Sex Therapy: The Session

In September 2008, Thicke released Something Else, his third studio album, on Star Trak Entertainment and Interscope Records. A follow-up to his breakthrough, multi-platinum-selling album The Evolution of Robin Thicke (2006), it combined live instrumentation with influences from classic Philadelphia soul, Motown, and 1970s disco.^[1] The album received generally favorable reviews,^[2] debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200, and was certified gold by the RIAA in 2024. Although it produced two number-two hits on the US Adult R&B Songs chart, ""Magic" and "The Sweetest Love", it was ultimately less commercially successful than its predecessor.^[3]

For his next project, Sex Therapy: The Session, Thicke sought to broaden his musical approach while making the album more audience-oriented than his previous work.^[4] In an interview with Essence, he explained that, whereas he had previously approached albums primarily according to his own artistic preferences, he wanted the new record to offer something for different audiences and experimented with a more collaborative production process.^[4] Unlike his first three albums, which he had largely written and produced with longtime collaborator Pro-Jay, Sex Therapy drew production from several contributors, allowing Thicke to focus less on controlling every musical element and more on creating songs suited to the album's overall concept^[4]

Thicke also described Sex Therapy as a more direct exploration of the sensual themes that had characterized his music throughout his career.^[5] He noted that listeners had frequently characterized his music as suitable for romance and intimacy, and said the album's title deliberately embraced that reputation.^[5] The project combined this sensual focus with Thicke's longstanding influences from soul and R&B and his desire to incorporate more of his hip-hop background, citing artists including Run-DMC, N.W.A., the Notorious B.I.G., Tupac Shakur, and Jay-Z.^[5] He further characterized the album as a departure from the introspective and melancholic material of his earlier releases, seeking a lighter and more accessible sound.^[5]

There are two different versions of the album. The regular version is called Sex Therapy: The Session. The deluxe version, released on the same day, is called Sex Therapy: The Experience and has five additional tracks. Unlike most other special editions, where the bonus tracks are all at the end, the extra tracks on The Experience are mixed in with the regular Session track listing.

More information Aggregate scores, Source ...

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	70/100[16]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[17]
The A.V. Club	B−[18]
Entertainment Weekly	B+[19]
Los Angeles Times	[20]
Newsday	A−[21]
PopMatters	6/10[22]
Q	[16]
USA Today	[23]

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Upon its release, Sex Therapy received generally positive reviews from most music critics, based on an aggregate score of 70/100 from Metacritic.^[16] AllMusic writer Andy Kellman gave it 3½ out of 5 stars and praised Thicke's singing, calling his falsetto "one of the best voices in R&B".^[17] Entertainment Weekly's Simon Vozick-Levinson gave Sex Therapy a B+ rating and wrote "Thicke takes a few more risks on his fourth album... slinging falsetto boasts and come-ons over futuristic electro-funk backdrops".^[19] Associated Content writer Chris A. Sosa gave it an A rating and wrote that it "serves as Thicke's stepping out, finally embracing the simmering sexuality that's always lurked just barely below the surface of his soaring falsetto".^[24] Alex Thornton of HipHopDX gave the album 4 out of 5 stars and commended Thicke for his songwriting ability.^[25] Elysa Gardner of USA Today gave the album 3 out of 4 stars and wrote that its songs are "better vehicles for Thicke and his collaborators' naughty wit and seductive grooves than they are for his silky croon".^[23] Newsday's Glenn Gamboa gave Sex Therapy an A− rating and viewed that Thicke's attempt to incorporate other musical styles "sound as effortless as his Princely falsetto".^[21] The Huffington Post's Mike Ragogna wrote favorably of its sexual themes and called the album "a potent mix of r&b and rap with the soulful singer-songwriter channeling Marvin and Smokey on some of the more seductive songs".^[26] Jon Caramanica of The New York Times lauded Thicke for dispensing with the "characteristic politesse" of his previous work, while calling it "the best album of his career, and also the most ridiculous".^[27]

The Washington Post's Allison Stewart described it as "a gooey, goofy, occasionally great, obsessively carnal mix of '70s soul and mid-'00s computerized retro/futurist hip-pop", but perceived an "overemphasis on guest stars and superstar production" and found Thicke's songwriting "awkward".^[28] PopMatters writer Tyler Lewis gave Sex Therapy a 6/10 rating and called it "a well-made album", but found its sexually themed songs "cheeky, not sensual", writing "It is definitely more cartoonish than anything 70s soul men would have released, no matter how great some of the melodies are".^[22] Okayplayer writer Kendred Spirit perceived Thicke's departure from his previous work's aesthetic as breaking his "artistic morality", stating "he simply does not sound right over the intrusive synths and fuzzy drum beats of today's pop".^[29] Q gave the album 3 out of 5 stars and noted its "Prince-ly fixation with carnal knowledge" as "a touch of the absurd", but stated "Still, it's delivered with panache, thanks to Thicke's versatile pop-soul vocals and some slick production work".^[16] Los Angeles Times writer August Brown gave the album 2½ out of 4 stars and wrote "his new randiness adds zip to an always-perfect falsetto".^[20] Despite having a mixed response towards its collaborational tracks, Mark Edward Nero of About.com gave it 3½ out of 5 stars and commended Thicke for "expanding his horizons."^[30] The A.V. Club's Joshua Alston gave it a B− rating and called it "admirable", stating "Sex Therapy is certainly not grown, nor particularly sexy, but it's often great, sometimes because of its lover-boy goofiness, other times in spite of it".^[18]

Sex Therapy: The Session debuted at number 9 on the US Billboard 200 and at number 2 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums,^[31] selling 123,000 copies in its first week.^[32] It marked Thicke's third consecutive top-10 album, following The Evolution of Robin Thicke, which peaked at number five in 2007, and Something Else, which peaked at number three in 2008; the latter opened with 137,000 copies.^[32] Sex Therapy: The Session fell to number 31 in its second week, before rising to number 21 in its third week and subsequently declining to numbers 24 and 28.^[33] It later re-entered the chart at number 35, supported by renewed sales and airplay.^[33] By February 2010, the album had sold approximately 269,000 copies in the United States.^[34]

Notes

• ^{^[a]} signifies co-producer(s)

Sample credits

• "Mrs. Sexy" contains interpolations from the composition "I'm Glad You're Mine", written by Al Green.
• "Sex Therapy" contains elements of "It's My Party", written by Herb Wiener, Seymour Gottlieb, John Gluck, and Walter Gold.
• "Meiplé" contains a sample from "Moi Je Joue", written by Jean-Max Riviere and Gerard Bourgeois, and performed by Brigitte Bardot.
• "Million Dolla Baby" contains interpolations from the composition "Trouble Man", written by Marvin Gaye.

The track numbers correspond to the deluxe edition.