Right out the box, Craig David lets you know that he's heard the criticism about him. His music is "wack" and "soft," he "ain't got nothing to say," he's "not good enough," he'll "only last one song," he's not "from the streets."

The criticism has changed lately but it's still coming. Nowadays they say he's "too R and B" and he's sold out the "U.K. garage scene" But he says he realizes he can't please everyone.

Much of the criticism is fair, but it doesn't change one thing — David's music sounds good and makes you feel good. It's not particularly deep, but it's infectious. No matter how hard you try to resist, you find yourself bobbing your head, tapping your feet, moving in your seat, and singing the chorus.

Craig David is young and cute, and he certainly knows that's part of his appeal. He's not trying to be Seal or Moby. He sings happy tunes about love and fun. He sings about "fast cars, fast women [and] speed bikes" in his song "Fast Cars," but the song actually cleverly uses cars as a metaphor for women. Although the song is not completely original, it's more "Little Red Corvette" than "You Remind Me of My Jeep."

The musical package is hot, laced with one dance hit after another. But it's not just the music that sells the songs. In "Eenie Meenie" (okay, it's not the most original title), David speed-sings through the verses faster than you can repeat the familiar children's rhyme for which the song is named.

Craig David co-wrote every song on the CD, including collaborations with producer Mark Hill and guest recording artist Sting. Some of the song titles sound familiar. "Fast Cars" reminds me of Tracy Chapman's classic hit "Fast Car" and "You Don't Miss Your Water" reminds me of Meshell Ndegeocello's song "You Never Miss the Water."

After a fast start, the CD slows down with tracks 6 through 9.

David's vocal range is not always wide but he shows great flexibility in the CD's fourth track, "Hidden Agenda." In contrast, "You Don't Miss Your Water" (track 6) shows little range until the end but a completely different style in the CD's first solo ballad.

"Rise and Fall," my favorite song on the CD, is a beautiful, honest, uplifting duet with Sting. "Sometimes in life you feel the fight is over," Sting starts the song in his sexy voice. David then explains how he has made mistakes in his rise to fame, given into "vices that were clearly wrong" and "been caught in compromising situations." He pleads for "one more chance," and who wouldn't give it to him for his candor alone?

It's no wonder that Craig David is a hit with females. When I saw him in the summer of 2001 at New York's "Summerstage" in Central Park, he was a big hit with the audience, exuding a nonthreatening sex appeal. In a time when even suburban-born hip hop artists are trying to pretend to be thugs, it's refreshing to find a young singer who couldn't be a thug if his life depended on it.

The CD speeds up again a bit with track 10, "Two Steps Back." The song describes a back-and-forth relationship with a woman who steps back every time the couple takes one step forward. We've all been there before, whether we were the one stepping forward or backward.

The song "Spanish" is mostly in English, but creates a Spanish flavor with the music and one verse in Espanol. "Quieres beber conmigo?" It's a plea for the attention of a Spanish senorita. In the followup song, "What's Changed," David sings a duet with Katie Holmes that sounds awfully similar to his former hit "Fill Me In."

The final song is a pretty reflection of David's own arc from dreamer to superstar. No matter what happens, he says he will still have sunshine in his life.

Lifted from Biggie Small's 1997 hit "Hypnotize," Craig David's CD "Slicker Than Your Average" is perfectly titled. It's slick fun music that's far above average in quality, even if it's not particularly deep in substantive content.

If you like commercial dance music, pop music, pretty boys or Sting, you'll like this CD. I loved it.

© Copyright 2002 by Keith Boykin.