Kelly Clarkson- "All I Ever Wanted" (Part #2)

[neally]

U2 and Kelly Clarkson Albums Leaked by Universal and Apple

When Guns ‘N Roses’ Chinese Democracy leaked last year, the perpetrator was the perfect person for record labels to make an example out of: An anonymous music fan on a message board. This week, however, two of the most anticipated albums of the year have been leaked by their label and distributor’s very own hands.

Yesterday, Kelly Clarkson’s All I Ever Wanted prematurely dropped on iTunes Norway, only days after U2’s No Line on the Horizon was accidently put up for sale on the Internet by their album’s own label, Universal Music Group. Clarkson’s album is not set for an official release for over a month and U2’s album is set to officially drop in Ireland next week.

Clarkson’s album leak is likely good for her career, as the Internet is buzzing with very positive reviews of the songs, but with a month to go before it hits shelves, the album’s actual sales will likely take a big hit. Of course, Taylor Swift’s album Fearless has been available for 3 months and that has sold over 3 million copies to date. In reaction to the leak, U2 have placed their full album on MySpace for legal streaming.

www.twentyfourbit.com/post/80314336/u2-and-kelly-clarkson-albums-leaked-by-universal-and

[justmusicjunkie]

Think RCA wants to kick itune's ass right now? lol

[K.]

That's smart to put it up for streaming in full. That way hopefully people will stream rather than download before the official release.

[blurple]

Yeah... Or they could have it available on the websites of radio stations (or even VH1) and tag it. I think that's what RCA did with Cook's album (and probably what they were planning with Kelly's too had it not leaked).

[luver]

Feb 21, 2009 22:21:17 GMT -5 theprophet said:

No no no. Fans just don't want to admit that they like the COMMERCIAL, mainstream Kelly more than the serious, indie Kelly, so they come up with excuses as to why the people with a less commercial taste in music don't like her new album. I'm not going to mention the PCD copy, Katy Perry demos & Since U Been Gone clones again because it's been done to death, but ya'll know what's up with that.

People are too embarrassed to say they prefer mainstream, tailored to radio 'hits', so they word their defence of AIEW to make it sound like Kelly is just expressing herself in a different way, when it's pretty obvious what's really going on.

I think some people don't actually realise how commercial & evil the recording industry can actually be. I did some work experience with a major label a few years back, and even I was shocked to see how they handle a lot of their projects.

Here's the thing

The gist of the message from some of those who don't like this album is that we should not believe the words out of Kelly's mouth but rather words on a message board from fans who think they can read between the lines and tell us what is really going on with Kelly and this album. And we should accept that our own heads are also being read and that we don't really think Kelly has maintained any integrity or sense of musical adventure but rather we are simply too embarrassed to admit we like all that non-serious commercial stuff.

So if this is the case, that means Kelly herself and the majority of the posters here are all fooling ourselves and attempting to fool the handful of people here who don't like this album. But those who don't like this album aren't tyring to fool anyone about anything and are speaking the whole truth, right? I think when we get the word "serious" attached to the word indie for MD and we get commercial and embarrassment associated with AIEW that tells us where some people are coming from.

I think it is more appropriate to acknowledge that there is a definite and obvious mindset out there that is incredibly resistant to appreciating offerings that have mass appeal or offerings that appear to have the stamp of approval from those in a position of power. Those are the people that want to feel that they are special and different and don't follow the sheepish crowd. Just as there is a definite and obvous mindset that can't seem to appreciate anything less than commercially successful. It's as if they can't enjoy something unless they see an outside validation. In addition, some people don't want to admit that commercial success and quality music are not mutally exclusive.

The fact is that diehard commercial fans and diehard indie fans are two sides of the same coin. They are so invested in their side that they can never fully appreciate anything different or outside the box they feel comfortable living in.

