I've always regarded Diddy (or whatever it happens to be fashionable to call Mr. Combs at the time) as an inspiring entrepreneur, and as having a good ear for arranging hip-hop.  On the other hand, I've never found him to be particularly good at rapping.

On Press Play, Diddy surprised me; at points, he actually throws down some reasonably tight raps.  There's still a good deal of his more usual (pardon the extremely ironic term) low-budget rapping, but at worst he's tolerable, and at best, compelling.

The beats are interesting, fairly catchy, and quite varied, yet with a certain consistency to them that keeps everything together.  They're fairly dominant, and there are a few places where, if they went an inch farther than they did, they'd be overdone.  Naturally, there's a fair bit of borrowing from old classics, but tastefully done, as usual.

One is given the feeling of Press Play being a personal album, with love and Diddy's journey to stardom being strong themes.

Press Play features a ton of guests, some huge names and others relatively unknown.  All add their own flavour, while still fitting well into the overall style of the album.

The artwork is somethin' else; have a look at the pic under the disc - this guy is a joker!    

“Testimonial (Intro)” builds up a triumphant feeling, with a sample from “Head Over Heels” by Tears For Fears.  Diddy rhymes about determination and rising up through trials and tribulation.  Gotta respect the message.

In “We Gon' Make It,” Diddy rhymes, this time with a more conceited air, over a live band and brass that's fitting and on point.  “I Am (Interlude)” continues along the same lines.

“The Future's” industrial instrumental, moody melody, and dramatic delivery give an atmosphere something like a sinister sociological sci-fi.  It's creative and quite atypical of contemporary hip-hop - something along the lines one might expect from the likes of KRS-One.

“Hold Up” has a slow, compelling beat, quizzical vocals, and crafty rhymes.

“Come To Me” is your stereotypical club banger, with one possible exception: club bangers more often than not have the weakest rhymes imaginable.  By contrast, the rhymes on “Come To Me” aren't bad.

“Tell Me” is rather loud, on the busy side, and as such isn't as good as a lot of the material on the album.

“Wanna Move” is a significant improvement over the previous track.  Thick, accoustic-style percussion permeates the song, which features vocals by Ciara and some tight rhymes, Big Boi's being particularly good.

“Diddy Rock” has an utterly annoying hook; it's pretty good apart from that.  Twista's rap is, of course, particularly crazy.

A grandiose, horn-heavy style typifies the instrumental arrangements on Press Play, and the clever beat of “Everything I Love” is no exception.  Kanye West is among the production credits on this one.  Nas joins Diddy to drop some tight rhymes.

“Special Feeling” takes us back to the disco days.  It's a lighthearted joint with cute rhymes.

“Crazy Thang (Interlude)” reflects on the ups and downs of love; the intentionally irregular instrumental and awkwardly overlapping “him” and “her” voice-overs enhance the theme.

“After Love” has an unusual, interesting, and intricate beat.  It makes effective use of phase displacements between the channels.  The vocal arrangements are somewhat reminiscent of those of Destiny's Child.

“Through The Pain (She Told Me)” is another song about love, with a touch of melancholy.  The instrumental's melodic part fits in quite well.  The percussive part is a little dominant.  Mario Winans contributes vocals that add well to the overall feel.

Brandy starts off in “Thought You Said” with something the likes of which I don't think I've ever heard before; it could equally well be termed rapping or singing; and we're not talking singy rapping - I mean real singing.  Strictly speaking it would be singing, but the timing is more of a rap - and a pretty speedily articulated one, at that.  Brandy got mic skillz!  Brandy got mic skillz!  Who'da ever thought!!

For the remainder of “Thought You Said,” Brandy goes back to the more usual singing, where she's heavily layered on a repetitive set of lines.  She and Diddy progressively escalate into what eventually becomes an all-out clamour, which is, of course, the point of the song, being argumentative.

If (as many of us have,) you've been hurtin' for “clean” Brandy vocals, this mostly isn't your remedy, but it's certainly interesting, and particularly that rappy singing bit at the beginning is something to behold!

Hearing “Last Night,” I'm reminded of '80s pop and/or Prince.  It's a pretty good song, though the layered hook could get tiring after a while.  Now, as for the phone skit at the end... yikes!

“Making It Hard” has a slightly jarring instrumental, which is quite appropriate for the theme.  Mary J. Blige's vocals complement the track well.

“Partners For Life” closes the album on a romantic note.

Press Play showcases a spectrum of musical styles, making it anything but boring or usual.  I hadn't regarded Diddy as that good of a rapper, but at least in places, he's better than I had expected.  Press Play is, on the whole, quite entertaining.