Mark Edward Nero from About.com called Letters from Birmingham the "most well-rounded and personal project of his career." He found that "the combination of being freed from the image management of American Idol and the creative freedom allowed by one of the best independent music labels around, Shanachie Entertainment, has given Ruben the boost he needed to revive his career and remain a relevant and successful artist."[2]SoulTracks critic Melody Charles felt that the album "does offer illuminating glimpses into the life-and-death cycle of a relationship (more likely factual than fiction).[4]
AllMusic editor Andy Kellman noted that "Four brief "letter" interludes help guide the listener through the stages in the singer's relationship; without them, the album would still have a discernible linear flow. The stylistic transitions, however, are not as smooth. There's some Southern-friend funk, neo-Philly soul, alternately silky and churning adultcontemporary R&B [...] There is almost enough shifting to fill a season's worth of American Idol performances, and it detracts from the fact that this clearly is Studdard's most personal set of songs to date."[1]
Billboard found that "reminiscent of Marvin Gaye's musical forays on Let's Get It On, Studdard sends listeners everything from smooth soul and funky/jazzy dancefloor grooves to movie-theme pop and gospel. That's a tall order. But he delivers, shifting seamlessly from raw funkster to angelic falsetto and back to contemporary crooner [...] The 2003 American Idol champ still has the chops."[5] Allison Stewart described Letters from Birmingham as "an awkwardly executed concept album about relationships told, at least theoretically, through a series of romantic letters."[6]
Commercial performance
Letters from Birmingham debuted and peaked at number 73 on US Billboard 200.[7]
