Music Music Music is Boring Boring Boring.
Written: Aug 29 '09 (Updated Aug 31 '09)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: What About Us is the greatest song I've heard in a long time.
Cons: Ugh. It's made of plastic. Soulless renditions. Dumb song choices.
The Bottom Line: Okay music to have on in the background.
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| tjhassecrets's Full Review: Music Music Music by John Barrowman |
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Guess we've been talking too long
We know what we need
Separately
You say the honeymoon's over
I don't wanna push
But what about us?
It's ringing in my head
It's not what you say
It's what you haven't said
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I am a fan of pop music.
I am a fan of pop music, and I really like when singers inject some personality and artistry into the music they are singing, especially when they are not songwriters themselves. It's easy to get dilute your music when you just sing songs tastelessly and without any really sense of what they are about. If the singer doesn't feel the emotion, then the audience won't either and the song is a failure. I am a big fan of the sexy and talented Scottish actor/singer John Barrowman, who is better known for his role as Captain Jack on the hit TV-series Torchwood. When he's not planning an egomaniac in a science-fiction show, though, he's on Broadway, being the little choir boy that he is. Recently, John began releasing pop records in contrast to his myriad of Broadway tribute albums. With Another Side, John established himself as a killer vocalist with a rather nice taste in music. While not each song choice was perfect, his vocal delivery was clear as a bell and honest. With his sophomore pop album Music Music Music, John mixed up the track list, with the meat of the album still being his cover projects. But the interesting side to this record is that, for the first time, he sings entirely new songs. He's no songwriter, though, so he had quite a bit too prove. Unfortunately, in my eyes, John's second pop album is not as enjoyable as his previous effort.
With this album, I feel like John's delivery of certain songs is faux and polished-- as if he's on a Broadway stage. He covered Billy Joel on his previous record, so it's a little taxing that he chose to do him again. Uptown Girl does not suit his style or his voice, and he sounds like a gigantic vocal ham. The production is so cheesy and full of jazz hands, that I can't stomach more than a few seconds. Flat out, he made the sound a crappy showtune, and I'm not big into showtunes. The more enjoyable tracks include a nice cover of Richard Marx's Right Here Waiting, which is similar to his cover of All Out of Love. In other words, he took a bad song and made it much less wimpy and more honest. The Spanish guitar is soft and subtle during the break and it's almost like he's sitting out on his balcony with a glass of wine, crying his little eyes out. That's the John I like: The actor who doesn't remind me that he's acting. His version of Joni Mitchell's Both Sides Now is quick and minimal, and as difficult as it is to listen to it due to personal associations, he does the song a lot of justice. The swirling Disney-esque production during the chourses and clarinet samples are quite nice. At least, I like it until the end, during which he takes the song to a shimmery, bluntly dramatic place that it doesn't need to go to to be effective.
The only real reason I would get this disc is because the new song, What About Us, is quite possibly the best song the man has ever recorded. His delivery is stellar as his voice compliments the soaring late-millennium adult-contemporary production. Above all, the song is just effing catchy. The songwriters did an amazing job with this track, and I wish it could have done better: "What about us? What about love? What about sayin' that we'll never give up? Don't wanna blame ya / But we're in danger..." It's powerful and honest-- and the best part? It's not! John has been married for years, but he does sound like his husband is divorcing him. The rainy-day feeling is effective and powerful. His version of I Know Him So Well from the play Chess isn't as bad as I thought it would be, featuring a guest spot from Daniel Boys. It's not the best song, as it has a lame hook, but the harmonization is beautiful. The only song that I absolutely love on this album, aside from the new track, would be the effective You'll Think of Me, originally recorded by country music star Keith Urban. John did country well on his last album and this contempo-country pop song sounds about a million times better when sung by him: "Take your records / take your freedom / take your memories, I don't need 'em..."
Unfortunately, a lot of this album is dull and scattershot, falling into the same trap that Celine Dion and Josh Groban fall into: John is just a vocalist. His version of From a Distance is nice, but...again, he's just doing karaoke. His personality seemed to take a backseat on this project, and I hope that he can fix that on his next effort. As a fan of John Barrowman, this album gave me some more great pop music, but it also disappointed me for not even coming close to what I know this man can do.
VERDICT
Bootleg it. You have no reason to pay import fees for a record that is barely worth five dollars.
01. What About Us [5 Stars]
02. Can't Take My Eyes Off You [3 Stars]
03. You'll Think of Me [5 Stars]
04. I Made It Through the Rain [2 Stars]
05. You Don't Have to Say You Love Me [4 Stars]
06. Right Here Waiting [4 Stars]
07. Uptown Girl [1 Star]
08. Both Sides Now [3.5 Stars]
09. Angel [3.5 Stars]
10. I Know Him So Well (with Daniel Boys) [3.5 Stars]
11. I Am What I Am [1 Star]
12. From a Distance [3 Stars]
BEST: What About Us
WORST: I Am What I Am
SCORE: 3 STARS (3.2- )
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JOHN BARROWMAN
2007 - Another Side
Recommended:
Yes
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tjhassecrets
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Location: Gießen, Germany
Reviews written: 381
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Fancy Fresh 80s Disco King.
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