Sarah Maclachlan
Jun 12, 2006 at 9:23 PM Thread Starter Post #1 of 12

zle83

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I have never listened to any of Sara M's music. What songs would you recommend? My friend is sharing an album or two with me and I want to know what is good. Keep in mind that I like Loreena Mckennitt, Sarah Brightman , Vanesa Carlton, Mandy Moore, and Michelle Branch as far as female vocalist/musicians go.
 
Jun 12, 2006 at 11:52 PM Post #4 of 12
Taking them in order...
  1. Touch - A solid debut with a few standout tracks. In the long run, I find most of the tracks are forgettable. Worth checking out: "Touch," "Steaming," "Sad Clown" & "Vox," especially the exended mix.
  2. Solace - A big step from Touch, with much stronger songwriting, arrangement & lyrics. That said, the only tracks I tend to go back to are "Into the Fire" & "The Path of Thorns (Terms)"
  3. Fumbling Towards Ecstacy - Definitely the highlight of her career, IMO. There's not a weak song on the disc. "Wait," "Good Enough," "Elsewhere" & "Fumbling Towards Ecstacy" are among the best tracks.
  4. The Freedom Sessions - A nice little EP, with some great reimaginings of a number of her songs, and a great Tom Waits cover. Strongest tracks here are "Elsewhere" & "Ol' 55"
  5. Rarities, B-Sides & Other Stuff - A great compilation of hard-to-find tracks. "Dear God" alone makes this a worth-while purchase.
  6. Surfacing - This is a solid album, but it's short, and I didn't care for the singles much, so this disc got old fast for me. That said, 4 tracks didn't get any airplay and are amazing... "I Love You," "Do What I Have To Do," "Witness," & "Black And White"
  7. Mirrorball - It was nice to get an official live release, but the song selection didn't do much for me. That said, the sound quality is solid, and the DVD is great. The DVD gets a big thumbs-up from me due to its inclusion of "Witness," which remains my favorite song of hers.
  8. Afterglow - I couldn't get into this disc, despite multiple attempts. It just struck me as mediocre from start to finish, and a bit forced.
  9. Afterglow Live - I never picked this up, though I always wanted to considering it does have "Witness," but I could never bring myself to do it considering the Afterglow songs present and the absence of Camille Henderson.

I hope that helps. I considered myself a huge fan for a long time, but I seem to have gotten away from her since my disappointment with Afterglow. I may revisit some of her work in the future, but discovering her in '93, and the subsequent years listening was a great journey.
 
Jun 13, 2006 at 1:25 AM Post #5 of 12
Quote:

Originally Posted by en480c4
Taking them in order...
  1. Touch - A solid debut with a few standout tracks. In the long run, I find most of the tracks are forgettable. Worth checking out: "Touch," "Steaming," "Sad Clown" & "Vox," especially the exended mix.
  2. Solace - A big step from Touch, with much stronger songwriting, arrangement & lyrics. That said, the only tracks I tend to go back to are "Into the Fire" & "The Path of Thorns (Terms)"
  3. Fumbling Towards Ecstacy - Definitely the highlight of her career, IMO. There's not a weak song on the disc. "Wait," "Good Enough," "Elsewhere" & "Fumbling Towards Ecstacy" are among the best tracks.
  4. The Freedom Sessions - A nice little EP, with some great reimaginings of a number of her songs, and a great Tom Waits cover. Strongest tracks here are "Elsewhere" & "Ol' 55"
  5. Rarities, B-Sides & Other Stuff - A great compilation of hard-to-find tracks. "Dear God" alone makes this a worth-while purchase.
  6. Surfacing - This is a solid album, but it's short, and I didn't care for the singles much, so this disc got old fast for me. That said, 4 tracks didn't get any airplay and are amazing... "I Love You," "Do What I Have To Do," "Witness," & "Black And White"
  7. Mirrorball - It was nice to get an official live release, but the song selection didn't do much for me. That said, the sound quality is solid, and the DVD is great. The DVD gets a big thumbs-up from me due to its inclusion of "Witness," which remains my favorite song of hers.
  8. Afterglow - I couldn't get into this disc, despite multiple attempts. It just struck me as mediocre from start to finish, and a bit forced.
  9. Afterglow Live - I never picked this up, though I always wanted to considering it does have "Witness," but I could never bring myself to do it considering the Afterglow songs present and the absence of Camille Henderson.

I hope that helps. I considered myself a huge fan for a long time, but I seem to have gotten away from her since my disappointment with Afterglow. I may revisit some of her work in the future, but discovering her in '93, and the subsequent years listening was a great journey.




Incredible write-up! I agree on basically all points except for the Afterglow Live DVD...I found it at a used CD shop for $5 and it is pretty good, both music and sound-wise.
 
Jun 13, 2006 at 4:23 AM Post #6 of 12
Great synopsis, en480c4!

I also agree with dabblerblue. "Fumbling Towards Ecstacy" is her best - probably one of my all-time favs that will never leave my collection. Second is "Surfacing" which is really good, but not the near-perfect classic that "FTE" was. If you still want more, then go for "Afterglow", but expect more of a rehash than new genius.
 
Jun 14, 2006 at 5:24 AM Post #7 of 12
Thanks guys... I will check those all out in due time.
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Jun 15, 2006 at 8:01 AM Post #9 of 12
I love all of her music (although I don't own Touch, Rarities, or Afterglow Live---yet; it's great for reading or drifting off to sleep. You can feel your bloodpressure and heartrate drop with her sweet vocal style.
 
Jun 15, 2006 at 2:23 PM Post #10 of 12
I guess I'll chime in too, since I've been a fan for years. IMO if you have to own just one Sarah McLachlan CD it would have to be Fumbling Towards Ecstasy. It's easily her best work followed pretty closely by Surfacing, which is also an absolutely excellent effort. If you end up getting into her sound I'd also recommend some of her earlier recordings (Solace, Touch, Live) and Mirrorball is really a damned good live collection, although I prefer some of the performances on the Mirrorball DVD better than those on the CD. Two gems that contain some previously unreleased stuff and alternate takes are The Freedom Sessions and B-Sides, Rarities, & Other Stuff.

Then there's Afterglow.
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I was extremely disappointed with it. There's no soul or life in these songs IMO. Sarah just seems to be going through the motions on it - she sounds bored and uninspired. In fact sometimes when I listen to it I feel like I'm hearing a Sarah McLachlan tribute band. It's absolutely her weakest release if you ask me.
 

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