Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Commentary C.D. Review: Taylor Swift’s Fearless

“We all have fears and there are a lot of things we’re afraid of, but we jump anyway.”

Taylor Swift, an eighteen year old songwriting, guitar playing artist, seems to have definitely ‘jumped’ regardless of her fears. From performing at the young age of ten in every karaoke contest, festival and county fair that passed through her hometown of Wyomissing, Pennsylvania, to signing her very first record deal before she could even drive, Taylor has leaped head first to fulfill her dreams—she is the definition of fearless.

Upon its release on November 11, 2008, Fearless sold nearly 600,000 copies in only its first week. This savant, lyric-writing genius, with a gift for verse-chorus-bridge structure saw her sophomore record, in which she wrote almost every one of the thirteen songs, remain number one on Billboard’s Top 200 chart for eleven consecutive weeks. From this accomplishment, Taylor holds the longest reign at the number one spot on this all-genre chart.

After listening to her lyrics, one can picture themselves as a character in her musical story tales. Her music is written based on her own, real-life experiences. Rarely does she change anything about the situation or the people involved in the experience she retells through her lyrics. She paints a picture in her audience’s mind where they can truly relate to the situation the song’s character faces.

Though only eighteen, Taylor’s lyrics are words of wisdom, support, determination, power and confidence that, if you listen you would think were coming from a fifty-something year old who has long lived life—something of an 18 going on 50 affect I guess. She combines her passion for music, talent for writing and expertise at playing the guitar and belting her vocal cords to deliver her fans the absolute best music possible. It’s no wonder that in such a short time Taylor has scored four number one country singles from her two records.

Fearless currently has a hit single that put Taylor at number one in another realm. ‘Love Story’ made history as it hit number one on both the country and pop music charts. In this song, Taylor adds a twist to Shakespeare’s story of Romeo and Juliet giving her fans a more likable and desirable ending than what the literature gives its readers.

Her second number one on the Fearless record, ‘White Horse,’ is a slower, melodic tune of inspiring words that may help one get through a break up or get out of an unpleasant situation. It brings our fairy tale visions of love and relationships to the context of real life. We can dream about our princes and princesses but we must wake up and face reality; sometimes we have to tell our prince charmings it’s too late for you and your white horse to come around.

Based on the sounds and lyrics of Taylor’s eleven other songs on her triple platinum Fearless record, it would not be a surprise—at all—if she had a few more hit singles top the charts. As the youngest artist in history to win this year’s Album of the Year at the Academy of Country Music awards, it is evident Taylor took a jump, head first, Fearless.

No comments:

Post a Comment