One of the U.K.'s most successful pop bands is the Sugababes. They've had a total of 6 number one singles and many top 10 hits. Unfortunately these days they aren't remembered for their music as much as they are for their line-up changes. From 1998-2001, the group consisted of Siobhan Donaghy, Mutya Buena, and Keisha Buchanan. They only released one album in 2000 called "One Touch" along with 4 singles. Siobhan left the group in 2001 and was replaced by Heidi Range. It was then that the group gained extreme success with 3 albums called "Angels with Dirty Faces", "Three", and "Taller In More Ways" and 4 number 1 singles: "Freak Like Me", "Round Round", "Hole In The Head" and "Push The Button". This line-up lasted from 2001-2006 when Mutya left the group. She was replaced with Amelle Barrabah who re-recorded three of the songs on "Taller In More Ways". This line-up lasted from 2006-2009 and released "Overloaded: The Singles Collection", a collaboration with Girls Aloud which was a cover called"Walk This Way", "Change", "Catfights and Spotlights", and a single called "Get Sexy". "Get Sexy" was to be the first single from their next album "Sweet 7". They were about to release the second single, "About a Girl", when disaster struck once again when Keisha was kicked out of the group and replaced with Jade Ewen. Because "Sweet 7" was not released yet, The record label replaced Keisha's vocals with Jade's. "About a Girl" was the first video by the Sugababes to not have any original members. Despite that Sweet 7 was still released and I'm going to review it track by track.
1) Get Sexy: The first single from Sweet 7 and the last single to feature Keisha's vocals. Unfortunately, even though Keisha was in the video for it, the album has Jade's vocals on it. It doesn't make sense to do that, especially since it doesn't make the song any less boring. It somehow peaked at number 2 in the U.K. despite many fans labeling it as "one of the Sugababes worst singles". 4/10
2) Wear My Kiss: The third and final single from the album. It was also the second to feature Jade. This song is much better than "Get Sexy" and it's futuristic video is also good. I have to say Jade's version of the song is a little better than Keisha's (don't judge me!). Another shock is that Bruno Mars co-wrote this song as well as "Get Sexy". "Wear My Kiss" peaked at number 7 in the U.K. 10/10
3) About a Girl: The second single from the album and the first to feature Jade in the band. The song was produced and co-written by RedOne, who's produced many hits for Lady Gaga. This song one of the better songs on the album and one of my favorites. The video however was not as good as the song. I'm also not sure whether I like Jade or Keisha's version of the song more since they both did great on it. The song peaked at number 8 in the U.K. without any promotion. Not bad. 10/10
4) Wait for You: Another song co-written by Bruno Mars. The song is okay, but not great. The version with Keisha was much better than the version was Jade. I usually skip it. 7/10
5) Thank You for the Heartbreak: The song was rumored to be a single at one point and I can see why. It's one of the good songs on this album. Ryan Tedder from OneRepublic co-wrote this song and he's written great songs for Beyonce, Kelly Clarkson, Colbie Caillat, etc. I like Jade's version just as much as Keisha's version. Another fav. 10/10
6) Miss Everything (featuring Sean Kingston): The first and only song on the album to feature someone else on the album. The song's pretty catchy but it's only negative is Heidi's vocals on the song. Amelle, Jade, and even Sean Kingston outshine her. I'd give the song an 8 but since Keisha's version is better this one I took a point off. 7/10
7) She's a Mess: WTF?! The title of this song should be called "This Track's a Mess". TOO MUCH AUTO-TUNE! The upside to this song? The beat and Amelle singing "everybody go mad, everybody go psycho" other than that the song's horrible! 3/10
8) Give It to Me Now: The upside, there's no auto-tune. The downside, the song is boring! 3/10
9) Crash & Burn: An uptempo ballad that was supposed to be the 4th single but was cancelled. Unlike the rest of the songs on the album, this song was recorded after Keisha was kicked out of the group. But there are still 2 versions of this song. The differences are the first half of the second verse which is "We lost it all in the fire we can't get it back, there's no way to recover anything we had, we're on the outside looking in at our aftermath, now it's too late". One version has Amelle singing it and the other has Heidi singing it. I prefer the version where Heidi sings it. It's much better than the previous two songs. 10/10.
10) No More You: Another ballad. The version with Keisha has yet to be released however there is a version were she's singing it live with Heidi. This song is okay but not as good as "Crash & Burn". 8/10
11) Sweet & Amazing (Make It The Best): Sugababes go acoustic pop? An uplifting ballad that's kinda boring and feels like it's been played on radio several times before. 5/10
12) Little Miss Perfect: This was Heidi, Amelle, and Jade's favorite song on the album. It showcases their voices beautifully and it's pretty good, but not as memorable as the other songs. 6/10
Overall Sweet 7 ended up getting not only negative reviews but peaked at number 14 in the U.K., their lowest charting album since One Touch. This many have been because no original members were in the band and a lot of the songs weren't as good as their previous songs. My favorite songs on the album are: Wear My Kiss, About a Girl, Thank You for the Heartbreak, and Crash & Burn. Out of 120 points, I give it 83 which is 69%, a D. The Sugababes have apparently broken up but the original members: Siobhan, Mutya, and Keisha have gotten back together as "Mutya Keisha Siobhan", "MKS" for short. They'll release an album later this year.
