(no subject)
Jenn Spelas
Music Review
Due: 4-7-06
James Blunt, a young man from England has just released his first album, “Back to Bedlam.” According to his site, http://www.jamesblunt.com, he served in the army and protected the Queen of England. His family had been in the army for an incredibly long time; since 995A.D. to be exact and had no interest in music. A few of the songs on this album were written while serving in the army. When he was sent away to boarding school, he learned to play the piano, and fell in love with music.
The song he is mostly famed for is track number two, “You’re Beautiful.” It has been on almost every radio station and is stuck in everyone’s heads. The song is about a girl that Blunt sees on a subway, but “she was with another man. He devises a plan, that is never explained in the song. I loved this song when I heard it on the radio. It has a very catchy tune, and before I realized it, I knew all of the lyrics, but when I purchased the album, I was in for a surprise. The radio had changed the lyrics slightly, and personally I liked them better that way. What I thought said “She could see from my face that I was flying high,” actually says, “She could see from my face that I was f**king high.” The language and drug reference came out of no where, and it wasn’t the last time that I was faced with this.
“High,” the first track on the album can be debated. In this song, Blunt stats that he is “getting high; running wild among all the stars above.” The song itself is a very mellow song, and seems like it is comparing the beauty of dawn with a woman, but a close look could show other wise. Maybe we could all ignore the possible drug reference and consider it a description of how he feels with his woman, but the next quote can’t be disputed.
The third song named “Wisemen” seems to be discussing the wise men mentioned in the Bible, but some things a slightly disturbing. Within the very first stanza Blunt says, “When they came down from Heaven, Smoked nine ‘til seven, All the sh*t they could find, But they still couldn’t escape from you.” Again I was absolutely shocked to hear such a blatant promotion of drug use. I also feel that his choice in wording was weak. There really was no need to add profanity to this song, or even album.
“So Long, Jimmy,” the eighth song, is the last one on the album with any obvious drug references. It’s another calm song, that seems to be about losing a friend. One line says, “Are you just cool and I’m just baked?” Could that honestly be any more obvious? I don’t understand why Blunt felt the need to add such things to his songs.
Other than the few songs with profanity and small references to drugs, the album is touching. As I listened to the songs, I felt them grow and mature. “Goodbye My Lover” is a simply beautiful song. It is about losing a lover, but I love the chorus--”Goodbye my lover. Goodbye my friend. You have been the one, you have been the one for me.” I feel that “Goodbye My Lover” shows Blunts mature side, and gives the listener a positive look at relationships. Our lovers are also supposed to be our best friends, and a lot of artists don’t show that anymore.
“Tears and rain” follows “Goodbye My Lover” but is a very sad and serious song. I love most of the lyrics because they are so deep. “Here I wish I could surrender my soul; Shed the clothes that become my skin; See the liar the burns deep within my needing,” is just an example. The song is packed full of those kinds of thoughts, and really connect with the listener. Something I didn’t understand is Blunts reference to “Dorian Grey.” I looked it up and it is another band, though I’m not sure why Blunt chose to mention them in a serious song. The articles I have read about Blunt state that he doesn’t like to explain the reasoning behind his songs, so I don’t think we’ll ever know why he does what he does.
The last two songs on the album, “Cry” and “No Bravery,” are the best songs lyrically and musically on the whole album. In “Cry,” Blunt has deep lyrics such as: “ I have seen peace. I have seen pain, Resting on the shoulders of your name. Do you see the truth though all their lies? Do you see the world through troubled eyes?” It is about friendship in the truest form, and Blunt offers up his shoulder to cry on. That is probably why he chose the name “Cry.” Now, “No Bravery” is about a place that is “burnt beyond repair” and a children with tears drying on their faces. The song never states what exactly has happened to this place, but Blunt does a fabulous job portraying the emotions of the people. The background art in the album cover for both of these songs is the silhouette of the soldiers raising the flag pole. I am assuming that both of these songs stem from Blunts time in the army.
Over all, “Back to Bedlam” is a three out of five star album. James Blunt has great potential, but tends to lose it with some of his song choices. Also, the music is very mellow all the way through. I have found that there really isn’t any one song that changes it up, or keeps my attention. I use it to sleep to, or to have as background noise when I’m stressed out. This album is one that James Blunt will work from and hopefully improve greatly. He has a lot of potential, and I think that we only saw part of that in his new album “Back to Bedlam.”
