I've been out of the country twice. Once to Canada in 2007--although, most would dismiss this excursion because my friends and I literally walked over from Niagara Falls. The first time, however, was an Atlantic hopping flight to London, a train to Scotland and a detour to York (the terrorist bombings during the summer of 2005 kept us from heading back to London for several days, causing much stress and strenuous planning on my dad's part).
We made our way to London. One thing my dad was adamant about showing me was Harrods. My dad and I had spent hours perusing every department on every level of this massive consumer complex. $40 t-shirts weren't exactly in my price range. Once I recovered from sticker shock, I found my oasis. 3 for 15£. That was the sale on the third floor of Harrods' music department.
I flipped through the racks of albums for at least an hour before deciding on David Gray's "A New Day at Midnight", another album I can't recall, and Rachael Yamagata's "Happenstance".
I spent the entire evening glued to my headphones. I played these tracks over, and over, and over again. I had never heard anything like her voice before. Now, I've noticed how she draws from revered musicians like Tom McRae, Joni Mitchell and Tom Waits. But then, her intimate style of writing hit me like a double-decker bus.
"Happenstance" is a fine debut- and certainly a step above most female singer-songwriters that find their way into the pop world. Yamagata made her mark with the slick, melody driven catharsis of “Worn Me Down”.
She gained some attention for the lush, opening waltz “Be Be Your Love”--featured in The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants-- but it wasn’t until her appearance on Zach Braff’s “Last Kiss” soundtrack that she reached a wider audience.
“The Reason Why” is a classic break-up anthem through and through--despite being written about her decision to embark on a solo career and part with her first foray into the music world, Chicago funk band Bumpus.
All of those songs are well-crafted, pleasing to the ear and a fine display of Yamagata's talent. But my personal favorites are the album cuts featured below:
"Meet Me By the Water" Beautiful melody, direct lyrics and hypnotizing production by John Alagia.
"Quiet" Understated lullaby that renders me speechless every time I listen.
"Ode To" Featured as a hidden track on "Happenstance", but clearly one of the best examples of her songwriting on the album.
And those are just a few examples of this woman's talent. In later posts, I'll share some live recordings, unreleased songs and selections from her second release, 2008's double album "Elephants...Teeth Sinking Into Heart". Get acquainted with Rachael Yamagata.
It wasn't until I reached the 13th track of "The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter" on my drive from Spring Hill to Tampa last night that I fully realized the gift this songwriter has. The song permeated my speakers and my mouth immediately stretched into a fat grin.
I think that's what I admire about his music the most. Whatever mood the song conveys--whether it's the intimate, lonely croon of "Idaho" or the hopeful sway of "Empty Hearts"-- that mood is immediately rooted in the listener. His music makes my heart ache in the best possible way. Do not wait another day to listen.
I get completely lost in the swelling strings of this romantic, brooding song. There's something unhinged in the way he sings "Just put me inside you/ I would never ever leave". Creepy? Certainly. But romantic, nevertheless.
Experimenting with new sounds and songwriting styles is taboo in the world of pop. Messing with a tried and true hit-making-formula is destined to alienate radio’s eager listeners anticipating their next anthem. For most of 2004 through 2006, those anthems were supplied by inaugural American Idol champ Kelly Clarkson. In those three years she had a string of radio hits, won two Grammy awards and embarked on four successful tours in support of the album “Breakaway”. So, it came as no surprise when she divulged to the media her third album, “My December” , would be entirely composed of material she co-wrote with members of her band that rumors began circulating Clive Davis, former CEO of RCA Records, was displeased with the results.
Never Again [Kelly Clarkson/ Jimmy Messer]
ps: check out that money note at 1:57.
The outcome of the “My December” ordeal is now somewhat of an industry parable. It was hailed as “The Return of Kelly Clarkson”, despite that she was only off public radar for a few months. Radio stations were buzzing about the first single weeks in advance. Fans were curious how Clarkson could possibly live up to the success of her previous album. So was her label.