As for the evil music industry, anyone who has followed Kelly or any artist closely is all too aware of the manipulations by the suits. Ive seen artists come out and say they weren't proud of the albums they made. It happens, but we are talking specifically about Kelly. Her situation started out unique because even with her first album she already had leverage for negotiation. They had to put out an ablum for the first AI winner. Of course she wasn't ever going to get everything she wanted but she got the overall effect she told then she wanted - to show her versatility so that with the next album her options would remain open. They weren't going to dropkick her like they did Tamyra just because she put up some resistance.

People need to stop taking her one-off comment about doing what the label wanted as gospel that she was willing to make an entire album of everything the label wanted and nothing she wanted. I am sure her intention was to give the label the singles they would be happy to promote to radio while she got to make the overall album a work she would be proud of. If she were the type to allow herself to be controlled by a puppetmaster then she never would have turned down two recording contracts while the odds of any level of success were so against her. It just isn't in her bones.

You have to look at the totality of her comments over the years. She has repeatedly stated that she never wants to look back and not be proud of any one of her albums. She has consistently stated that she is a music-junkie who loves everything from Mariah to Reba to Aretha. Her goal with every album is to do something different than what she has done before. If you aren't hearing anything different on this album from her previous ones then you don't want to hear it.

For people to throw away the words that have repeatedly come out of her mouth for 7 years, to insert words that were never there, to rip at her integrity with presumptive claims that she made an album she didn't want to make and to insist that she phoned it in vocally when others have been moved to tears by her delivery is just an odd thing to do. For people who don't like the album to try to project their own displeasure onto Kelly and try to convince the rest of us who have followed her from the beginning that you can speak for her and know what you're talking about when you dismiss her in these ways will just will never fly. Because we know better.

[ƒreakshow]

I just wrote up a review of it to post on the Express. Thought I'd post it here too.

My Life Would Suck Without You: 10/10
Excellent pop/rock song, with an incredibly catchy chorus. Despite it being your basic formula pop, I love it. I was hooked from the first time I heard it. I love her vocals on it, and not to mention the awesome 80's drums! No one can pull off songs like this quite like Kelly can.

I Do Not Hook Up: 8.5/10
HATED the Katy demo. I really doubted that Kelly could make me like the song, but I was wrong. I love the way she sings the chorus. It's another catchy pop/rock song that should do well.

Cry: 10/10
This is truly the Because of You of this era. You can really feel the emotion in this song, much like BOY. It has a bit of country influence at the beginning and has incredible vocals by Kelly. It has the same feel that BOY has, with meaningful, catchy lyrics. Best of all, Kelly wrote it.

Don't Let Me Stop You: 8/10
The guitars sound quite a bit like BTHE at parts, which I love. Lyrically, it sounds very much like a P!nk song, which only works in its favor. Hopefully this gets released as a single down the road.

All I Ever Wanted: 7.5/10
Good song, but I'm kind of disappointed by the production of it. The vocals don't sound very clear to me, and they seem off in spots. It's still a great song nonetheless.

Already Gone: 8.5/10
This is your typical Ryan Tedder ballad, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. The production, especially at the beginning, sounds way too much like Beyonce's Halo. The chorus is great, and I love the vocals, especially the echoing "already gone" at around 3:00.

If I Can't Have You: 7.5/10
I'm most disappointed with this song. Kelly's description of it got me really excited. It's not a bad song by any means - I still like it - it's just hard to get into.

Save You: 9/10
I think I listened to the Gone 'Til November demo way too much beforehand because I love it so much. I think I burnt myself out on it! I'm disappointed that it's nearly exactly the same as the demo, even the vocals sound the same, but I still like it. It has a very Grey's Anatomy type sound to it. Kelly sounds amazing on it and I love hearing "it's gonna be alright" sung by Kelly, it sounds really reassuring and comforting. LOL

Whyyawannabringmedown: 8/10
When I first heard the Aranda version, I was shocked that Kelly would record a song like that. It was way too punk rock for my taste. But it slowly grew on me and I grew to love it because it would be such a different and fun song for Kelly. You can tell she really had fun with this one. It's different, and as Kelly herself said, some will love it, and some will hate it. I love hearing her count in Spanish.

