Raindancing - Alison Moyet

Author's product rating:   

Originality	Definitely a cut above the rest
Lyrics	Thought-provoking
Quality and consistency of tracks	Flawless
Value for Money

Advantages:	Reminders of the 80s, raw talent, distinctive voice
Disadvantages:	None

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Alison Moyet was born in 1961 in Basildon – an Essex girl. Her career started off in a number of pub type rock groups in the late 70’s/early 80’s, but fame really took off when she became part of the duo that were known as “Yazoo” featuring Alison as the vocalist and Vince Clark on synthesisers. Vince Clark had previously been with Depeche Mode and then moved on to Erasure, whilst Alison developed a hugely successful solo career.

1980-84 were really significant years for me musically. Music is symbolic of life changing events for me; in 1980 I was 16, left school and went to College, and met the first “love” of my life. “Only You”, Yazoo’s most well known hit had a profound effect on me, not least because of the distinctive, deep, expressive voice of Alison (aka Alf).

After Yazoo split up, Alison released her first album in 1983 entitled “Alf”, her nickname, and secured her numerous musical awards. Raindancing, her second album and the subject of this review, also won a Brit Award.

Alison Moyet can turn from rock/blues to an almost aggressive punk type feel to her music and is incredibly talented and unique, with a voice that can touch your soul.

The offerings on this album include:-

WEAK IN THE PRESENCE OF BEAUTY

“I go weak
I go weak in the presence of beauty”

The album opens up with a strong mid tempo number with the deep, rich tones of Alison’s voice. The music has a strong percussion element with great drums. A song of love and how love makes a person beautiful. Sung with belief and passion. 8/10.

ORDINARY GIRL

“Don’t you worry, this will all make sense tomorrow
Don’t be sorry, that everything we shared will fade away”

A good pop/rock track with Alison’s strong vocals slightly muted by the instrumental, but with great drum beats and keyboard. The lyrics are fantastic and are about leaving someone and the dawning realisation that they’re no-one special, just an “ordinary girl”. 7/10.

YOU GOT ME WRONG

“Has this foolishness a name
Keep it to yourself
No hear no see no speak
And nothing’s all you need to know”

This track has the best introduction on the album with squealing guitars and heavy drums. It’s definitely a rock song. It doesn’t do the singer’s voice justice at all which is a shame as the lyrics are great and the meaning behind the song profound. It’s about being accused wrongly of infidelity and how that makes you feel. 7/10.

WITHOUT YOU

“You and I should not be fighting
Life’s too short for fighting misdemeanours”

This track reminds me of Yazoo days for some reason and I can’t quite put my finger on why. It’s fast and catchy. The key suits the deep, distinctive, unique tone of Alison’s voice and allows us to hear the depth, tone and range of her voice. The lyrics are about being forced out of a relationship, when you don’t want that relationship to be over. 8/10.

SLEEP LIKE BREATHING

“Every word’s so ..
Every word’s so fragile
Inside passion that feels like chasing rain.

This soft soulful ballad is my favourite track on the album. As a young woman Alison Moyet’s voice belied maturity beyond her years. Deep, soulful, yearning and packed full of emotion, this tune is an almost hypnotic experience. Dramatic repetitive soft keyboards and instrumental support the song and allow the listener to fully appreciate the uniqueness of the singer. The lyrics are sublime and are wise beyond wisdom. 10/10.

IS THIS LOVE

“I choose never to forget
I want our lips to kiss and our limbs to entwine
Let our bodies be twisted but never our minds”

The tempo moves upbeat for this track which has a pop rather than blues feel to it. The smooth richness of Moyet’s voice on this track is truly a delight to behold. She sings with such passion and conviction as she sings of a love won and lost. Musically, there’s a good bass drum and great synthesised keyboards to make this number a very catchy one. 8/10

BLOW WIND BLOW

“Touch Me
I want to wrap you in my arms and you’ll have no reason
For crying”

Soulful and soft, Alison uses her haunting voice here to deliver stunningly beautiful lyrics that tell a story of true, sweet, passionate love. I cannot think of another female vocalist that could deliver this song in such an emotional way. The music itself is sparse on this track and is basic piano with a little bit of synthesised keyboards, simply because Alison’s voice is strong enough to support the lyrics on its own. 8/10

GLORIOUS LOVE

“Somewhere in the shadow of your eyes
An element that takes me by surprise”

Another upbeat number, and in my opinion the weakest link on the album. It seems to attempt to have a kind of rock feel to it, but it just doesn’t work somehow. Personally, I feel it’s because the heavy rock beat overshadows the beauty of Alison Moyet’s voice. The song itself is about giving up on love. 6/10.

WHEN I SAY NO (GIVEAWAY)

“His sister said she caught me out
If this gets back I’m dead without a doubt”

Although I didn’t feel that “Glorious Love” worked as a track because of the rock feel to it, this track is definitely a rock/pop tune. It’s very fast, with brilliant drums and keyboard, but the pitch is slightly higher and much more suited to Alison’s voice. A passionate number about infidelity and “wrong” love. 9/10.

STAY

“I have a horror of this place
Yet I’m accustomed to its face
And I am safe within its maze”

Another favourite of mine, this time a real, slow bluesy/soul number featuring strong electric guitar muted in the background to allow Moyet’s vocals to the forefront. The lyrics are deep and meaningful and appear to be about the ending of relationships and the discomfort at moving on. 10/10.

MY OPINION

An ageless effort by a unique singer/songwriter who is a timeless artist. Alison Moyet has a fiercely loyal fan base that is demonstrated by her career to date – 3 Brit Awards, nine top ten singles, seven top 10 albums, including three number ones. Her worldwide record sales exceed 20 million and every time she goes on tour the dates are sold out wherever she plays.*

I love this CD and it’s another which is regularly featured in my household. I can melt into her voice it’s so pure and true. Alison Moyet also writes most of her own material and this coupled with her voice make her a force to be reckoned with as far as British female vocalists go. Testament to her endurance as an artist is the fact that as recently as 2003 she was nominated for Best Female Vocalist at the Brit Awards.

This is well worth listening to; it will soothe your soul.

Alison Moyet’s latest release was launched on 6th September 2004 entitled “Voice” and is an album that features covers of a number of classic songs. I haven’t bought it yet … but I will do soon!

Raindancing is available from Amazon for £7.99 NEW, and £0.49 USED.

Happy listening.

Thanks for reading.

Cheers.

© Christina ;-) x

*Source – alisonmoyet.com