“Breakaway”, the sophomore album juggernaut that propelled her into super stardom, was not an overnight success. In an interview with Blender Magazine, Clarkson said her label wasn’t optimistic the project would have any longevity. She was told to her face the album would be lucky to sell more than 650,000 copies once it was released. “[RCA] thought there was only one single—“Since U Been Gone”, Clarkson dished in an interview with on-demand channel Music Choice. “They thought all the other songs, especially the ones I wrote, were just crap,” she added. As Clarkson made the publicity rounds in support of the album, the subsequent singles began to receive more airplay on radio stations. When that happened, the label came on board to support their bubbling star.
Five singles later and 11 million albums sold worldwide, Clarkson was one of the most popular female artists in the world. Following the Addicted Tour [on which she performed one of the best versions of this song to date] she headed into the studio in the fall of 2006 to lay down tracks for her third album. From the beginning, it was a highly anticipated project. Fans were curious how she could possibly deliver an album of equal success to “Breakaway”, but duplication wasn't part of Clarkson’s intentions.
Be Still [Kelly Clarkson/ Aben Eubanks]
Foregoing expectations that she would work with the same producers that crafted memorable pop songs “Since U Been Gone” and “Behind These Hazel Eyes”, Clarkson teamed up with producer David Kahne—who had previously worked with Paul McCartney, Sublime and The Bangles. At the suggestion of her band mates, Clarkson asked legendary punk musician Mike Watt to play bass on six of the 26 songs recorded for the final project. Fans and critics alike were intrigued with the developing project and wondered what a pop star was doing among an unlikely group of musicians.
The album was finally released after a media-fueled battle of artistic integrity over commercial success that hounded Clarkson for months. Reviews among critics were generally positive and on par with the singer’s previous works. Casual fans, however, didn’t quite warm up to the new material at first. After a change in management, a second single that failed to chart and a cancelled summer tour, the impression was left that the label had been right all along. The new material simply wasn’t good enough.
How I Feel [Kelly Clarkson, Jimmy Messer, Dwight Baker, David Kahne]
What was most interesting about the “My December” ordeal was the actual music took a back seat to label politics and media created tension. Despite the criticism that the album was too dark and that there weren’t any radio friendly singles, “My December” has remained a favorite among her fans, including me. The pop sheen of her earlier albums was replaced with rollicking bass lines, crunchy guitars, strings and synths. The lyrics were a rebel yell for a scorned, misunderstood and lonely youth. And then there was Clarkson’s finest asset—her voice. Passionately wringing every ounce of emotion from each lyric, she presented an impressive amount of range throughout 14 tracks. It was exactly the album no one expected from an American Idol winner.
Transforming a stint on a reality show into a thriving music career is a feat few will ever achieve. Clarkson is determined to make her career count for something other than number one hits. “There’s no way [to be number one] unless I do the formula stuff every time,” she said to Music Choice. “I want to do something different,” Clarkson said, “and different takes time for people to catch on.”
Maybe [Kelly Clarkson, Jimmy Messer, Aben Eubanks]
Clarkson followed up “My December” with 2009’s super-charged pop album "All I Ever Wanted". Producers Max Martin, Howard Benson and Ryan Tedder were enlisted to craft the album’s 14 songs—6 of which were co-written by Clarkson. Ironically, it has taken 26 weeks, three singles and months of promotion to sell more than 1 million copies worldwide—an achievement “My December” earned in eight weeks with one single. Some chalk it up to the economy. Some anticipate an increase in sales in the months to come. But as Clarkson eluded to Elle Magazine, even her most fervent fans are likely outgrow her one day.
“It’s weird to me when a 12-year-old tells me I’m their favorite artist,” she said. “In time, I’ll be weeded out, and that’s cool. I know I’m a good singer—but I know who I am, too.”
