• Voto:
Quando mi chiedono cosa penso di Katie Melua, rispondo senza remore che la sua musica è gradevole, per poi però dimenticarmi del mio interlocutore e perdermi in una fantasia in cui io e Katie siamo sposati o qualcosa del genere. Il suo aspetto fisico a volte sembra l'unica opera d'arte da prendere in considerazione quando si parla di lei.
Siamo sinceri, la discografia di Katie Melua non ha un eccelso valore artistico, temo.
Un astuto produttore scova una giovane Folk-Singer dolce-e-carina con una voce dolce-e-carina, e per lei costruisce eleganti dischi di pop intrisi di Blues e Folk, generi musicali che di solito ammaliano anche i sassi. E questo è quanto. Poco poetico, lo so. C'è da ammettere che Katie Melua è anche autrice di alcuni brani, ma generalmente i migliori della sua discografia sono scritti dal suddetto produttore, che per la cronaca, si chiama Mike Batt.
Niente di innovativo e nessuna genialità è possibile scovare tra questi album, che però nel complesso sono buoni prodotti, compreso "Pictures", album uscito nel 2007.
Il disco inizia piacevolmente bene, "Mary Pickford" è una canzoncina folk decisamente orecchiabile e "It's all In My Head" è una canzone con una tipica strofa vagamente bluesy e un ritornello arioso e bello.
Non c'è niente di peggio che una melodia orecchiabile ma insignificante: "If The Light Go Out", la terza traccia, emana uno sgradevole sentore di pop sdolcinato da 4 soldi con un arrangiamento insolitamente pieno, quasi pop-rock. Anche "What I Miss About You" è piuttosto lontana dal blues e dal folk, ma la sua bella melodia ci rassicura: Katie può cantare purissime canzoni pop senza che siano necessariamente brutte. "Spellbound" è un altro pop colorato vagamente di folk dal suo arrangiamento, con una orecchiabile e ritmata melodia.
"What It Says On The Tin" è una ballata, con il solito arrangiamento furbo e l'interpretazione deliziosa della giuovine cantante. "Scary Films" è un bel blues-rock, uno dei migliori momenti del disco, sonorità soul invece nella successiva "Perfect Circle". Anche "Ghost Town" è una buona traccia, con ritmo raggae e il ritornello impreziosito dal coro. Sono carine anche la ballata "If You Were A Sail Boat" e l'ennesima furberia del disco, "Dirty Nice". L'ultimo pezzo, "In My Secret Life", è invece una cover del grande Leonard Cohen, interpretata dignitosamente.
Insomma, questo album non è esattamente una fantasmagoria musicale trascendentale, ma è sicuramente un buon prodotto di pop sofisticato, con almeno 10 tracce godibili (su un totale di 12). Un disco raffinato e allo stesso tempo leggero, un pò pop, un pò blues e un pò folk... Il tutto easy-listening.
Giudizio: 6,5/10
Elenco tracce testi e video
01 Mary Pickford (03:12)
Mary Pickford used to eat roses
Thought that they'd make her beautiful and they did,
One supposes.
Douglas Fairbanks, he was so handsome,
He wore a moustache,
Must-a had much cash, too,
Worth a king's ransom,
Charlie Chaplin, he was invited,
When these artists became united.
When these artists became united.
David Griffith worked as an extra,
Then as a stagehand,
Until they let him be
A director
Dave was brave, a mover and shaker,
A true pioneer,
He seemed to show no fear,
A real film maker
Just like Chaplin, he was invited,
When these artists became united.
When these artists became united.
They tied the knot together,
Groom and bride couldn't hide their pleasure.
They tried to pick fair weather,
But love died, didn't last forever.
Mary Pickford used to eat roses,
Thought that they'd make her beautiful and they did,
One supposes.
Douglas Fairbanks, he was so handsome,
He wore a moustache,
Must-a had much cash too,
Worth a king's ransom.
Charlie Chaplin, he was invited,
When these artists became united.
When these artists became united.
When these artists became united.
03 If the Lights Go Out (03:14)
They say the world must end somehow,
They say the end's not far from now;
I think they're wrong,
Don't worry your life away,
Start living for today,
Don't think about tomorrow.
And if the lights go out on all of us,
In just a year or two.
And if the sky falls down like pouring rain,
Then I'll be here with you.
I'll go down with you.
Well I'm gonna try for all I'm worth,
To stay with you till the end of the earth.
Don't let me down,
Don't let your feelings win.
Don't give out, and don't give in,
Don't think about tomorrow.
Cause if the lights go out on all of us,
In just a year or two.
And if the sky falls down like pouring rain,
Then I'll be here with you.
I'll go down with you.
And if the lights go out on all of us,
In just a year or two.
And if the sky falls down like pouring rain,
Then I'll be here with you.
I'll go down with you.
I'll go down with you
10 If You Were a Sailboat (04:02)
If you're a cowboy I would trail you,
If you're a piece of wood I'd nail you to the floor.
If you're a sailboat I would sail you to the shore.
If you're a river I would swim you,
If you're a house I would live in you all my days.
If you're a preacher I'd begin to change my ways.
Sometimes I believe in fate,
But the chances we create,
Always seem to ring more true.
You took a chance on loving me,
I took a chance on loving you.
If I was in jail I know you'd spring me
If I was a telephone you'd ring me all day long
If was in pain I know you'd sing me soothing songs.
Sometimes I believe in fate,
But the chances we create,
Always seem to ring more true.
You took a chance on loving me,
I took a chance on loving you.
If I was hungry you would feed me
If I was in darkness you would lead me to the light
If I was a book I know you'd read me every night
If you're a cowboy I would trail you,
If you're a piece of wood I'd nail you to the floor.
If you're a sailboat I would sail you to the shore.
If you're a sailboat I would sail you to the shore
12 In My Secret Life (04:23)
I saw you this morning,
You were moving so fast.
Can’t seem to loosen my grip,
On the past.
And I miss you so much,
There’s no one in sight.
And we’re still making love,
In my secret life.
I smile when I’m angry.
I cheat and I lie.
I do what I have to do,
To get by.
But I know what is wrong,
And I know what is right.
And I’d die for the truth,
In my secret life.
Hold on, hold on, my brother,
My sister, hold on tight.
I finally got my orders,
I’ll be marching through the morning.
Marching through the night,
Moving ‘cross the borders,
Of my secret life.
Looked through the paper,
Makes you want to cry.
Nobody cares if the people,
Live or die.
And the dealer wants you thinking,
That it’s either black or white.
Thank God it’s not that simple,
In my secret life.
I bite my lip.
I buy what I’m told.
From the latest hit,
To the wisdom of old.
But I’m always alone,
And my heart is like ice.
And it’s crowded and cold,
In my secret life.
In my secret life.
In my secret life.
In my secret life.
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