Song #823: "Together Again" by Janet Jackson

Date: Jan 31, 1998
Weeks: 2

This is a happy, bouncy song about people who have passed away.

I joke, but honestly I have to respect the song's tone. The lyrics are about happy memories of a friend, feeling that friend is still around in some way, and looking forward to seeing that friend again in Heaven some day. A lot of songs about that would be slow and maudlin. But this one remembers that its lyrics are ultimately happy, and the result is a bouncy happy dance song.

Most of the music works really well and contributes to the happy spirit of the song. The one point of contention regarding quality might be the bass line, which makes up most of the non-vocal component of this song. Sometimes it strikes me as simplistic, and other times it seems classic. But I like so much of everything else that's going on, I'm willing to meet the song half way.

Because there's not a lot of music beyond the bass line, a lot of the song is riding on Janet Jackson's voice. And she doesn't disappoint. Her voice is softly musical and perfectly matched to the music here. I'm not sure she was always letting herself sing like this. In the 80s she seemed to be trying to be the female Michael Jackson, but she seems to have gotten better in the 90s once she started carving out her own style.

My verdict: Like it. This is a bouncy, deep, well-performed, and fun tune.