Control is the third studio album by American R&B/pop singer Janet Jackson. Most consider it her first successful album. The album was produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis as well as Jackson herself, and was her first time to work with Jam & Lewis. The subject matter dealt with Jackson's independence, emergence from the Jackson family, and recent annulment of marriage to James DeBarge. It remains one of the most influential urban/R&B albums of all time.
Jackson's first two albums, Janet Jackson and Dream Street, were commercial failures. She allegedly did not put as much effort into those two as she would with her future albums, and their bubblegum pop style was far away from the patterns of popular, charting pop music back then. Early in her career, her father had controlled her every move, like he did with the rest of his children. A year after her previous album was released, the then 20-year-old Jackson had fired her father as manager. Despite the personal feelings Jackson had to move on, take control, and become a woman, which was the theme of the album.
Control was the fifth best-selling album of 1987 in the U.S. and was nominated for Album of the Year on the 29th Annual Grammy Awards the same year, losing to Graceland by Paul Simon. It is her only album to date to be nominated in this category.
Jackson released a single in Japan in late 1985 called "Start Anew", but it did not chart. It was included on the Japanese release of Control as track five, but has since been discontinued.
In 1989, Control was ranked #28 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 100 greatest albums of the 1980s.
In 2007, The National Association of Recording Merchandisers and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame released a list of what they term "The Definitive 200 Albums of All Time". Control ranks at #86 on the list, and her 1993 album janet. ranks on the list at #151.
On April 24, 2007, iTunes added Janet Jackson, Control, Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814, and Design of a Decade 1986/1996 to their short Janet Jackson selection.
