Seal returns with 7, his first album of original material since 2010. The album was produced by the legendary Trevor Horn, who gave us some of Seal’s biggest hits (Kiss From A Rose, Crazy & Prayer For The Dying).

7 deals with Seal’s emotional journey of love, heartbreak and healing since his much publicized divorce from Heidi Klum. Trevor Horn takes this deeply personal journey and successfully commercializes it for the radio masses.

In my opinion, this is where the album stumbles a bit. Trevor Horn tries too hard to recapture that 90’s feel and he missed a great opportunity by not creating a heartfelt emotional driven modern day classic.

Thankfully though, any and all shortcomings are forgiven with Seal’s vocal prowess. His voice truly embodies each and every song on the album. The listener shares this artist’s emotional journey of the last five years.

Although 7 is a solid album from Seal, I can’t help but believe that perhaps with some additional producers thrown in, 7 could have been much more.