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Gregg Alexander è stato uno dei personaggi potenzialmente più straordinari degli anni '90. Quando nel 1998 uscì il primo album dei suoi New Radicals tutti tutti tutti gridarono al miracolo ed osannarono Alexander come il salvatore che poteva portare il pop-rock in una direzione meno commerciale e più intelligente. Peccato che quel bellissimo Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too fu non solo il primo, ma anche l'ultimo album dei New Radicals: la loro parabola non autodistruttiva si autodistrusse nel giro di un paio di (stupendi) singoli. Da allora però Alexander non è scomparso dalla scena musicale, ma s'è riciclato come autore: scrive per molti artisti, e fra i vari c'è Sophie Ellis-Bextor, una delle migliori esponenti mondiali della musica pop di qualità (perché "pop" vuol dire "popolare", non "popolano").
Il primo album di Sophie è uscito nel 2001 e si intitola Read My Lips. Si tratta di una gradevolissima raccolta di musica perlopiù soft-elettronica che funziona benissimo non solo perché ci sono molto semplicemente delle belle canzoni, ma anche e soprattutto perché questi brani sono cantati dalla voce straordinariamente intonata e raffinata della cantante londinese: dopo aver collaborato con la rock band theaudience ed aver fatto da vocalist per il dj veneziano Spiller, la Ellis-Bextor si dedica ora al pop riuscendo ottimamente nella sua missione. I brani hanno firme prestigiose: oltre al già citato Alexander, figurano anche Moby ed Alex James, il bassista ed anima elettronica dei Blur. La canzoni funzionano molto bene: non ci sono delle enormi emergenze, ma nemmeno l'album si sente come fosse un CD ambient grazie agli intelligenti arrangiamenti, ed inoltre i singoli Take Me Home (cover di Cher), Murder on the Dancefloor (la canzone europea di maggior successo del 2002) e Get Over You sono eccellenti esempi di come è possibile scrivere canzoni pop e di qualità insieme. È necessario infine spendere qualche parola sull'aspetto visivo dell'album: la grafica di copertina (coerentemente rispettata anche per i singoli) è stupenda, e la combinazione bianco & nero + grigio + rosso ricorre anche nel booklet dov'è possibile ammirare ancora di più la bellezza mozzafiato della cantante, rarissima alchimia di linee geometriche e dolci insieme; da sindrome di Stendhal la cover del singolo Murder on the Dancefloor, probabilmente la più bella mai realizzata.
Sophie Ellis-Bextor fa parte di quella schiera di artisti (soprattutto donne) che dopo un iniziale enorme successo hanno col tempo perso la popolarità mondiale, ma hanno mantenuto una fetta di fedeli fan che ora si stanno godendo in pochi-ma-buoni la crescita artistica dei loro beniamini: il terzo album di Sophie, Trip the Light Fantastic (???) è un inno al miglior pop possibile, ed ha venduto decorosamente solo in Gran Bretagna. I fan delle varie Britney, Christina e loro cloni non sanno cosa si perdono.
Elenco tracce testi samples e video
01 Take Me Home (04:08)
Take me home, take me home
I know another place to be
Take me home, take me home
You deserve a girl like me
Come on I know somewhere
You can unwind
We can just disappear
Now's the time
Take me home, take me home
Only fair I get my way
Take me home, take me home
Oh it's going to happen anyway
I know what's good for you
Don't pass me by
I will look after you
You'll be fine
I'm in heaven I'll show you heaven it's so much heaven
let's make a move
lets leave this world behind
I know you approve by the look in your eyes
I'm in heaven I'll show you heaven It's so much heaven
take me home take me home
I will show you where to walk
take me home take me home
baby let the people talk
we'll get away from here
I'm reading your mind
We can just disappear
now's the time
I'm in heaven, I'll show you heaven take me home
Oh, take me home
Oh, take me home
In this moment one night with you
all alone with nothing to loose
let's make a move
let's leave this world behind
I know you approve by the look in your eyes
I'm in heaven I'll show you heaven it's so much heaven
Take me home, take me home
Now's the time to follow me
take me home
come and live what ought to be
take me home take me home
03 Move This Mountain (04:46)
What do you want from me
I stand before you no attempt to leave
I'm too tired to disagree
I stand before you no chance I'll believe this warning
Oh do you know
I would have done anything for you
Take this chance I won't repeat this
I can do anything that's put beside of you
And I can move any mountains that you make
I'll lift you up and my back will never break
And I can move this mountain
Come and take the rest of me
I never thought I wouldn't want you near
This is all I'll ever be
I understand you
Look around to see this dawning
Oh, does it show
I wanted to catch you falling
Oh, do you know
I would have done anything for you
Take this chance I won't repeat this
I can do anything that's put beside of you
And I can move any mountains that you make
I'll lift you up and my back will never break
And I can move this mountain
04 Murder on the Dancefloor (03:51)
(Murder)
It's murder on the dancefloor
But you better not kill the groove
Dj, gonna burn this goddamn house right down
Oh, I know I know I know I know I know I know
About your kind
And so and so and so and so and so and so
I'll have to play
If you think you're getting away
I will prove you wrong
I'll take you all the way
Boy, just come along
hear me when I say
Hey
It's murder on the dancefloor
But you better not kill the groove
Hey, hey
It's murder on the dancefloor
But you better not steal the moves
Dj, gonna burn this goddamn house right down
Oh I know I know I know I know I know I know
There may be others
And so and so and so and so and so and so
You'll just have to pray
If you think you're getting away
I will prove you wrong
I'll take you all the way
Stay another song
I'll blow you all away
Hey
It's murder on the dancefloor
But you better not kill the groove
Hey, hey
It's murder on the dancefloor
But you better not steal the moves
DJ, gonna turn this house around somehow
Murder on the dancefloor
But you better not kill the groove
Hey, hey
It's murder on the dancefloor
But you better not steal the moves
Dj, gonna burn this goddamn house right down
Don't think you'll get away
I will prove you wrong
I'll take you all away
Boy just come along
Here me when I say
Hey
It's murder on the dancefloor
But you better not kill the groove
It's murder on the dancefloor
But you better not steal the moves
DJ, gonna burn this goddamn house right down
It's murder on the dancefloor
But you better not kill the groove
Hey, hey
It's murder on the dancefloor
But you better not steal the moves
DJ, gonna burn this goddamn house right down
It's murder on the dancefloor
(On the dancefloor)
But you better not kill the groove
Hey, hey
It's murder on the dancefloor
(On the dancefloor)
But you better not steal the moves
DJ, gonna burn this goddamn house right down
I know, I know, I know, I know, I know...
