On my house, on my job, on my loot, shoes, my voice, my crew, my mind, my father's last name?

In general, I don't like Robin Thicke's singles; I think it may have something to do with too much falsetto and funky laid-backness (actually, now that I think about it, I can see me really liking some of them if you punched up the production or the arrangement some more). However, in among the American singer's work, there is at least one giant glaring couldn't-stand-out-more exception--his debut single, and a song that I would like to mention that I knew long before a certain contestant covered it on American Idol (though, truth, I now unavoidably see his gestures when I hear that song; I was actually really excited when I heard that he was doing that song though not necessarily because of getting to see that performance but more as an indicator of actual music he could release; at the time I thought an album in that style could really suit him and be very exciting). It was released when Robin was going by just his last name; he's since switched over to releasing under his full name and actually got some American success with his second album, 2006's The Evolution Of Robin Thicke.

When I Get You Alone--brilliance. No, really--this is a classic. Well, it should be, anyway; in the U.S., it didn't do too well (not a song your average person on the street knows at all), though apparently it did better outside his home country. With strings sampled from a song that samples a Beethoven song, "When I Get You Alone" uses just the right amount of funk to add some extra energy and fun to this pop-R&B song. Thicke manages to toss countless hooks into the song without it ever seeming overly busy, making "When I Get You Alone" a perfect candidate for singing along with...as well as dancing too, of course. Sure, you could talk about it some more (how well-crafted it is and all that), but the most important thing is this: it's FUN. And in the end, I don't care what the practical or realistic hindrances were: that should have been enough to make this a huge hit.

To buy Robin Thicke's first album A Beautiful World, go here (physical) or here (digital).

Next up: I've been working on some thoughts on some American singers and can't seem to get across what I'm trying to say--still, if I can manage to fix that, one of those will be tomorrow's post.