TINA ARENA "SONGS OF LOVE & LOSS 2"
Pete Doherty | UK | 12/31/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Tina Arena is without doubt one of my favourite artists of all time. While she is a very talented singer and songwriter, it's because of just how exceptionally brilliant her voice actually is that you can't help but give that so much more praise than her songwriting, but as a songwriter she has still written some of the best songs I have ever heard.
I think Tina Arena's original songs stand very highly on their own but I do enjoy hearing people who can actually sing doing cover versions, Tina has done a couple of cover versions before "Songs Of Love & Loss" and "Songs Of Love & Loss 2" which were "Show Me Heaven" and "I Want To Know What Love Is" and both surpassed the originals in my opinion, when she covers a song, even if you already know it, you end up feeling as if they're HER songs because she takes the quality to a whole new level. Unlike most artists, even though this is a covers album, Tina has spent alot of time working on it.
1. "Oh Me Oh My" - I didn't know this song before Tina covered it, her voice is stunning on this song, it's so powerful and clear.
2. "Only Women Bleed" - Again, I didn't know this song, but Tina's voice is brilliant, the arangement towards the end reminds me a little bit of "If I Didn't Love You" from Tina's "In Deep" album.
3. "Every Breath You Take" - I knew this song by The Police but I wasn't a fan of the song as I don't particularly like Sting's voice, and there were a couple of lines that I didn't understand either when Sting sang it.
4. "Close To You" - The original is such a popular song from the 70's that it can be tricky to cover such popular songs, Tina's slowed the song down just a little bit more but has changed the music, the songs got more guitar and drums on it than the original but not too much where it can be mistaken as a Rock song.
5. "Call Me" - I knew the original and I've never liked it, simply because I don't like Deborah Harry's voice. This version is brilliant, it's very uptempo and still has an 80's sound to it.
6. "Baby It's You" - I didn't know this song but after just hearing the first verse and chorus I loved it, it's very uptempo and catchy.
7. "Nights In White Satin" - Without doubt, this is one of the best songs on the album, it's a very haunting song and Tina's voice is outstanding.
8. "I Hope I Never" - I didn't know this song by Split Enz but I have listened to it and Tina's kept her version very like the original. Her voice just seems to be full of power and richness on here. I love how music ends on this song.
9. "Both Sides Now" - I knew the original and I liked hearing Vonda Shepard singing it in the TV series Ally McBeal. Tina has slowed the song down alot and it works, it's probably the saddest song on the album, it's also one of my favourites.
10. "Wouldn't It Be Good" - I didn't recognize the song by the title but I recognized it once I'd heard this version, Tina's also slowed this song down to the original and the piano part at the beginning sounds very similar to "Cloud On My Tongue" by Tori Amos, I had to check to see if it was her playing the piano, but it wasn't. I'd never took notice to how great the lyrics are on this song until I heard this version, and yet again, Tina's voice is brilliant.
11. "Your Song" - I knew this one and Tina has yet again surpassed the original, her voice is just a cut above so many artists who have had more success than her and it makes her versions of songs so much better than the originals.
12. "Living A Lifetime Together" - This is an original song by Tina and it's great, it has a French sound to it which is natural as Tina lived it France for so many years. It's a great song and completely different to any other song Tina has recorded.
13. "Downtown" - A fantastic choice to end the album with, I like the original version of this song, it reminds me of the movie Girl, Interrupted. Tina has yet again slowed the song down a little bit and her voice is brilliant. She's kept the 60's feel to the song too.
Tina Arena is probably THE most underrated artist in history, I know that success doesn't always mean the artist is talented, but Tina Arena deserves to be a superstar, but then again, everything happens for a reason in life and Tina's music has always been about quality and not quantity.
I hope Tina goes on to make "Songs Of Love & Loss 3" as it would be nice to hear another album of songs getting to see the light of day by another generation.
"
Arena's Covers "Love and Loss" Successfully
T. Yap | Sydney, NSW, Australia | 12/02/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Prime Cuts: Oh Me, On My, Wouldn't It Be Good, Your Song
If there's any justice, Tina Arena would be a mega star in the league of Celine Dion and Whitney Houston. This Australian diva certainly has the pipes to command attention and when she hits for the high notes she will definitely engender "wow" moments. After a hugely successful covers album last year (selling in excess of 120,000 copies in Australia), Arena is back with the second installment. Unlike the many copycats out there who merely carbon copy their way through, Arena has decided to dissect these classics and reconstruct them with creative interpretations. As many of these covers are from the 80s and 70s, Arena has as a result removed them from its cheesy productions before giving them a new post modern and at times eclectic makeover. Most of time they work, sounding fresher and more Tina Arenia-ish. Recorded in mostly live with the London Studio Orchestra providing the backing, there's an organic feel to these 12 tracks, though at times a little workmanlike.
Tracks that certainly work in favor of Arena include the lead single "Oh Me, Oh My" -- a little known song from the 60s originally recorded by Lulu. It's bright and sunny production captures the first blush of love, but it's Arena's engaging persona that makes this "fool for you" paean so irresistibly good. Elton John's gorgeous "Your Song," one of the most exquisite love songs that has had ever filled the radio waves, gets a spine chilling interpretation with Arena with just a piano. Also, interesting is Arena's cover of Alice Cooper's "Only Women Bleed," a song desperately crying for a female rendering. And Arena does Cooper proud slowing it down bearing her tortured soul.
The ipods of the lovesick will have Nik Kershaw's "Wouldn't It Be Good" on repeat. Arena's performance here is truly mesmerizing; she has literally turned this bubblegum pop from the 80s into a sober and helpless ode to love. However, not everything works, Arena has literally destroyed the warm sentiments of the Carpenters' "Close to You" with its rockish Green Day type production. Likewise, the Police's "Every Breath You Take" has been taken out of its haunting context and transformed into a frivolous rock piece that diffuses the potency of its lyrics. The CD is tagged at the end with one original "Living a Lifetime" that pales in comparison with all these classics with its disjointed melody and Arena's sometimes off tune delivery.
These 12 cuts on "Songs of Loss and Love Vol. 2" speak with a rhetoric that is so universal with melodies that towers over the passing of time. Further, Arena's interpretation on the whole is innovative, daring and heart rendering.
"
Track Listings (12) - Disc #1