Possession

by

Sarah McLachlan

Edit

This was my 4th Sarah McLachlan purchase way back in 1993, and the third CD I'd ever purchased. It still gets played.

Possession I, while *very* similar to the album version is indeed different. The organ in the background of the album version is gone, and the guitars are mixed up a bit. This is the track they used in the Canadian video. The absence of the organ gives the song a more 'rock' sound.

Possession II, the John Fryer remix of Possesion, pushes the song much further into Rock territory, which is downright excellent. It's the hardest sounding song you'll ever hear from Sarah McLachlan and IT IS FANTASTIC!! There is a part near the end of the song where the forground vocals are deleted leaving McLachlan sonorous backgroud vocals, at the top of her register, to clearly belt out "I'll take your breath away" - this gives me chills every time I hear it.

Janes mix (the Cello mix) of Fear, is a toned-down acoustic version from FTE and is a little on the boring side when you compare the two.

I'd reccomend this single just to get Version II (the John Fryer remix) of Possession, and Version I while nearly identical to the album version, is actually exclusive to this release!

Although I am relatively new to Sarah McLachlan's music and am unfit to judge her body of work, I must disagree with the last posted review (see below). Buy this CD for the alternate mix of Fear, not for rehashes of Sarah's pop gem, Possession. In track order,

Possession I, as noted by more knowledgeable fans, is the organ-less Canadian video version, very nicely rocked-up.

Possession II is probably the reason most fans consider this purchase. I, too, bought this CD to hear this very John Fryer mix, which disappointed me very much. This mix does vary interesting combinations of foreground and background vocals and, yes, there is one delivery of the chorus with the foreground vocals deleted, leaving nearly a cappella (heavy reverb) Sarah's falsetto background vocals, "And I would be the one to hold you down, Kiss you so hard, I'll take your breath away," which works very well. However, my opinion of this mix was skewered within the first 10 seconds. John Fryer brings to the forefront the background guitar (not the familiar swell of the original) and with it an annoying, unoriginal, and MONOtonous percussion track. There's a lengthy segment with only the percussion and "close your eyes" whispered into alternating ears. Ugh. It brings to my mind Delerium gone BAD. Don't get me wrong, I love Delerium (the Enigma of the late 90s), the song Silence, and many rehashes of familiar songs, e.g. Enjoy the Silence by Failure, but this track is crap. If you're a new Sarah McLachlan fan who seeks a rocked-out version of Possession, buy a copy of Mirrorball, I say.

Not to worry, this wasn't the worst 10 bucks I ever spent:

Jane's cello mix of Fear is, as others have said, comparatively a bit boring. Sarah sings in a lower key here and adds a lot more cello (kidding) than in the FTE album version. Almost the only lyric sung in a higher key is near the end, "There's nothing I'd like better than to fall." This track is somber, desperate-sounding, a departure from the original, and in my humble opinion, the standout on this disc.