05 I Believe (04:04)
Hold me down
So I don't leap onto the wall
With the fever of it all
That would encourage mayhem
They're quite a rowdy crowd, do you think?
And I'm going to the peak of something
Lovely feeling, slippy breathing
Tell me how to break the news
There's no way that I can loose my love and it's taken over me
I feel as if this love could last forever
As if my luck and hope have found each other
I feel as if I should have known, together
We make good sense to me and I believe
Who just said
Some girls don't get a second chance
When I've toyed and I've romanced
I'm on the edge of something
Inner soothing, man-approving
Tell me how to take the news
There's no way that I can loose my love and it's taken over me
06 Leave the Others Alone (04:09)
Black and gold
A safe combination
Heaviness sets the seed for the next generation
You say we're so alike
Well, I wouldn't want to live
On the difference
No, I wouldn't want to live
On the difference
Sitting down at 10.000 feet
Nothing's artificial
It shouldn't be a word
I live on my dreams
Well, I'd never do anything to make them happen
No, I'd never do anything to make them happen
Suddenly I'm forced to think and make the right decision
I'm on the brink
You've put me in a position
I'll tell you what
I'll give you me
If you leave the others alone
Canvas cracks
Face unrecognisable
Eyes have a stony gaze
Moving's not advisable
I know who you are so, I don't feel the need to make conversation
No, I don't feel the need to make conversation
Suddenly I'm forced to think and make the right decision
I'm on the brink
You've put me in a position
I'll tell you what
I'll give you me
if you leave the others alone
Leave the others alone
07 By Chance (04:13)
Take this down
Turn it around
I am water underneath a bridge
So? What do I know?
Getting here must be a privilege
do say something meaningful
If at all
Just to fill the air
Or, believe I adore you
Love me if you dare
By chance
When I turn out the light
I'm finding the right line
By chance
I may put this to right not in the rest of this lifetime
Let it ride
Always inside
Isn't worth the indecision I hide
So, nowhere to go
Stimulating no illusion
I should say something pivotal
Belittle
How you let me down
Or, believe I adore you
Love you if I dare
By chance
When I turn out the light
I'm finding the right line
By chance
I could put this to right
Not in the rest of this lifetime no, no
Look at you going places
See two faces
I know which to trace
I would be holding my breath but things will stay the same won't they
Oh, I know
08 The Universe Is You (03:39)
Read my lips
I don't want to
Get involved with
Relativity
Take my time
Use it wisely
You're controlling
Certain gravities
You're coming around
So late in the day
I've been here before
I know what to say
You're moving the ground
You're making me feel as if the universe is you
Tell yourself
You can't have me
I rely on
Probability
09 Is It Any Wonder (04:26)
Turn me down
To the ground
I like to feel the coolness on my face
Lie me down
Show me how
I can begin to hold you endlessly
And I don't sleep
So I don't dream of leaving
And when I wake I face the night
And I don't speak
I listen to the breathing
I often think I hear my fate
So is it any wonder
That I'm finding someone in this place here next to me
And is it any wonder
That we found each other
We've found another who meets the same
Is it any wonder
Don't explain
By it's name
We write our words forever in the space
Who could say
Chance again
Chooses to bring together you and me
Now don't lose sleep cause I won't dream of leaving
I lie awake and face the night
I lie awake and dream of you
So is it any wonder
That I'm finding someone in this place here next to me
And is it any wonder
That you made it here
We've found another who meets the same
And is it any wonder
That I'm finding someone in this place here next to me
And is it any wonder
That you made it here
I've found another who meets the same
10 Everything Falls Into Place (03:43)
I know what you're thinking
It's all got to go
At times driven along by the meaning
I need colours me to fade
Everything falls into place
Everything falls in to favour
Everything falls into place
And then we all go mad
and throw it away
We all go mad and throw it away
I see what you're doing'
Makes sense after all
my hearts telling me I'm not mistaken
It feels better than I can believe
Everything falls into place
Everything falls into favour
everything falls into place
And then we all go mad and throw it away
We all go mad and throw it away
We all go mad and we throw it away
I said we all go mad and throw it away
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