Inside Out

by

Trisha Yearwood

Edit

I have all of Trisha's CD's, and this her tenth, is undoubtedly the best! What a voice, and what a wonderful ability Trisha has to wrap that angelic voice around her lyrics, making you feel the joy, the hurt, the love. Wow, what a sensational collection. Aside from the remake of "Seven Year Ache," there's not a song on here that isn't overwhelming. (And even "Ache" is by no means bad---just mundane.)

Trisha has truly transcended the "country" genre, but she has always proven herself versatile: (did you ever hear her "I Have a Love" from the "West Side Story" compilation a few years back?--it's chilling!!!). I feel the production, instrumentation and background vocals are impeccable and provide the CD with a smooth flow, and excitement.

It's hard to pick favorites on a collection like this, but surely "Harmless Heart," "Melancholy Blue," and "When We Were Still in Love" are some of the most heartfelt ballads of her career. And what's this unnecessary comparison of "I Would've Loved You Anyway" with Celine Dion songs? What's wrong with power ballads, especially when executed with such style and class? Don't compare Celine and Trisha---they're equally good, worlds apart, but I'd prefer these kind of love songs to the tripe we have to put up with in the pop world!!! Back to the real issue though.

"Love Alone," "For A While" "Love Let Go" and "Love Me or Leave Me Alone"---awesome performances, and so different from what you've expected from Trisha. They're not country, but let's face it, at heart Trisha Yearwood is a singer, not a country singer, not a pop singer, just one of the industry's most outstanding vocalists.

She started out getting compared to Linda Ronstadt, and although there are some vocal similarities, Trisha manages to stand on her own, and come out shining!

If you love Trisha, this is definitely a CD you must own! If you think you don't like her (and who could possibly not?), give this one a try---it's great!

IN THIS album, Trisha Yearwood returns to her more homespun roots, where she safely dwelled in her debut before she ventured into the mainstream pop world in a highly successful endeavour.

Inside Out, her eighth album, is largely typical Yearwood material. There are undoubtedly strong doses of modern Nashville in it; she continues to take her time, easily and leisurely telling us the story through straightforward, unpretentious lyrics.

Since a large part of her hit arsenal comprises ballads, it is unsurprising that, to ensure a continuation of her winning sound, Yearwood remains mildly pleasing but generally unadventurous. To quote examples, Harmless Heart and Love Me Or Leave Me Alone are chart-friendly tracks that still straddle the country-pop chasm, but do so effortlessly.

There is even a touch of brassy humour that exists here and there in the songs, too, as in For A While's lines - "Late at night I write my own movie/And I am the star when I close my eyes/Except I look like Julia Roberts/And you're just the poor jerk that I walk on by."

Stellar tracks from Inside Out are Seven Year Ache (in which Rosanne Cash makes a guest appearance, and they both sing the role of the traditional long-suffering, tenacious woman), title track Inside Out, which is sung with Don Henley, and the tender When We Were Still In Love.