Long Shot: 9.5/10
Again, I HATED the Katy demo. It was terrible. Kelly re-worked the hell out of this song. It's now a pop/rock gem that must be released as a single down the road. This is amazingly catchy and Kelly sings it so well. I love it.

Impossible: 8.5/10
I really like this one. It's got a whole different feel to it than the rest of the album or the Tedder tracks. The production is really good, and I like the message it has. I think it's really underrated.

Ready: 9/10
I was shocked to see that it made the album. I didn't know what to expect from it - I liked the demo, but I didn't think it would belong on this album. But I must say I LOVE the popped up version. It still has the same feel of the demo but it sounds so much better with its breezy and poppy sound.

I Want You: 9/10
This song really surprised me. It has a cool 60's vibe to it that I can't get enough of. It's the most different pop song Kelly's ever done. This really represents the variety that this album has to offer.

If No One Will Listen: 8/10
It's a beautiful ballad with a great message to it. Sure it's horribly cheesy, but I love songs like that. The production on this is so much better than on the Keri Noble version, it fits the song. It's very emotional - and it's a fitting ending track.

The Day We Fell Apart: 7/10
This is an awesome bonus track, even in its presumably unfinished form. It's like a song from My December with commercial influences added in. 7/10

Overall: 9/10
The album is another outstanding effort by Kelly. It has so much variety but stays true to her pop/rock sound. It keeps a lot of elements from My December and combines it with some commercial influences like on Breakaway. Well done Kelly!

[ƒreakshow]

People need to stop taking her one-off comment about doing what the label wanted as gospel that she was willing to make an entire album of everything the label wanted and nothing she wanted. I am sure her intention was to give the label the singles they would be happy to promote to radio while she got to make the overall album a work she would be proud of. If she were the type to allow herself to be controlled by a puppetmaster then she never would have turned down two recording contracts while the odds of any level of success were so against her. It just isn't in her bones.

luver, that was another great post. I especially liked the paragraph I quoted, you put it perfectly.

[neally]

Luver, thank you for saying it so much better than I ever could. I especially endorse this:

For people to throw away the words that have repeatedly come out of her mouth for 7 years, to insert words that were never there, to rip at her integrity with presumptive claims that she made an album she didn't want to make and to insist that she phoned it in vocally when others have been moved to tears by her delivery is just an odd thing to do. For people who don't like the album to try to project their own displeasure onto Kelly and try to convince the rest of us who have followed her from the beginning that you can speak for her and know what you're talking about when you dismiss her in these ways will just will never fly. Because we know better.

For folks out here to say that "Kelly is uncomfortable singing ...." is simply illogical and actually speaks of opinion that they wish to believe rather than they believe, IMO.... Unless Kelly or her immediate camp has made such a statement or implied it in an interview, to make such a claim as fact is simply quite laughable.

[Adz]

Hook Me Up - The Veronicas > Hook Up - Katy Perry > The Hook Up - Britney > I Do Not Hook Up - Kelly Clarkson.

[Monroe]

The gist of the message from some of those who don't like this album is that we should not believe the words out of Kelly's mouth but rather words on a message board from fans who think they can read between the lines and tell us what is really going on with Kelly and this album.

What posts are you reading? Cause I saw none of this. No one is saying that Kelly hates the album or that Kelly hates the songs on AIEW.

And we should accept that our own heads are also being read and that we don't really think Kelly has maintained any integrity or sense of musical adventure but rather we are simply too embarrassed to admit we like all that non-serious commercial stuff.

Yeah no one said this either. There have been various comments which have ranged to posters saying the work is inferior by comparison to Breakaway and My December but that's the extent of it.

and to insist that she phoned it in vocally

I'm sorry but she is channeling other artists on this record here. How any one can listen to half of these songs on this record and not hear any of her contemporaries in these songs is beyond all logical thought processes and borderline inarguable. Perry, P!nk, Cyrus, Avril and Duff are all present and waving at us nearly all of these songs, right down to vocal interpretations-lyrics and production.

