Bella Donna & Wild Heart= End of Story!

[KarmaContestant]

Originally Posted by Morgana

Looking back on the SA time Stevie was in a different time and place in her life which a lot of her fans found different, she departed from the wild and crazy Stevie. I think that Stevie image was associated with the SA album then which may explain why it wasn't well received back then. So Stevie and some of her fans had to get past that point in her life and that is in part why SA is more appreciated now. Just MHSNO

Good points. I bought Street Angel the day of release. I was 20 years old. I have always loved the album, even though there are times I didn't appreciate it as much as her other work.

It was certainly a departure for Stevie from the 'norm' and from what fans expected from her, but one thing that I appreciate is how the songs on Street Angel have stood the test of time. They still sound fresh - as opposed to the very dated sounds of Rock A Little (my first, and favorite Stevie album ever) and The Other Side of the Mirror (Stevie's worst album, for me, and the lowest point in her career, for me)

[louielouie2000]

Originally Posted by KarmaContestant

one thing that I appreciate is how the songs on Street Angel have stood the test of time. They still sound fresh - as opposed to the very dated sounds of Rock A Little (my first, and favorite Stevie album ever) and The Other Side of the Mirror (Stevie's worst album, for me, and the lowest point in her career, for me)

Agreed! I often think the same thing when I listen to Street Angel! The production is just so clean and free from gimmicks and unnecessary noise. The album just sparkles coming out of speakers. Even TISL sounds muddy in comparison. One of the many reasons why I appreciate Street Angel is the fact it's eschewed the more heavy handed production of OSOTM and RAL in favor of a cleaner, more straight forward sound that Stevie started out with in Fleetwood Mac and her early solo albums. Street Angel to me represents Stevie getting back to basics... back to her roots vs hiding behind gimicky noises which were the trends of the moment.

[windbecame]

while i get the reason she likes God's Garden lyrically... that vocal is horrendous
the first time i played when i bought the japanese cd at a record show(remember those?) i thought something was wrong with my cd player??? her voice was so deep i thought it was a man??!! ala princess Vespa in Spaceballs.. it just killed the song dead in it's tracks for me

[KarmaContestant]

Originally Posted by windbecame

while i get the reason she likes God's Garden lyrically... that vocal is horrendous
the first time i played when i bought the japanese cd at a record show(remember those?) i thought something was wrong with my cd player??? her voice was so deep i thought it was a man??!! ala princess Vespa in Spaceballs.. it just killed the song dead in it's tracks for me

LOL. I agree.

[markolas]

Originally Posted by louielouie2000

Stevie ventured too far from rock on Wild Heart for my personal taste.

Well, there's the crux of the issue, and it really does just come down to personal taste. I am not a huge rock fan. The "greatest bands" lists that people do here from time to time consistently list groups like Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Queen, etc. - I can't stand any of it. "I'm So Afraid" is too hard rock for me, especially the live versions. Don't get me started on rock guitar solos...especially in concert, they tend to be loud, screeching, tuneless, and go on for way too long. Listen to Django Reinhardt or David Russell if you want to know how a guitar is supposed to be played. But I digress.

If Stevie decided to do a syrupy, strings-laded album full of light '60s R&B covers, or something else predominantly keyboard or piano-based like TOSOTM, I'd be thrilled. A little rock goes a long way, for me.

[TheSorcerer]

Originally Posted by sorcerer999

Also, am I the ONLY PERSON on this board who ADORES "Gate & Garden"? I've not heard anyone say anything nice about this song. LOL.

I've always loved it.

I've never bought "Street Angel" which I guess is probably down to the bad reputation it has. I've heard a few tracks from it that I like - "Blue Denim" and "Kick it". I'll probably try and get it cheap on eBay.

I've always liked "The Wild Heart" and regard it as one of my favourites after "Rock a Little", "Bella Donna" and "Trouble in Shangri-La". I've always felt that this album was very storytelling. I know that Stevie's songs are storytelling and poetic, but with TWH I've always felt that it has a epic fairytale quality to it and she really upped the storytelling side in her songwriting. I don't know...it's almost a girly record. I love that "Gate and Garden" is apparently about her muff. I guess if that is true it adds to my feelings above about it being a "girly" record. Then there's the cover which is pink and very feminine looking. As much as I like "I Will Run to You", I've always felt that they were hoping to score another "Stop Dragging My Heart Around" for the record. I've also never understood the love for "Nightbird" or why it was chosen as a single. Awful song.

My favourite Stevie album has got to be "Rock a Little". I hardly listened to it when I first bought it, but then one day it just hit me and I completely fell in love with it. I'm a sucker for '80s production and sound and adore all those 12" remixes from the era (I'm totally digging those from "Tango" at the moment). LOVE the title track - very moody and atmospheric. "I Can't Wait!" is a great track (very '80s), "If I Were You" was a track that I NEVER listened to before but has since become my all time favourite Stevie song; "No Spoken Word", "Imperial Hotel" and "Has Anyone Ever Written" are also great. The two songs I've never cared for are "Sister Honey" and the god awful "I Sing for the Things" with those strained vocals. They should have knocked those two tracks off and put on "Mirror Mirror" and left it as 10 songs.

"Bella Donna" is obviously a great album and a classic. There are still a few tracks I don't paticularly care for - "Leather and Lace", "Kind of Woman" and "The Highwayman". I personally think "Julia" would have fit on it perfectly.

" The Other Side of the Mirror" is half-half. "Rooms on Fire", "Cry Wolf" and "Ooh My Love" are the highlights, "Whole Lotta Trouble" and "Long Way to Go" are songs I've grown to simply like. Lately I have been listening to "Doing the Best I Can" quite a bit which has grown on me. The rest are forgettable. I truly detest "Two Kinds of Love" ...that bloody saxaphone! I'm truly embarassed by that song.

"Trouble in Shangri-La" was the first Stevie album I bought (I got into her in 2003). Like all her albums there are some duds - "That Made Me Stronger", "I Miss You" and "Love Changes". Still, it contains some of her finest work in years - "Planets of the Universe" being one of my all time favourite tracks. I like that the album is a lot more melodic and somewhat acoustic driven. There's almost an organic sound like it's been stripped back. Not sure if that makes sense.

[markolas]

I wouldn't go so far as to say I *adore* Gate & Garden. I like it, but it would not be in my top 25 favorite Stevie songs.

[Spoinny]

Ha, I forgot about Two Kinds Of Love. I actually really love that song, I played it for my friend the other night and he said "that's stevie nicks? get it off, I hate it!". Guess I'm the minority on this song. I remember 1st hearing on "rockline" back in 89