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"I always keep a stimulant handy in case I see a snake - which I also keep handy" - W. C. Fields
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British pop history is littered with the failed careers of Australian soap stars. Of them all, only Kylie Minogue has really shown any longevity, thanks largely to her Madonna-esque reinventions. Jason Donovan fell in with the wrong crowd and didn’t really go anywhere once his associations with Kylie and Stock-Aitken-Waterman were over, although his reappearance on the London stage suggests he can sing a little. Dannii Minogue suffered from being in the shadow of her more talented sister, and Holly Valance seems to have vanished faster than the director of her “Kiss Kiss” video said “OK, you can put your clothes back on now”
So, into these hardly promising footsteps comes Delta Goodrem. Unusually, she was a singer and songwriter before appearing in “Neighbours”, rather than being selected from the cast for a pop career, a la Kylie and Jason. Interestingly, her debut song was a track performed in character on the show, much akin to Nick Berry on EastEnders so many years ago. Again, though, hardly an encouragement, given how his musical career went.
Having heard the single “Lost Without You” on the music channels, I was tempted to give the album a go. Having enjoyed Vanessa Carlton’s “Be Not Nobody”, I was intrigued by another new artist sounding a little similar. The title track “Innocent Eyes”, though, had that little extra that had me reaching for my wallet, promising a fuller and more rounded sound than Vanessa Carlton.
The album opener “Born To Try” was the song Delta sang on “Neighbours” and gave her that all important first break. It has that “Every Loser
Wins” kind of style to it, in that it’s a simply put together ballad with just a voice and a piano for the most part. Although the introduction does sound a little like Vanessa Carlton, Delta Goodrem has a richer voice and the end result is almost Celine Dion-ish, although with a little more restraint on the vocals.
Title track and third single “Innocent Eyes” is not so much a song as an insight into a life. It’s a slightly quicker track and the piano work is more intricate, as are the lyrics. The inclusion of more backing instruments give the song a richer feel, and every listen, even now, convinces me I made a smart decision in buying the album.
“Not Me, Not I” sounds in parts like a slowed down version of “Fantasy”. It’s another ballad, with Goodrem’s voice sounding part way between Celine Dion and Natalie Imbruglia at various points. It makes for a rich combination, and this track is due to be the next single.
The guitar and violin introduction to “Throw It Away” comes as a bit of a shock. Although it’s another ballad paced track, the main instrument here is a guitar, rather than a piano and it’s a louder track than what has gone before. Sadly, this does overshadow Goodrem’s voice at some points, which is a great shame, as that’s her most effective instrument. However, she sounds less like Celine Dion on this track, and that’s no bad thing.
The second single “Lost Without You” returns the piano based sound, although it’s again not the main sound for the most part, with strings and a quite intrusive drum beat running over the top. It’s a big ballad type number, and deservedly propelled Goodrem towards stardom.
“Predictable” isn’t as predictable as the title suggests. Although it starts predictably, as a piano based ballad, the choruses add strings and it becomes a more rounded track, perhaps more pop influenced than many on the album. The piano pieces are quite simple compared to some of the other tracks, but the music overshadows the voice again in parts.
Some of the artwork on the website suggests that “Butterfly” is a favourite. It was the first song Goodrem co-wrote with Gary Barlow, who proves he’s not lost his touch as a writer of some impressive pop ballads. Again the drum beat is a little intrusive at times, but less so than before and Goodrem’s voice soars over the top. Much like “Predictable”, the piano work is quite simple, but the overall song is wonderfully crafted.
“In My Own Time” harks back to “Born to Try”. Simple piano and vocal work until the guitar kicks in for the chorus. Although that gives the song more depth, it did seem better without them.
“My Big Mistake” is quite possibly one of the best songs on the album. It seems to take everything that has been best from some of the other tracks and works them all together in a moment of virtual perfection. The piano and the voice are there, augmented by a few backing vocals. The emotion is clear in the voice, which gets a full workout, and the instruments don’t get in the way as they have done before. It’s a simply wonderful four minutes.
Unfortunately the drums are a little intrusive again on “This Is Not Me”. The vocals also remind me of someone, but I can’t think of who exactly. It’s again a little more poppy than some of the other tracks, and not one of the best.
“Running Away” starts with an acoustic guitar intro and sounds almost as if it would be on Michelle Branch’s “The Spirit Room”. It’s possibly the fastest tempo song on the album, and the guitars stay in place, instead of the more usual piano, and the song seems a little out of place, purely because of how different it is.
The slow, simple piano and vocal introduction to “A Year Ago Today” is more in keeping with the rest of the album. Again, as so many times before, we have a beautiful piano based ballad, again not sounding too dissimilar to Celine Dion.
“Longer” starts with the piano and strings before breaking into a mid-tempo pop style song, which almost sounds a little like something Britney Spears might come out with, although it would be a slower track for her, rather than a faster one as it is for Goodrem. Fortunately, the instrumentation doesn’t interfere too much with the vocals.
The album closes in much the same way as it opens. “Will You Fall For Me” is again largely piano and vocals on their own. Although there have been some other impressive side journeys throughout the album, this is where Goodrem’s talents shine best and is, as such, a fitting end to a wonderful album.
At 56 minutes long, this is quite lengthy for a modern music album. Available from Amazon at £10.99, or CD-Wow at £8.99, this represents great value, especially given the quality of the album. Fans of Vanessa Carlton and Celine Dion will greatly appreciate this album, and the recent announcement that Delta Goodrem has been nominated for 10 ARIAs (the Australian BRIT Awards, effectively) suggests that they won’t be alone, either.
This is definitely more music for a dinner party than a wild party. It’s something to have playing in the background while you’re doing other things, or relaxing at the end of a day.
A recent diagnosis of Hodgkin’s Lymphoma suggests that there are more important things than music and winning awards to be faced right now. Goodrem is confident she’ll beat the disease, and will be back as good as ever. For the sake of both her health and the listening pleasure of millions, I hope it’s soon.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
She is a very talented musician, I love every song she sings. She really sings like an angel.
salem_witch 05.01.2006 06:27
I so nearly bought this album when it first came out. However, Lost Without You upsets me now. It was played loads when my cat was dying so it reminds me of him. If it had come out a month or so before that I'd have snapped it up!
kirstymack80 13.03.2004 19:49
Loved reading that! My friend sent me an Aussie version of this album for Xmas, I play it all the time! She's fab. KirstyM
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