For people who don't like the album to try to project their own displeasure onto Kelly and try to convince the rest of us who have followed her from the beginning that you can speak for her and know what you're talking about when you dismiss her in these ways will just will never fly.

I don't care about Kelly's "artistic integrity" for the most part. I care about getting serviced recycled material that any of her peers could and do make.

[sunpeach]

Feb 21, 2009 23:38:43 GMT -5 neally said:

Feb 21, 2009 23:37:20 GMT -5 Treacherous said:

Oh okay that makes sense! Thank you very much!

I still hope Kelly wins for All I Ever Wanted right now SO FAR in the year I havent seen any competition in my opinion. The album is wayy stronger than Britneys and others!



I

Ah, don't count out U2 (and possibly Green Day later this year). They are usually Grammy shoe-ins for the general categories.

And I think both have won 2 years in a row for material on 1 album. I thought u2 won for "Beautiful Day" and Green Day for "Boulevard" for either record or song of the years when both albums had won stuff the year before. I remember Ms. Carrie Underwood also- thoughs he didn't win but should have- when "Before He Cheats" was nominated for something of the year the year after the album won. Grammy has strange rules and I think they change them all the time.

[justmusicjunkie]

Luver - good post.

[Deleted]

Omg just heard the album in full and it's pop fun and I love it! Whyyawannabringmedown is by far my favorite from it. It's so fun and fast I'm addicted already. I also love All Iever wanted and I do not hook up. I love the production on every song and the beats are so addicting. Already Gone is really good but the background sounds so much like Halo that it's distracting. I predict big things from the album and I hope WYWBMD is released at some point even if it's just the final single(like Walk Away).

[stitch]

deep inside, i think it's the worst album from kelly. but i'm sure it's gonna have commercial success.

[sunpeach]

I love "Already Gone"- I guess it helps that I have never heard this "Halo" song- was that ever a single? Hopefully most will not have heard it and can enjoy this one.

[Deleted]

Halo is Beyonce's current single and it just entered top 40 on pop and is 30 something on Itunes. It's just the background noise that is so Halo like. Tedder needs to start trying to do something new. I think it can still be a hit :)

[luver]

At this point I'm expecting a Hillary Duff fan to pop in and exlpain that Kelly didn't really sing her own songs, because a Hillary Duff fan would know about these things. No offense to Duff who I'm sure is sweet girl.

The bottom line is, there is no point in going round in circles with a couple of people whose only hope of joy left with this album seems to be the possibility of convincing one more person their opinion doesn't seem so offbase. I think people who fail to appreciate this album are the ones who are losing out and that's sad for them, not me. They are no different to me than those who couldn't appreciate MD. Detractors are a statistical certainty and a noticable minority this time around, but they seem to have an overwhelming need to repeat their displeasure where they know the majority will not agree. Looking for validation in all the wrong places. But if anything, many of the detractor's comments have assured me that they are out of tune with Kelly as an artist and I like knowing that the basis for their criticisms are fundamentally flawed by everything I have observed.

So far, with every album, I have been glad that Kelly didn't listen to any of her virtual managers and internet music experts and that hasn't changed this time around. Although if she did listen to them, the 200 seat clubs she would be performing in today would provide an outstanding view.

[lyrichord]

Feb 22, 2009 1:16:46 GMT -5 sunpeach said:

And I think both have won 2 years in a row for material on 1 album. I thought u2 won for "Beautiful Day" and Green Day for "Boulevard" for either record or song of the years when both albums had won stuff the year before. I remember Ms. Carrie Underwood also- thoughs he didn't win but should have- when "Before He Cheats" was nominated for something of the year the year after the album won. Grammy has strange rules and I think they change them all the time.

