Quote:
Originally Posted by Macfan4life
For some reason the biggest complaints from SA is that Stevie sings the words laundromat and chimpanzee. Crazy reasons.
If you strip away all of the vocals on SA, each track is very good musically. This is what is missing in TISRL. If you strip away the vocals on that album you are left with very lightweight music that almost sounds like a demo.
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I agree with this statement completely. Street Angel isn't particularly memorable for me, I don't think any of it's high points stack up to the high points of any other solo album, but there's a decent amount to appreciate with it. The back-to-roots production is a welcome change from the thick mist of keyboards that was TOSOTM (which has its high points as well). Blue Denim is a good rocker and she really killed it live, Maybe Love is a perfectly serviceable pop song, Street Angel is clunky but has a moody atmosphere that I like a lot, and I like the feel and message of Kick It.
I never got the hate for Docklands or Jane. I enjoy the Mint Juelps and Betsy Cook versions more, but I appreciate the grittier feel to the music and vocals that Stevie provides. I remember reading some criticism that the lyrics "just don't fit for Stevie" because it doesn't sound as magical as her other songs, but that's kind of why I like it. It fits well with the production of the album. I don't feel too much for Jane, just personal preference, but I like the music and you can sense the heart she has for the song in her delivery. I might have edited out the chimpanzee line but I don't think it's anywhere near as awkward as its made out to be. When people say it's the worst song she's ever made, right up against The Second Time and That Made Me Stronger I get super confused.
A few songs come across as filler for me though. Listen to the Rain, Unconditional Love, Greta (which has some pretty cringey lyrics), and Destiny don't really make an impression on me unfortunately. They've got decent music but eh lyrics and vocals. Rose Garden could have been better with some retooling (I liked it on the Enchanted tour). Love is Like a River... has a good base but it was executed in all of the wrong ways. The backing vocalists in particular.
Thousand Days and Mirror, Mirror are both AMAZING and if they replaced Greta and Love is Like a River the album would've felt stronger imo. I've heard Running Through the Garden was tried for that album as well. If that's true, I'd kill to hear a more basic version of that rocker without all the 80s trappings on the RAL demo and SYW version. Although I think literally every album would have benefited from adding that song
