Sequan Wilson's Album Reviews
![Fearless [Taylor's Version]](https://fastly-s3.allmusic.com/release/mr0005355976/front/120/T3ppReEDHIOGmlS2HnQnYVWnbEN5fCjifro6xhIBuB4=.jpg)
I’ve been a unabashed fan of Taylor Swift since 2007, and I have zero intentions of changing that. But biased I am not, and as much as I will forever support this brilliantly lovable ingenue, there were a few little things I’ve noticed with this very welcomed but dubious-to-the-nostalgic-ear re-recording.
Taylor’s retaliatory effort against the music industry’s REAL snakes is a thing of legend: she knows her worth, and her fans certainly know it as well, so she executes the coup-d’état of the decade and decides to re-record her first 6 albums that’s currently affixed to multiple recipients (most notably her long-time record label: Big Machine Records), starting with her seminal sophomore record, Fearless.
The original record is impeccably crafted on its own, which captures the the heart and soul of an artist wise beyond her years, and a soon-to-be irreplaceable songwriter who crafts genuine and sincere country-driven pop numbers among an arguable sea of uninspired pop that was soon to accompany the following decade. The re-recording, however, is an attempted shot-for-shot remake of the original material. It tries its absolute best to recapture the original spirit of the 2008 juggernaut, with instrumentation and inflection that harnesses the message, but none of the youthful essence of the source material.
The core reason as to why the re-recording doesn’t have that same late naughties magic is on full-display: Taylor’s voice has matured and evolved significantly since her days of Fearlessness; so those who are expecting a splash of that endearingly naive affection from a 19 year-old superstar-in-training that they’ve been used to are bound to be disappointed. Some songs benefit from the new Taylor’s inflections: “White Horse”, “Breathe”, and “You’re Not Sorry” in particular become a bit more impassioned and reflective instead of regretful and dumbfounded, putting a very welcomed spin on an already wistful set of songs. But songs like “The Way I Loved You” and “Forever and Always” pretty much required the boisterous adolescence of the then teenaged-Taylor, so they probably won’t have the same heart-stopping effect that the original recordings had. Luckily, the record is purely solid overall, having its heart in all the right places despite the new interpretations of teenage plight by a more worldly, mature woman who’s learned quite a bit from those former woes. For those who missed out on the sophomoric splendor that is Fearless, there’s a lot to gain with this new-aged gift (Mr. Perfectly Fine is a gem to fans both emerged and experienced), but to those who are very much used to the original record, there’s bound to be some sense of longing, as that’s how nostalgia tends to operate. But in the words of Taylor herself: “count to ten, take it in”, and you’ll find that there’s a lot to love in this recreation, even if it seems to run a bit longer than both the standard and Platinum editions due to the very welcomed fan-service.
3.5/5 stars.
Taylor’s retaliatory effort against the music industry’s REAL snakes is a thing of legend: she knows her worth, and her fans certainly know it as well, so she executes the coup-d’état of the decade and decides to re-record her first 6 albums that’s currently affixed to multiple recipients (most notably her long-time record label: Big Machine Records), starting with her seminal sophomore record, Fearless.
The original record is impeccably crafted on its own, which captures the the heart and soul of an artist wise beyond her years, and a soon-to-be irreplaceable songwriter who crafts genuine and sincere country-driven pop numbers among an arguable sea of uninspired pop that was soon to accompany the following decade. The re-recording, however, is an attempted shot-for-shot remake of the original material. It tries its absolute best to recapture the original spirit of the 2008 juggernaut, with instrumentation and inflection that harnesses the message, but none of the youthful essence of the source material.
The core reason as to why the re-recording doesn’t have that same late naughties magic is on full-display: Taylor’s voice has matured and evolved significantly since her days of Fearlessness; so those who are expecting a splash of that endearingly naive affection from a 19 year-old superstar-in-training that they’ve been used to are bound to be disappointed. Some songs benefit from the new Taylor’s inflections: “White Horse”, “Breathe”, and “You’re Not Sorry” in particular become a bit more impassioned and reflective instead of regretful and dumbfounded, putting a very welcomed spin on an already wistful set of songs. But songs like “The Way I Loved You” and “Forever and Always” pretty much required the boisterous adolescence of the then teenaged-Taylor, so they probably won’t have the same heart-stopping effect that the original recordings had. Luckily, the record is purely solid overall, having its heart in all the right places despite the new interpretations of teenage plight by a more worldly, mature woman who’s learned quite a bit from those former woes. For those who missed out on the sophomoric splendor that is Fearless, there’s a lot to gain with this new-aged gift (Mr. Perfectly Fine is a gem to fans both emerged and experienced), but to those who are very much used to the original record, there’s bound to be some sense of longing, as that’s how nostalgia tends to operate. But in the words of Taylor herself: “count to ten, take it in”, and you’ll find that there’s a lot to love in this recreation, even if it seems to run a bit longer than both the standard and Platinum editions due to the very welcomed fan-service.
3.5/5 stars.
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