Eleven years after Everything Changes -- a gap that's only two years shorter than the separation between that 2011 album and 1998's Photograph Smile -- Julian Lennon comes to terms with his past on Jude, an album pointedly titled after the nickname Paul McCartney coined on the Beatles' latter-day anthem "Hey Jude." As the son of John Lennon, Julian Lennon has certainly worked in the shadow of his father, but Jude has a settled, reflective quality that suggests Lennon is comfortable working within his own terms. That's not to say that Jude is a record without a pulse or that it's lacking in urgency. Its opener, "Save Me," builds to an insistent crescendo on its first chorus, and Lennon can't bottle in his anger about climate change on "Lucky Ones." Nevertheless, the distinguishing characteristic of Jude is its simmering meditation, a slow churning that sometimes cascades with drama yet leaves the lingering impression of middle-aged contemplation. If Jude lacks in immediacy, such melodic tunes as "Not One Night" suggests this is intentional: Lennon has traded direct pop for an elliptical route that suits his skin. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine