Music Downloads: Fearless Taylor Swift

Fearless Taylor Swift

Fearless
Taylor Swift

Product Details

Amazon Sales Rank: #4 in Music
Released on: 2008-11-11
Number of discs: 1
Format: Enhanced

Editorial Reviews

Album Description
2008 sophomore album from the young Country singer/songwriter who charmed the hearts and charts of America beginning with her debut single 'Tim McGraw'. Her triple-platinum self-titled debut release has scanned over 3.4 million units and spent more weeks at #1 than any other Country album this year: 24 weeks! Taylor is the only Country female artist to have five Top 10 singles from a debut album and the only Country female vocalist this decade to reach the Top 5 on Billboard's Hot 100 Chart. Needless to say, she's a sensation that has only just begun to show what she is capable of. 13 tracks including the single 'Love Story' and 'Change', first heard during the 2008 Summer Olympics.

St. Petersburg Times, November 2008
Why we care: There's never been a more cynical time in pop music, at least from a critic's point of view. Not only do we assume most Top 40 tartlets aren't doing their own singing -- we've accepted it, grading on cultural impact, art and integrity be damned. The 18-year-old Swift's pop-country pirouettes have all the weight of a dandelion crown, but she can sing and write a bit and flash a genuine smile. Ultimately, though, the Pennsylvania gal is one of the hottest things in music more for what she's not. Why we like it: With feet-on-dashboard beats and innocent guitar strums, Swift's sophomore helping of country fluff (see first single Love Story) details the kind of drama and heartbreak crescendo that can devastate a kid...at least until after recess. Her voice is strong when it has to be, wispy and lilty in those quiet times. She knows catchy, that's for sure.

Reminds us of: The star pupil at Faith Hill's Camp for Exceptional Blonds

Grade: B

Chicago Sun-Times, November 23, 2008
2.5 stars

By Bobby Reed Composition instructors often say, "Write what you know." That approach has been essential to the meteoric success of country star Taylor Swift. For her second full-length album, country star Taylor Swift once again speaks to the concerns of her youthful demographic. If your autobiographical details mirror those found on this album, then it could become the soundtrack to your first date, your first day at high school, the thrill of dating a popular student, and the pain generated by a series of romances that end bitterly.

The annals of popular music are filled with tunes about being 16 years old, but Swift has turned back the diary pages to offer an insightful look at being 15. Now three years removed from that tumultuous time, a wiser Swift offers "Fifteen," a mandolin-spiced song in which she advises, "I've found time can heal most anything / And you just might find who you're supposed to be."

Swift's primary strength is her talent as a composer, not as a vocalist. She wrote or co-wrote all 13 tracks here, but she's saddled with a thin voice and two ineffective vocal techniques. The first is the regrettable crutch of humming, and the second is the habit of excessively elongating words so that a term like "myself" can be stretched into eight annoying syllables. Still, Swift knows how to craft a hook, and her songs "Tell Me Why" and "You're Not Sorry" deliver teenage angst with a flavorful coating of succulent country-pop. The one thematic misstep here is "The Way I Loved You," a song co-written by the most ubiquitous fellow in Nashville, John Rich. This tune examines a sensible yet passionless relationship that sparks envy among all of the narrator's "single friends." It sounds like a weak tale from a heart-scarred thirtysomething, rather than a frustrated lament from a kid who will turn 19 in December.

Customer Reviews

Awesome!!!
This is one of the best cds I have ever bought and is well worth the money. All the songs are relatable and I can't stop singing to them I'd write more - but I have to go listen to the cd again. XD

Relatable Yet Original
Taylor Swift is my favorite singer . She has opened my eyes to the fact that everything is not what it seems . When I was 7 or 8 years old , I hated Country music because I thought it was just yodeling . I had no idea what I was talking about . But when I heard Carrie Underwood , I began to like it . I was planning on buying her CD . When I heard Taylor , though , I knew I chose her over Carrie .

In the album "Fearless " , I can relate to the songs ...and yet they are unlike anything I've ever heard . In the song "Fifteen " , Taylor says ,"And when you're 15 , dont forget to look before you fall . " I know that is true because my 15-year-old cousin recently got hit by a car and was killed . If she had been more careful , she might have ran out of the car's way . So Taylor doesnt lie and opens the eyes of her audience . She also says , "In your life , you'll do things greater than dating the boy on the football team . " This makes her a good role model for her fans because she encourages them too not waste their entire life on boys .

I can relate to " You Belong With Me " because I currently like someone who has been my friend for years . Whenever I hear the song I think of him . He has a girlfriend , and so does the boy that Taylor talks about . It's as it Taylor can understand me . She writes all of her songs so emotionally and beautifully , that I feel like she IS me .

As for her originality , the music speaks for itself . She writes and co-writes all of her songs and they all have catchy rythyms that go well with the lyrics . You'll know what I mean when you buy the CD . Its the best CD I own ! You'll love it as much as I do !

+1/2 -- The sound of young Nashville sounds like good pop
Swift's second album continues the appealing pop of her debut. Her teenage voice is still a bit reedy, but the brassy edge provides balance to the perfectly arranged and polished productions. It's hard to understand why Swift is lauded with country music airplay and awards, since her music and subject matter only occasionally feint to country music's roots (is that a mandolin playing on "Breathe" and an atmospheric hint of pedal steel on "Tell me Why"?). This isn't a criticism of a Nashville artists pushing into pop territory, it's a wonder how and why a talented pop artist such as Swift positions her music in country music channels. One can only assume Swift was weaned on the later works of Faith Hill.

Swift solves one of the main problem facing teenage artists by writing her own material. Eighteen's an awkward age for a songwriter, though: too old to sing cute songs of youth, but not yet old enough to really sing with the experience of age. She walks the tightrope with songs of longing, broken hearts, love, and preternatural experience that can speak to both aspirational teenage fans and older listeners, and she's convincing. Her nostalgic "The Best Day" is a standout with its gentle arrangement and warm memories of caring parents. Some may by tempted to lump Swift with the interchangeable starlets churned out by Disney, but despite the adolescent focus of her lyrics, she's emotionally deeper than Miley Cyrus or Selena Gomez, a better singer and writer than Britney, and she has grander artistic ambitions than all three put together. 3-1/2 stars, if allowed fractional ratings. [©2008 hyperbolium dot com]