the stage for
, a clever streamlining of the
persona that functions as the opposite of
. All the excesses are excised while the eccentricities are used as accents on songs that are usually well-rendered pop. A few numbers take a passing glance at country music -- the title "Joanne" winks at
Dolly Parton
's "Jolene"; in a different arrangement, the ballad "Million Reasons" could be an adult contemporary crossover from
Faith Hill
or
Shania Twain
-- but
's feet remain firmly planted in dance-pop even when she brings in
Father John Misty
,
Beck
Florence Welch
, and
Josh Homme
of
Queens of the Stone Age
for collaborations.
Homme
co-wrote "Diamond Heart" and "John Wayne," two of the harder disco songs here, while
Misty
assists on the steady rolling "Sinner's Prayer" -- perhaps the best fusion of country and pop here -- and "Come to Mama," a buoyant throwback to Motown that finds a companion on the
Welch
duet "Hey Girl," an analog slow jam that floats in the shimmer light. These, plus the riotous "A-Yo" and the masturbation ode "Dancin' in Circles," don't necessarily find comfortable companions in the ballads peppered throughout the album, but executive producer
Mark Ronson
helps polish
so it flows easily, which is its appeal. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine