Track Listing

1. Control
2. What Have You Done For Me Lately
3. You Can Be Mine
4. Pleasure Principle
5. When I Think Of You
6. He Doesn't Know I'm Alive
7. Let's Wait Awhile
8. Funny How Time Flies
9. Nasty

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6357 in Music
• Released on: 2007-01-25
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .22 pounds

From Amazon.com
"Free at last / Out here on my own," Janet Jackson sings on the title track of her 1986 blockbuster, Control, an album about personal liberation, romantic longing, and, of all things, sexual responsibility. After two albums of middling dance-pop that were comfortably in the Jackson family mold, Janet dropped in on the burgeoning Minneapolis funk factory of producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and came up with five top 10 hits, including the opening triad of "Control," "Nasty," and "What Have You Done for Me Lately," as well as the yearning "When I Think of You" and "Let's Wait Awhile," that rare song (considering some of Janet's hits to come) about not having sex. In its own way, Control is the most convincing declaration of artistic independence since Stevie Wonder's "Music of My Mind." --Daniel Durchholz

CD Description
Although Janet Jackson had released two records in the early 1980s, they were quickly forgotten, and notably shaped by her parents' considerable influence. Janet's landmark third album, 1986's CONTROL, would change all that.
On the opening title track, Jackson vents at her parents, and, with passion and grace, declares her own independence, moving out ofthe gargantuan shadow of her brother Michael and on to the business of making her own classic pop record. The true genius of CONTROL lies in the marriage of her extremely self-assured vocals with the emphatic beats of R&B production wizards Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. The duo was already well established in the music industry, but the practically flawless CONTROL showcased Jam and Lewis's true studio mastery. For thebetter part of two years, Jackson remained on the pop charts, with a full two-thirds of the album's tracks released as singles, including the ever-quotable "Nasty", the assertive "What Have You Done for Me Lately", the frenetically danceable "When I Think of You", and the smooth, message-oriented ballad "Let's Wait Awhile". With CONTROL, Jackson achieved long-awaited superstar status and never looked back.

Customer Reviews

She's In Control... Ever Since 1986
First of all, I don't know whether reviews are needed here, this album is a legendary one, but for those who are newbies to Janet's music like I was some years ago, maybe reviews can be useful. For my generation Janet Jackson always have been a superstar. Now imagine her at the age of 19, when all she had was her family name (more a drawback than an advantage for her then), some fame she gained as a child star in TV shows (but since then she grew up and felt uncomfortable in the 'sweet little girl' role), a debut album which was about on the same level as the first albums of Mandy Moore or Jessica Simpson (her 2nd was somewhat better, but still wasn't successful) and a marriage which was her first attempt to get away from her family and take control (the marriage failed). Future didn't seem too bright. In fact, it seemed hopeless.

Now imagine this girl teaming up with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis (best songwriters of the world) and recording an album on which she declared her independence and showed more talent and originality than anyone else. This was Control, with 9 songs from which 6 became hits. Control shows us a young woman who knows what she want - independence and respect. She stands up for herself. She puts the boys in their place. "No, my first name ain't baby. It's Janet. Ms Jackson if you're nasty." The opening triad of Control, Nasty and What Have You Done For Me Lately are so fresh, dynamic and original that it can't be described, and the music and the lyrics suits well to each other. After five uptempo and two mid-tempo songs Janet slows down, showing her sensual side for the first time with songs like Let's Wait Awhile and Funny How Time Flies. The three non-singles are not fillers, like on albums of lots of other artists, each of them could have been a hit single. My special favorite is He Doesn't Know I'm Alive, especially the part where Janet sings about calling the guy on the phone then hanging up because she's too shy to talk... I always feel it was written about me because I've been in this situation hundreds of times. In fact, if you listen the songs, almost all of them will feel as if they had been written about you, Janet is a genius when it comes to writing lyrics.

I guess it's time for me to shut up, if you have this album you already know how good it is, if you don't have it, then don't waste your time by reading this review, GO AND GET THIS CD. nd don't forget to buy Rhythm Nation 1814, that's her best album, and that's the one which is in the same style as Control, the newer albums are different. Also buy "Control - The Remixes".

A New Talent from an Old Family
Welcome to the world of international pop, Miss Jackson. She had a lot to lose as comparisons to her famous brother were inevitable, but she held her own. After her first 2 albums, Dream Street and Janet Jackson, bombed, Control was the album that launched Janet into the international spotlight with the likes of brilliant tracks Nasty, What Have You Done For Me Lately and of course, the title track. The album includes trademark Janet material; kick-ass dance (the aforementioned Nasty and Pleasure Principle), soft sing-a-long happy tunes (When I Think of You) and the obligatory ballads (Let's Wait Awhile) and it never disappoints. The videos that accompanied the 6 singles from the album are also typical Janet - well choreographed routines and lots of happy clappers smiling away in the background. With a rawer edge than her more recent material, this is probably one of the most original and innovative albums of the 80s and shows who the real talent in this family is.....

Indeed, Janet is in Control
Control is an excellent album from a truly gifted and talented musical icon. It showed that Janet was indeed her own individual and not just another "Jackson," and it catipulted her into the ranks of superstardom. I can remember all of the singles off this album from my childhood, each one of them bringing a smile to my face when I remember those days of not having a care in the world. It was by far the edgiest album released by a Jackson at the time, which was refreshing considering her previous two albums were more conventional pop. Jimmy Jam once said that they wanted the album to be one that would be in all black households in America, and I'm sure they achieved that feat, and then some. No album from 1986 made a more bold, confident statement than Janet's Control, and to this day there are imitators but no duplicators of magic that this album unleashed.