Music Review
Due: 4-7-06
James Blunt, a young man from England has just released his first album, “Back to Bedlam.” According to his site, http://www.jamesblunt.com, he served in the army and protected the Queen of England. His family had been in the army for an incredibly long time; since 995A.D. to be exact and had no interest in music. A few of the songs on this album were written while serving in the army. When he was sent away to boarding school, he learned to play the piano, and fell in love with music.
The song he is mostly famed for is track number two, “You’re Beautiful.” It has been on almost every radio station and is stuck in everyone’s heads. The song is about a girl that Blunt sees on a subway, but “she was with another man. He devises a plan, that is never explained in the song. I loved this song when I heard it on the radio. It has a very catchy tune, and before I realized it, I knew all of the lyrics, but when I purchased the album, I was in for a surprise. The radio had changed the lyrics slightly, and personally I liked them better that way. What I thought said “She could see from my face that I was flying high,” actually says, “She could see from my face that I was f**king high.” The language and drug reference came out of no where, and it wasn’t the last time that I was faced with this.
“High,” the first track on the album can be debated. In this song, Blunt stats that he is “getting high; running wild among all the stars above.” The song itself is a very mellow song, and seems like it is comparing the beauty of dawn with a woman, but a close look could show other wise. Maybe we could all ignore the possible drug reference and consider it a description of how he feels with his woman, but the next quote can’t be disputed.
The third song named “Wisemen” seems to be discussing the wise men mentioned in the Bible, but some things a slightly disturbing. Within the very first stanza Blunt says, “When they came down from Heaven, Smoked nine ‘til seven, All the sh*t they could find, But they still couldn’t escape from you.” Again I was absolutely shocked to hear such a blatant promotion of drug use. I also feel that his choice in wording was weak. There really was no need to add profanity to this song, or even album.
“So Long, Jimmy,” the eighth song, is the last one on the album with any obvious drug references. It’s another calm song, that seems to be about losing a friend. One line says, “Are you just cool and I’m just baked?” Could that honestly be any more obvious? I don’t understand why Blunt felt the need to add such things to his songs.
Other than the few songs with profanity and small references to drugs, the album is touching. As I listened to the songs, I felt them grow and mature. “Goodbye My Lover” is a simply beautiful song. It is about losing a lover, but I love the chorus--”Goodbye my lover. Goodbye my friend. You have been the one, you have been the one for me.” I feel that “Goodbye My Lover” shows Blunts mature side, and gives the listener a positive look at relationships. Our lovers are also supposed to be our best friends, and a lot of artists don’t show that anymore.
“Tears and rain” follows “Goodbye My Lover” but is a very sad and serious song. I love most of the lyrics because they are so deep. “Here I wish I could surrender my soul; Shed the clothes that become my skin; See the liar the burns deep within my needing,” is just an example. The song is packed full of those kinds of thoughts, and really connect with the listener. Something I didn’t understand is Blunts reference to “Dorian Grey.” I looked it up and it is another band, though I’m not sure why Blunt chose to mention them in a serious song. The articles I have read about Blunt state that he doesn’t like to explain the reasoning behind his songs, so I don’t think we’ll ever know why he does what he does.
The last two songs on the album, “Cry” and “No Bravery,” are the best songs lyrically and musically on the whole album. In “Cry,” Blunt has deep lyrics such as: “ I have seen peace. I have seen pain, Resting on the shoulders of your name. Do you see the truth though all their lies? Do you see the world through troubled eyes?” It is about friendship in the truest form, and Blunt offers up his shoulder to cry on. That is probably why he chose the name “Cry.” Now, “No Bravery” is about a place that is “burnt beyond repair” and a children with tears drying on their faces. The song never states what exactly has happened to this place, but Blunt does a fabulous job portraying the emotions of the people. The background art in the album cover for both of these songs is the silhouette of the soldiers raising the flag pole. I am assuming that both of these songs stem from Blunts time in the army.
Over all, “Back to Bedlam” is a three out of five star album. James Blunt has great potential, but tends to lose it with some of his song choices. Also, the music is very mellow all the way through. I have found that there really isn’t any one song that changes it up, or keeps my attention. I use it to sleep to, or to have as background noise when I’m stressed out. This album is one that James Blunt will work from and hopefully improve greatly. He has a lot of potential, and I think that we only saw part of that in his new album “Back to Bedlam.”