I already mentioned that the Record and Song of the Year categories are exempt from the winning album in a previous year rule. Here is a blog about that: blogs.suntimes.com/awards/2008/02/grammy_rules_allow_some_songs.html

For most nominees, the music must be released in the eligibility year, which in this case is Oct. 1, 2006, through Sept. 30, 2007. But there are exceptions, and two of them are song of the year (awarded to the songwriter) and record of the year (awarded to the performer and production team).

In those categories, a single is still eligible if it was released in the preceding eligibility year but ‘‘achieved prominence’’ in the current one.

‘‘A record is not like a movie,’’ explained Greg Bechtloff, a project manager for the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, which presents the awards. ‘‘A movie comes out and it’s out. It either sinks or swims. But a record can grow.’’

Even so, the rules have made for some interesting Grammy moments, like in 2006 when Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day, while accepting record of the year for ‘‘Boulevard of Broken Dreams,’’ mused that it had come out ‘‘something like two years ago.’’

The win also seemed a case of deja vu because only the year before Green Day had won best rock album for ‘‘American Idiot,’’ which included ‘‘Boulevard of Broken Dreams.’’

In the Green Day case, after they won for best rock album in 2005, BOBD was eligible for record of the year in 2006 (which they won), but it was not eligible for best rock performance by a duo or group.

[shanz88]

Feb 22, 2009 1:14:46 GMT -5 Monroe said:

What posts are you reading? Cause I saw none of this. No one is saying that Kelly hates the album or that Kelly hates the songs on AIEW.

I think you might have missed a post or two. Not that it's necessarily your fault, as this thread has grown something like five pages every day for the past couple of days. But I took the liberty to go through and find these posts that luver was referring to.

Feb 21, 2009 10:14:30 GMT -5 That Skipping Rope. said:

Feb 21, 2009 9:15:15 GMT -5 ƒreakshow said:

I love it when people assume Clive and everyone against her "forced" her to things.

The thing is, the demos that leaked a while back that we weren't supposed to hear didn't sound anything like this commercial pop-rock sugarfest. Those demos represent the music that Kelly genuinely wants to be making. Of course she's going to be giddy and cheery about this album, but I still know that, if Kelly actually had her way, this is not what her album would sound like.

Okay so it's only one, but there were others that I saw that certainly implied that Kelly must have been forced into doing these songs because this isn't how she "really is"

I guess I'm not seeing what the big deal is. If people like Breakaway, listen to it. If you like MD, then listen to that one. If you like AIEW, then listen to that. We don't need to be forced into listening to tracks that we don't want to hear.

[ba19]

Feb 20, 2009 14:40:27 GMT -5 @ba19 said:

From all the clips, the ones that I believe I will enjoy for sure in full are Cry, Don't Let Me Stop You(co-fav), Already Gone, If I Can't Have You, Save You(co-fav), and Ready.

And after hearing the full tracks, I basically enjoy them all.
- Cry is my favorite ballad with Save You after that.
- Don't Let Me Stop You is my favorite uptempo track with If I Cant Have You and Long Shot following.
- Ready is also a favorite, very midtempo, with All I Ever Wanted following that in the midtempo tracks.

Edit : Freakshow, I mentioned "Save You" would be perfect for Grey's in some other post, it might not have even been on this site, but I thought that was cool that you thought the same:).

[sunpeach]

You know- at first, so many songs, all those different era styles, 60's, 70's, 80's- it makes your head spin from information overload- but now-- I'm really diggin it.

It's like Kelly's "White Album." LOL.

[hotboi]

All I Ever Wanted > My December > Break Away > Thankful

this is her best album for sure.

[letshavefun3]

What sucks about the album leak is that before the leak Kelly's CD was in the top 10 at Itunes and now it's not which means people are no longer purchasing the presale or even worse cancelling it.

[letshavefun3]

Oh yeah and does anyone see the similarities between these songs?

I'm Ready by Tracy Chapman and Ready by Kelly
Cry Baby by Sass Jordan and Cry by Kelly
Simple Life by No Doubt and All I Ever Wanted by Kelly

Not criticizing Kelly, I actually LOVE the CD, but noticed the similarities especially the Cry Baby and Cry chorus.

