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Trollheart · 07-17-2011, 08:06 AM

Cry --- Faith Hill --- 2002 (Warner Bros)

Another album that stands out as the jewel in an artiste's crown, and which like It Bites above, she never equalled, or even came close to. Although Faith is renowned as a country music singer, “Cry”, her fifth album, comes across as much more a commercial pop album than a country one. Although I couldn't write a song to save my life, I do prefer artistes to write at least some of their own material, and so was more than a little disappointed to find that not one of the sometimes excellent tracks on this release were penned, or even co-written, by the artist herself. That notwithstanding, this is a fantastic album that could conceivably be enjoyed by both country fans and mainstream music fans --- rock and pop alike.

Starting off with a nice little uptempo popper, “Free” gets things going in decent style, with it has to be said, not a hint of country there at all. It's not till the opening ballad, also the title track, that you hear the familiar steel pedal guitar whine in, but this is not what would be thought of as a typical country ballad, as Faith asks ”Could you cry a little? / Lie just a little? / Pretend that you're feelin' / A little more pain?” Very much the song of a spurned woman who wants her lover to share her pain, it's a beautiful bittersweet song, really showcasing Faith's vocal range.

Going one better than Peter Gabriel on his “Us” album, two reviews back, Faith has assembled a supporting cast of almost one hundred musicians for this recording, and they certainly make their presence felt, giving the album a full, rich sound. However, it's the solitary piano that carries the delicate “When the lights go down”, similar in theme to Bob Seger's “Hollywood nights”, as she reflects on the loneliness of being left standing when all the money and fame evaporates: ”They were there for the fame / The flash and the thrills/ The drop of a name/ The parties, the pills/ Another star falls from the Hollywood hills/ Without a sound.” “Beautiful” is another tender ballad, opening with a spoken vocal over acoustic guitar, but some of the real standout tracks are more towards the end of the album, like “Stronger”, a real contender for best track on the album.

The tale of a couple breaking up, it's a power ballad with a powerful line in guitar work and a vocal sung with such emotion that it would almost seem to be personal, except as mentioned Faith did not write it. It opens with a spoken vocal and acustic guitar, like “Beautiful” before it, and in fact is one of the tracks featured on my first mix, “Ten from Trollheart”, available a few pages back. We should not however concentrate solely on the ballads, as there are some very good faster tracks, like “This is me”, with its easily-relatable lyric: ”Yeah, my heart bleeds for the homeless/ I worry about my parents/ And all my bills are late.” and the almost gospel-like “If you're gonna fly away”, not to mention “Unsaveable” (IS that a word?) with its unashamed rip-off of the riff from Berlin's “Take my breath away”, and its honky-tonk guitar. However there's no denying that it is the ballads that really stand out on this album, and if “Stronger” is a contender for track-of-the-album, it's just barely beaten out by the superior “If this is the end”, a tearjerker in the most epic fashion, with great orchestration.

As already mentioned, there's very little on this album which stands out as a country track in the normal sense of the word, and even moreso than Shania, I would say Faith Hill has to some extent left her country roots behind and stepped out onto the commercial stage of popular music. If she could maintain the quality of this release, she could have a very strong future, and we could certainly expect to see her in the charts. Unfortunately I was very let down by her follow up, 2005's “Fireflies”, and have not yet heard her latest, 2008's “Joy to the world”, but I get the feeling that this is as good as Faith gets.

But it's damn good!

TRACKLISTING

1. Free
2. Cry
3. One
4. When the lights go down
5. Beautiful
6. Unsaveable
7. Baby you belong
8. If you're gonna fly away
9. Stronger
10. If this is the end
11. This is me
12. Back to you
13. I think I will
14. You're still here

Suggested further listening: “Breathe”, “Fireflies”

07-17-2011, 08:06 AM	#79 (permalink)
Trollheart Born to be mild Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: 404 Not Found Posts: 26,971	Cry --- Faith Hill --- 2002 (Warner Bros) Another album that stands out as the jewel in an artiste's crown, and which like It Bites above, she never equalled, or even came close to. Although Faith is renowned as a country music singer, “Cry”, her fifth album, comes across as much more a commercial pop album than a country one. Although I couldn't write a song to save my life, I do prefer artistes to write at least some of their own material, and so was more than a little disappointed to find that not one of the sometimes excellent tracks on this release were penned, or even co-written, by the artist herself. That notwithstanding, this is a fantastic album that could conceivably be enjoyed by both country fans and mainstream music fans --- rock and pop alike. Starting off with a nice little uptempo popper, “Free” gets things going in decent style, with it has to be said, not a hint of country there at all. It's not till the opening ballad, also the title track, that you hear the familiar steel pedal guitar whine in, but this is not what would be thought of as a typical country ballad, as Faith asks ”Could you cry a little? / Lie just a little? / Pretend that you're feelin' / A little more pain?” Very much the song of a spurned woman who wants her lover to share her pain, it's a beautiful bittersweet song, really showcasing Faith's vocal range. Going one better than Peter Gabriel on his “Us” album, two reviews back, Faith has assembled a supporting cast of almost one hundred musicians for this recording, and they certainly make their presence felt, giving the album a full, rich sound. However, it's the solitary piano that carries the delicate “When the lights go down”, similar in theme to Bob Seger's “Hollywood nights”, as she reflects on the loneliness of being left standing when all the money and fame evaporates: ”They were there for the fame / The flash and the thrills/ The drop of a name/ The parties, the pills/ Another star falls from the Hollywood hills/ Without a sound.” “Beautiful” is another tender ballad, opening with a spoken vocal over acoustic guitar, but some of the real standout tracks are more towards the end of the album, like “Stronger”, a real contender for best track on the album. The tale of a couple breaking up, it's a power ballad with a powerful line in guitar work and a vocal sung with such emotion that it would almost seem to be personal, except as mentioned Faith did not write it. It opens with a spoken vocal and acustic guitar, like “Beautiful” before it, and in fact is one of the tracks featured on my first mix, “Ten from Trollheart”, available a few pages back. We should not however concentrate solely on the ballads, as there are some very good faster tracks, like “This is me”, with its easily-relatable lyric: ”Yeah, my heart bleeds for the homeless/ I worry about my parents/ And all my bills are late.” and the almost gospel-like “If you're gonna fly away”, not to mention “Unsaveable” (IS that a word?) with its unashamed rip-off of the riff from Berlin's “Take my breath away”, and its honky-tonk guitar. However there's no denying that it is the ballads that really stand out on this album, and if “Stronger” is a contender for track-of-the-album, it's just barely beaten out by the superior “If this is the end”, a tearjerker in the most epic fashion, with great orchestration. As already mentioned, there's very little on this album which stands out as a country track in the normal sense of the word, and even moreso than Shania, I would say Faith Hill has to some extent left her country roots behind and stepped out onto the commercial stage of popular music. If she could maintain the quality of this release, she could have a very strong future, and we could certainly expect to see her in the charts. Unfortunately I was very let down by her follow up, 2005's “Fireflies”, and have not yet heard her latest, 2008's “Joy to the world”, but I get the feeling that this is as good as Faith gets. But it's damn good! TRACKLISTING 1. Free 2. Cry 3. One 4. When the lights go down 5. Beautiful 6. Unsaveable 7. Baby you belong 8. If you're gonna fly away 9. Stronger 10. If this is the end 11. This is me 12. Back to you 13. I think I will 14. You're still here Suggested further listening: “Breathe”, “Fireflies” __________________ Trollheart: Signature-free since April 2018 Last edited by Trollheart; 11-04-2011 at 12:04 PM.