The Makeover

The Makeover is the ninth studio album by American singer Jody Watley, released on Avitone Records. Watley recruited a diverse group of contemporary dance and electronica producers for the project, among them King Britt, DJ Spinna, and 4hero. The album's vintage aesthetic, which saw her take the old and remake it as new, was likely foretold in Watley's updating of her signature classic, "Looking for a New Love", in 2005. As per the title, The Makeover contained newly recorded (and remixed) versions of some of Watley's signature classics like "Don't You Want Me" and "Friends" (re-dubbed "Friendz"), as well as new material. Additionally, Watley paid tribute to musical influences like Diana Ross, Chic, and Karen Carpenter on the covers of "Love Hangover", "I Want Your Love" and a medley of the Carpenters' songs, respectively.

Background
The Makeover, from its title to its photo media, was a tongue-in-cheek commentary on the ever-growing makeover culture now commonplace in contemporary society. Indeed, the album's photography (contained in the liner notes) showed Watley theatrically made-up to resemble a cosmetic surgery recipient. These photos caused a bit of a controversy, however, as they were leaked, after which various online gossip columns (most notably the New York Post's "Page Six"), had falsely reported that Watley had undergone actual cosmetic surgery. Watley jokingly discussed the controversy in the September 11, 2006 issue of the National Enquirer.

Singles
The first single to be released from The Makeover was a downtempo cover of "Borderline", written by Reggie Lucas and an originally a 1984 hit for Madonna. Upon the single's UK release in October 2009, Watley told noted R&B writer Pete Lewis of the award-winning 'Blues & Soul': "'Borderline' is a song I've always liked. Because - even though the way it was originally recorded was very poppy - for me the song always had a melancholy side to it, which I think my version taps into."

The album's second single was "I Want Your Love", a cover of the Chic classic. The Watley cover was produced by DJ Spinna and featured Chic's own Nile Rodgers on guitar. Supported by dance mixes, the track peaked at #1 on the US Billboard Dance Club Songs chart for the week of June 16, 2007.

Personnel

 * Jody Watley – Vocals, backing vocals
 * Mark Boyce – Moog Synthesizer
 * Chris Brann – Keyboards, programming
 * Marc Mac – Piano, rhodes, Arp synthesizer, programming
 * Luke Parkhouse – Drums, percussion
 * Brad Munn – Acoustic guitars
 * Andy Hammill - Double bass


 * Hillside Stings – Strings
 * Nile Rodgers – Guitar
 * DJ Spinna – Drum programming
 * Selan Lerner – Keyboards
 * Ali Black – Assistant engineer
 * Rodney Lee – Programming, keyboards
 * Mark De Clive-Lowe – Instruments, programming
 * Voshaun Gotti – Flow


 * Production
 * Producers – 4hero, King Britt, Mark De Clive-Lowe, DJ Spinna, Rodney Lee, Chris Brann, Milan "The Mad Scientist" Ross
 * Executive Producer – Jody Watley
 * Remixing producers – Bill Coleman, Vinny Troia
 * Project Coordinator – Van Roy for VRC Entertainment
 * Photography – Mike Ruiz
 * Make-Up – Billy B.
 * Hair – Ruth Roche
 * Special Effects Makeup – Branan Edgans
 * Art Direction – Jody Watley, Van Roy
 * Design – David Stafford