[sunpeach]

For me, on "Ready," it seems to me they tried to make it sound like something off "Pet Sounds" by the Beach Boys- the beginning is very "God Only Knows" - it seems like a homage to them in a way.

And with "Already Gone," I'm hearing traces of "Nothing Compares to You" by Sinead O'connor in there, it's very close to the sound- and it's even a bit like "Tattoo" which I love- I really love "Already Gone"- I think this should be the first ballad single even though "Cry" is good too, just not as good I think as "Already Gone"- with "Cry" I can hear the country influence, the verse music is very much like something "Dolly Parton" would write- I could hear her singing something like that.


Anyway, I really like the album now after first being a little reserved. And I would agree this album is unlike anything Kelly has done before- it really has it's own identity compared to the others, and that is a good thing. They each have their own strengths although there are echos of "Breakaway" in the album

[Good-Boy-Gone-Bad]

I freakin love this album so much.
My Life Would Suck Without You = 5/5
I Do Not Hook Up = 5/5 Perfect second single!
Cry = 5/5 I think it's just gorgeous
Don't Let Me Stop You = 5/5 So fucking catchy! I want it to be a single
All I Ever Wanted = 5/5 Kinda odd but I still love it.
Already Gone = 5/5 Stunning her vocals are fantastic
If I Can't Have You = 5/5 Edgy and catchy!
Save You =3/5 It's nice, but I find it dull.
Whyyawannabringmedown = 5/5 So much fun and so different for her!
Long Shot = 5/5 It's nice and really grew on me.
Impossible = 5/5 I absolutely love the chorus.
Ready = 5/5 Kinda bouncy and happy. Again, I love it's chorus
I Want You = 3/5 Filler, but good filler.
If No-One Will Listen = 3/5 Boring.

Obviously, they will probably grow on me. And we have 2 more tracks to look forward to.

[Deleted]

I listened to the album on my way to work and at home for a while and this is what I think about it:

It definitively can't compare to My December, but it has some great tunes. This album is like a compilation of hits, oldies and other songs, but additionally pushed through the pop-rock filter.



***** (Five stars):

- Don't Let Me Stop You

- If I Can't Have You (My favorite song on the album, should def be a single)

- Ready (Loved it since the demo leaked)


**** (Four stars):

- Long Shot (Something hinders this from being as great as the songs I mentioned above, but I have no idea what)


*** (Three stars):

- Impossible (This song's music has so much more potential)

- I Want You

- My Life Would Suck Without You



The rest of the album is crap!

[Haley]

Here's my mini-ranking of the album. Overall I love it, almost all of the songs have room to grow as favorites of mine :)

Sorted by ratings

5 out of 5 stars:
I Do Not Hook Up
If I Can't Have You
Cry
Don't Let Me Stop You
If No One Will Listen

4 out of 5 stars:
Long Shot
Impossible
I Want You
Save You

3 out of 5 stars:
Ready (I don't get the type for this one, the chorus ruins it for me.)
All I Ever Wanted
Already Gone (Halo clone, the type I can barely stomach..)
My Life Would Suck Without You

2 out of 5 stars:
Whyyawannabringmedown (The Day We Fell Apart should have taken the place of this....)

[busyboy]

Feb 22, 2009 8:06:24 GMT -5 @reidlos20 said:

This album is like a compilation of hits, oldies and other songs, but additionally pushed through the pop-rock filter.

I got the same feeling while listening to it. One song lifts its bassline from Spoon's "I Turn My Camera On".

It's a good, very professional album. It will be a success, no doubt.

[Az Paynter]

I've decided I want them to take the risk of releasing both Katy Perry songs. I really want 'Long Shot' to be a single. Obviously to release it as the 3rd single would be the dumbest thing in the world but I'd like to see it as the 4th or 5th single. I also want to see any one of Cry, All I Ever Wanted, Don't Let Me Stop You or If I Can't Have You released.