Hidden somewhere within Damita Jo is a fun, sexy, breezy and danceable ten song soul/R&B/dance/pop album. The worst offenders are the one-two punch of mumbled pornographic-talk "Moist" and "Warmth." Somewhere along the line Janet mistook deranged, borderline psycho-sexual and crazed sexual satisfaction for the warm eroticism of "That's the Way Love Goes."
Ms. Jackson used to be independent, smart, politically aware, and socially conscious. On Damita Jo she is merely a Playmate of the Month spouting out inanities in-between aural pornography. Combined with the over-hyped and faintly ridiculous reaction to her Super Bowl nip-slip, Damita Jo helped to sink Janet's recording career. She's never truly recovered since. What a pity. There was a time when she had Madonna, Prince, and her brother shaking in their boots with her prowess and might.
DOWNLOAD: "Strawberry Bounce," "All Nite (Don't Stop)," "R&B Junkie"