Friday, January 24, 2014
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Vanessa Carlton: Icon: Best of Vanessa Carlton Album Review
In 2002, we introduced to the amazing, piano-playing, songstress Vanessa Carlton when she released her debut single, "A Thousand Miles". The song became a huge hit and to date is Vanessa's best selling single. Since then she's released many singles, a couple albums, and has signed to many different labels. Today I'll be reviewing Vanessa Carlton's album, "Icon: Best of Vanessa Carlton". Here's my track by track review of the album.
1) A Thousand Miles: The debut single by Vanessa Carlton from her first album "Be Not Nobody". Before it was released as a single, the song was initially called "Interlude", until Ron Fair, the head of A&M Records (which was the label Vanessa Carlton was signed to at the time), told her to change the title. Like I said earlier, the song became her biggest hit to date peaking at number 5 on the billboard hot 100. The song's video involved Vanessa playing the piano while it moved around different parts of the world. Still an amazing song to this day. 10/10
2) Ordinary Day: The second single from Vanessa's first album "Be Not Nobody". The song was initially called "Divide and Conquer" and had a different lyrics at the end of the chorus. The original ending lyrics of the chorus were "If we walk now, we will divide and conquer this land." (Hence the original title for the song). The final version of the song has the ending lyrics of the chorus as "Don't you see your dreams lie right in the palm of you hand", but Vanessa has sang the "Divide and Conquer" part of the song in some live performances. "Ordinary Day" is Vanessa's second best selling single as well as her second, and to date, only other single hitting the top 40 on the billboard hot 100 chart by peaking at number 30. The video featured a solar eclipse while Vanessa played the piano in a field with many people hugging and kissing. The song is my favorite on "Be Not Nobody". 10/10
3) White Houses: The first single from Vanessa's second album "Harmonium". Unlike the previous songs, "White Houses" wasn't as successful. This was attributed to her label, A&M, refusing to promote the single as well as the album because it was much darker in contrast to Vanessa's first record. On top of that some radio stations censored the song's lyrics, not because of swear words (because there weren't any) but because the song talked about a woman losing her virginity. I get it, not something people want to hear on radio but considering the songs that get played on radio these days and even back then I have to say it was unfair for the song. The video showed Vanessa playing the piano as well as doing ballet dancing. The song peaked at number 86 on the charts. Sad because it was a great song. 10/10
4) Heroes & Thieves: The title track from Vanessa's third album, "Heroes & Thieves". The album was Vanessa's first, and only album, to be released through The Inc., a record company she signed to after leaving A&M Records. The song was not released a single which makes it strange that it would be put on a "Best of" record, but it makes sense since she hadn't released many singles. Plus the song was rumored to be the third single from the album since she performed it many times. I love the lyrics and I wish it had a video. 10/10
5) Nolita Fairytale: The first single from Vanessa's third album, "Heroes & Thieves". The song's initial title was just "Fairytale" but it was changed to "Nolita Fairytale instead. It was Vaness's first single released through The Inc. and mentioned her leaving her previous record label A&M as well as thanking Stevie Nicks, who she went on tour with. The video began almost exactly like "A Thousand Miles" except that she stopped playing the piano and the piano got destroyed by a moving car. It also featured a man with butterfly wings, a wolf, and a policeman riding a unicorn. This was also the song that got me listening to Vanessa Carlton. 10/10
6) Who's to Say: An album track from Vanessa's second album, "Harmonium". Although "White Houses" was recognized as the only single from "Harmonium" in the U.S., "Who's to Say" was actually the third and final single from the album in Asia. The song asks the question "who's to say we can or can't be together?". I really wish her label at the time gave this song a chance because it's a beautiful song that would've been a hit on radio. 10/10
