Kat: I'm
not an Enya hater but I'm not an Enya lover. I'm just neutral to her
charms. I do respect what she's done with music and I wonder a lot
about that in terms of others. Enya was never part of Lilith Fair. Most
of the women who were appear lost today and, honestly, appeared lost
about two years after the first Lilith Fair festival was staged.
Take
Sarah McLachlan who founded the women's musical festival. She was
coming off SURFACING. An admitted classic, SURFACING was everything a
musical work should be. So why couldn't Sarah replicate? She did the
obvious thing -- following her huge success with a live album -- a
double disc album -- that included most of SURFACING. Then came studio
albums AFTERGLOW and LAWS OF ILLUSION and what the hell were those?
"Sweet Surrender" was one track on SURFCAING. People responded to the
lush arrangements of that album and the caressing vocals. Sarah went
from being surefooted to not knowing who she was or who her audience
was.
And her studio releases since SURFACING always make me think of Elton John's Carole King criticism that he offered in his 1973 ROLLING STONE interview, how TAPESTRY was great but the albums that followed sounded as if they were recorded at the same session after everyone was tired and uninspired.
Say what you will about Enya, but she's never made that mistake. And she's never released pedestrian music either.
But
that's what the Lilith gals seemed to specialize in. Within three
years of the first touring festival, they were pretty much a punch line.
And,
yes, in a sexist country, that's not a surprise. But let's also be
very clear that a lot of women brought it on themselves. Sarah was
making garbage and she wasn't alone. Some argue that Sheryl Crow tried to grow. If I were Sheryl, I would as well. Both as a person and as a songwriter. Sadly, she wasn't trying to grow. She wrote the same half-thought out and uninspired songs she'd been doing in the 90s but called it country and hoped that they would be more accepting of a woman who traded constantly on her looks as that woman was now older and the younger generation wasn't about to indulge her because she had a number one hit in 1995.
Her ninth album came out a few weeks ago, FREEWHEELIN' WOMAN -- I'm counting it as nine and excluding albums for children and other specialty products.
Her eight other albums are folk-based pop, dance music, country, alternative, you name it.
The only one that ever disappointed me was SPIRIT, her second album. It was her follow up to her massive selling PIECES OF YOU. It was released the same month that Alanis Morissette released her JAGGE LITTLE PILL follow up SUPPOSED FORMER INFATUATION JUNKIE.
Both were disappointments. I might have enjoyed Jewel more if Alanis hadn't already failed expectations. But SPIRIT was a disappointment -- despite having one of her all time great songs on the album ("Hands").
I have no idea what Jewel was trying to do on that album. But I would judge all that followed strong and worthy albums. She's grown with each one and that allows for something like FREEWHEELIN' WOMAN which is kind of folk, kind of pop, kind of country, kind of soul, kind of rock. It allows her to gather all she's learned from the other albums.
Maybe not all that she's learned about the music business. I don't get some artists today. Last year, vinyl overtook CDs in sales. So I don't get, for example, why Chase Rice did not release THE ALBUM on vinyl or, for that matter, why Jewel has no plans to release FREEWHEELIN' WOMAN on vinyl until October.
It makes no sense and it makes them look out of touch -- even if it's the label's decision, the artists are the one this reflects poorly upon.
I bought the digital version of the album. I would've purchased a vinyl copy -- especially due to the album cover which is a photograph I love -- I love the angle, I love the contrast of colors, it's just a perfect album cover.
Fortunately, the music lives up to the cover.
Outside of Bellingham, I Broke down to understand, I Got tired of following my feet You know I been a free wheeling woman, oh Became its own kind of prison though Wondering what could ever satisfy me Guess I stopped long enough to Crash in to the thought of you Guess I knew I would eventually
Oh, but you can't outrun That kind a lovin' and those things we've done Guess I'll always be, ooh Living with your memory Yeah, I'm living with your memory, yeah Your memory loves me better Than any man has done Your memory loves me longer and Keeps me on the run
"Living With Your Memory" is an amazing song -- lyrically and musically. And it's not even the strongest on the album.
Jewel came to national attention in 1995 and there are a number of artists in various strands of the entertainment world that we look back on now and wonder what we ever saw in them? But that's not the case with Jewel. Her vocals are stronger and she's an artist who truly has grown.
On "No More Tears," she more than holds her own with Darius Rucker and it may be one of the best duets since Linda Ronstadt and Aaron Neville teamed up for "Don't Know Much."
And speaking of teaming up, she'll be touring this summer with Train:
JUN 8, 2022
Xfinity Center
Mansfield, MA
w/ Train and special guests Blues Traveler & Thunderstorm Artis
I don't usually include tour dates but, if you see her this summer, you should see her and Train perform "Dancing Slow" -- a great song they do on her new album.
FREEWHEELIN' WOMAN is an album worth checking out.
