Do You Know (Jessica Simpson Album) - Critical Reception

Critical Reception

The album was given a score of 58 out of 100 from Metacritic due to mixed or average reviews.

Simpson's hometown paper, the Dallas Morning News, rated it a C+, saying, "How much should we expect from Jessica Simpson's country music debut CD? If your answer is not much, then you won't be disappointed." Entertainment Weekly also awarded the album a C+, and, while acknowledging the quality of the writers associated with the project, offered this conclusion: "And though teaming up with frequent Carrie Underwood songwriter Hillary Lindsey for five tracks was a savvy move, we already have a Carrie Underwood, honey...and she probably turned these songs down." The Boston Herald said the effort "represents the worst in a genre that's come to deify Michael Bolton schmaltz while kicking Hank Williams' legacy to the curb," and awarded it a grade of D.

Joey Guerra of the Houston Chronicle felt that the album "lacks pizazz," and that, although "Simpson co-wrote several of the other tunes ... there's almost no emotional spark or sense of connection." The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, rating the album only two stars (out of five), questioned how Simpson could "squander the talents of Dolly Parton? The pair's title-track duet is an oversung misfire." The Miami Herald's Howard Cohen, in another two star review, concluded that Simpson failed to make a good country album, and instead made one that is "undistinguished" and "forgettable".

The Los Angeles Times gave the effort 2.5 stars (out of four), saying "Her struggle is most striking on the title track, written by Dolly Parton, who shows up to harmonize with Simpson ... The gap between novice and master couldn't be clearer."

Slant Magazine awarded only 1.5 stars (of five), saying Simpson "operates in precisely three modes as a singer: a mewling, whispered coo; a nasal, dead-eyed middle volume; and belting glory notes at full volume with a strangled, unappealing tone." Allmusic seemed to share Slant's view of Simpson's vocal skills, finding her performance "unfailingly listless no matter how many theatrical gestures she attempts to cram in her big boring ballad."

Awarding only one star, Las Vegas Weekly found the album to be filled with "tiresome ballads" performed with "no tooth, no gut, just monotony and palpable disinterest; even Jessica Simpson sounds bored with Jessica Simpson." The Worcester Telegram, while awarding 2 stars, was less charitable, finding that "Simpson sounds, at best, like a cat being tasered."

One of the few exceptions, the New York Post said that "she's created an album where she consistently shows off her full-bodied voice with solid, yet simple tunes that don't overthink the music." and "Do You Know is the CD's best song and the one that is bound to earn her a country Grammy in February." Also, Country Weekly magazine gave a three-star rating out of five, with critic Chris Neal saying that although Simpson seemed to be "trying a little too hard" on some songs, the album was "solid pop-country fare with a lyrical emphasis on sensuality and self-esteem."