7) Home: An album track from Vanessa's third album, "Heroes & Thieves". The song was one of two songs to be the second single from "Heroes & Thieves" along with "Hands on Me". Eventually "Hands on Me" became the second single instead. When I got the album "Heroes & Thieves", I ignored the song but these days I listen to almost all the time. I love the piano part at the end of the song. It's very uplifting and inspiring. 10/10
8) San Francisco: An album track from Vanessa's second album, "Harmonium". After "White Houses" failed on the charts, Vanessa was told to write and record songs for a re-release of "Harmonium" because there apparently was a "radio hit" on the album. I find that funny considering "San Francisco" was probably the one song from "Harmonium" that sounded the most like something that could've been on "Be Not Nobody", so it probably would've been a hit. Instead of a re-release of "Harmonium" Vanessa left A&M records. Shame the label didn't release this song. 10/10
9) Pretty Baby: The third and final single from Vanessa's first album, "Be Not Nobody". The song was remixed for radio when it was released. Unfortunately unlike "A Thousand Miles" and "Ordinary Day", the song failed to gain the same chart success. The video also showed a different side of Vanessa by tying her boyfriend to a chair. CRAZY! The version that's included on this album is the original album version from "Be Not Nobody". 10/10
10) Hands On Me: The second and final single from Vanessa's third album, "Heroes & Thieves". The song was originally called "Put Your Hands on Me" but was shorted to "Hands on Me" because Joss Stone had a song with the same title. "Hands on Me" performed better than "Nolita Fairytale" but it also missed the billboard hot 100. After promotion ended Vanessa left The Inc. and later signed onto Razor & Tie. It's video was very simple. 10/10
11) Twilight: An album track from Vanessa's first album, "Be Not Nobody". I question why this track was picked for the album instead of "Wanted", "Rinse," Sway", or her cover of The Rolling Stones' "Paint It Black." The song was the last song on "Be Not Nobody" and was also the darkest (which may have been a clue to why "Harmonium" was so dark as well). Although it has great lyrics I mainly ignore this track. 7/10
12) Private Radio: An album track from Vanessa's second album, "Harmonium". "Private Radio" was supposed to be the lead single from "Harmonium" but for unknown reasons that was scrapped. Instead "Private Radio" was released as the second single in Asia, but it didn't perform very well because of lack of promotion. (No surprise since A&M barely promoted the album at all.) The song was an upbeat song that talked about insomnia. It's one of my favorite songs on "Harmonium" but it took me forever to figure out the lyrics she sings in between the chorus at the end of the song. 10/10
Overall, Icon: Best of Vanessa Carlton gets 117 points out of 120 which is a 0.975 which rounded up to a 98% an A+. Awesome job! My favorite songs on the album are... well all of them! Although the album its self doesn't offer anything new, it's still good to have if your a die-hard Vanessa Carlton fan.
After this album was released, Vanessa released her fourth album, "Rabbits on the Run" and it ended up being another great album. She's now working on her fifth album and I can't wait! Vanessa you rule!
Friday, January 3, 2014
Atomic Kitten: Greatest Hits Album Review
Today I've decided to do one for Atomic Kitten's Greatest Hits album released in 2004. Atomic Kitten are, Liz, Natasha, Kerri (who left the band in 2001), and Jenny (who replaced Kerri after she left), a girl group from the United Kingdom who have released 3 albums: Right Now, Feels So Good, and Ladies Night. They re-released Right Now after Kerri left the band and Jenny recorded her vocals on some of the songs Kerri was on. Feels So Good and Ladies Night were recorded with Jenny. They also released a self-titled album in United States but it failed to chart. They released their greatest hits album before doing a performance at the Wembley Arena and took a break. The girls have recently gotten back together. However since Jenny Frost gave birth to twins a few months ago, Kerry rejoined the band with Liz and Natasha. The were on The Big Reunion with Liberty X, B*Witched, 911. 5ive, and Honeyz. Rumors are that they recording a new album. Until then here is my review of their greatest hits album.
