John Legend had been using his honorific stage surname for nearly 20 years when he felt that his track record finally merited its use as an album title. The EGOT with a dozen Grammys somehow fought the urge until his eighth proper studio album. Legend, divided into halves, is an 80-minute set executive produced in tandem with "A Bigger Love" co-writer/co-producer Ryan Tedder (Beyoncé, Adele, Taylor Swift). The first disc is primarily uptempo and loved up. Effervescent songs like "Waterslide," "Dope," and "All She Wanna Do" seem purpose-built for amusement parks and fairgrounds to remind visitors that they're having fun. (The latter song is heard in versions with and without a bouncy, Top Boy-referencing verse from Saweetie.) Better are the leisurely and awed numbers with a deeper soul foundation. "Strawberry Blush" is a strings-sweetened connection with Free Nationals, Anderson .Paak affiliates who answer the call with one of their breeziest grooves. The grittier "You" has delicate touches of Philly and Chicago soul -- a little O'Jays, a little Curtis Mayfield -- enlivened by Legend's very strong falsetto game. Disc two, heavier on ballads, also contains more stylistic and emotional variety with a lasting partnership as a frequent setting. The feel-good, reassuring "I Want You to Know" could easily morph into a rocksteady cover of the Staple Singers' "I'll Take You There," while "Speak in Tongues," swaying and romantic, benefits from the presence of Jada Kingdom. Surprisingly, the songs informed by Jamaica outnumber piano ballads until the final stretch. "The Other Ones" is out of place for its melodramatic decluttering of baggage, but the trio of "Pieces," "I Don't Love You Like I Used To," and "Home" come across as wholly heartfelt, respectively striking a rare balance of numbness and hope, expressing total devotion, and turning on the (ocular) waterworks. Legend is at his best when entertainment isn't his objective. ~ Andy Kellman, Rovi

1		Rounds
2		Waterslide
3		Dope
4		Strawberry Blush
5		Guy Like Me
6		All She Wanna Do
7		Splash
8		You
9		Fate
10		Love
11		One Last Dance
12		All She Wanna Do
13		Memories
14		Nervous
15		Wonder Woman
16		Honey
17		I Want You To Know
18		Speak In Tongues
19		The Other Ones
20		Stardust
21		Pieces
22		Good
23		I Don't Love You Like I Used To
24		Home