1) Whole Again (2001 Version): This was the version that was done by Liz, Natasha, and Jenny. It was released as the overall fifth single from Right Now. The song talks about a person who makes you feel whole and you love them no matter what. This song also saved Atomic Kitten who were close to being dropped from their label as their album wasn't doing well as planned. Whole Again ended up being a number 1 hit in the U.K. and Atomic Kitten were back on top. 10/10
2) Ladies Night: The title track from their third album. It was released as the second single from the album. It is a cover of Kool and the Gang's song and it hit number 8 in the U.K. and became their first single in 2 years not to hit the top 5. It is okay but I'm not sure why it was picked as a single. 5/10
3) The Tide Is High (Get The Feeling): It was released as the second single from Feels So Good. It is a cover of Blondie's song with a new bridge added. This was the first song of theirs I ever heard because it in the Lizzie McGuire Movie. It was the 3rd single to hit number 1 in the U.K. The video also featured Natasha heavily pregnant but still looking amazing as ever. 10/10
4) It's OK!: It was released as the first single from Feels so Good. It was a slow ballad which is questionable considering releasing a ballad as the first single is always a risk. The single features Natasha sings the verses with Jenny singing the hook in the first verse and Liz in the second verse. The song hit number 3 in the U.K. proving that Atomic Kitten were still a force to be reckon with. 8/10
5) Be With You: This song was released as a double A-side single with The Last Goodbye. Be With You was later added onto their third album Ladies Night. The song is very dancey meets disco. Because the song was a double A-side single with The Last Goodbye, it charted at number 2 in the U.K. I don't really listen to this song that much. It has yet to grow on me. 4/10
6) If You Come To Me: It was released as the first single from Ladies Night. It's about being there for a person when they're down. The video was very weird. It peaked at number 3 in the U.K. 9/10
7) Eternal Flame: It was the first single from the re-released version of the Right Now album. It is a cover of the Bangles' song. Atomic Kitten does an amazing version of the song. It is one of my favorite songs from the band. It became their 2nd number 1 in the U.K. and the video was very sensual but simple. 10/10
8) Love Doesn't Have to Hurt: It was released as the fourth and final single from their album Feels So Good. It was re-recorded and remastered for a single release. It's amazing ballad to end the Feels So Good era. I love the song and the girls look incredibly beautiful in the video. The song peaked at number 4 in the U.K. making Feels So Good their only album to have all their singles hit the top 5 in the U.K. singles charts. 10/10
9) The Last Goodbye (Single Version): It was released as the third single from Feels So Good. The original version featured Natasha singing lead on the first and second verse, on the single version featured on this album Natasha shares the first verse with Liz and the second verse with Jenny. Unlike their previous videos The Last Goodbye's video had the girls doing a little bit of acting. The song peaked at number 2 in U.K. with Be With You. I didn't like the song at all at first be after a while I've started to like it more and more. 10/10
10) Right Now 2004: A remixed version of Atomic Kitten's very first single ever. It was remixed, re-recorded, and released as the first and only single from the greatest hits album. The original version of Right Now featured Kerry's vocals, reached number 10 in the U.K. and had a pop/rock sound to it. The remixed version features Jenny's vocals in Kerry's place, reached a higher position at number 8 in the U.K., despite selling less than the original, and was a dance sound to it as opposed to the original's pop/rock sound. 6/10
11) See Ya: This was released as the second single from the Right Now album. It was of three songs to have Kerry on the song singing back round. Unlike a majority of Atomic Kitten's singles having Natasha singing lead, it instead has Liz singing lead. Considering Liz co-wrote the song, it makes sense that she'd sing lead. The song is about leaving the person your in a relationship with being they're not the one for you. It's very upbeat and peaked at number 6 in the U.K. 9/10
12) I Want Your Love: This was released as the third single from Right Now. It is the second song on this album to feature Kerry. Unlike See Ya where she sings back round, she shares lead on all the verses with Liz and Natasha. Liz also co-wrote this song. It was also the first single to feature a swear word. It peaked at number 10 in the U.K. 8/10
13) You Are (Single Version): This was the second and final single released from the re-released version of Right Now. The original version of the song features Natasha singing lead on the full song with Jenny singing back round and the responses on the third verse, on the single version featured on this album Jenny vocals remain in tact where as Natasha splits the first and second verse with Liz. In retrospect the single version is better because it features all the girls singing lead. It is my favorite song from Atomic Kitten and the video was also great. It showed a story-line of a couple as well as the girls singing to the song. The song peaked at number 90 in the U.K. being the girls lowest charting single, however the song was technically never released in the U.K. Although there was a release date set, it was cancelled for unknown reasons. It charted only on promotional copies of the single being sold. In other words the single did very well in the U.K. considering it wasn't released there officially. 10/10
14) Cradle: From their first album Right Now, it was released as a single in Asia. It is the third song to have Kerry on it but like See Ya she only sings back round. Cradle only has Natasha singing lead throughout the whole song. It had a very simple but beautiful video and peaked at number 1 in Asia. It was not released in the U.K. until 2005 when it was released as a charity single peaking at number 10 in the U.K. That version featured Natasha, Liz, and Jenny sharing the verses together. 10/10
15) Someone Like Me (Single Version): The third and final single from their album Ladies Night. The original version features Liz singing the first and second verse whereas on the single version Jenny sings the second verse. Length-wise it is the shortest single Atomic Kitten has released at 2 minutes and 7 seconds. The video featured the girls in a white room together. It hit number 8 in the U.K. 10/10
Atomic Kitten's greatest hits album features all their singles except for Follow Me, the fourth single from Right Now. The peaked at number 20 in the U.K. which wasn't bad but it was one of the few reasons Atomic Kitten was almost dropped. The song was good though.
Overall the album was great. My favorite songs on this album are: You Are, Eternal Flame, The Tide Is High (Get The Feeling), Love Doesn't Have to Hurt, The Last Goodbye, Someone Like Me, Cradle, Whole Again, and See Ya. Out of 150 points the album gets 129 which is 86% a B. Atomic Kitten, You Rock and I can't wait for the new album!
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