It’s not really a ‘new’ new album as such Billed as his sixth studio album and the follow-up to 2004’s Patience, Symphonica is basically a slightly confused live album. On the one hand we learn that the string arrangements were recorded in a studio, and there are photos of Michael in a studio environment working on the album with the legendary producer Phil Ramone, but on the other we’re told that live vocals from each of the shows on the tour were sent over to Ramone who then selected the best ones and arranged the songs from there. Plus, the album opens with crowd noise and cheers and whoops pepper some of the songs, which is oddly distracting and superfluous. You get the feeling that the whole album is a way of reminding people of Michael’s talent as a vocalist, which is obviously fine, but this part-live, part-recorded, sort-of live version of his 1999 covers album Songs from the Last Century, makes it all feel slightly disingenuous.
The choice of tracklisting is interesting As I’ve just hinted at, five of the covers on Symphonica – Roxanne, Brother Can You Spare a Dime, You’ve Changed, My Baby Just Cares for Me and The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face – also appeared on Songs from the Last Century and, Roxanne aside, don’t really offer up anything particularly new (although his version of The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face is undeniably lovely). The choices feel safe, and despite the lush arrangements, there are moments where it all gets a bit X Factor during Big Band week. Where it gets interesting is when the selections take on a slightly new meaning in the context of his own turbulent personal life and status in pop music in 2014: opener Through, an album track from 2004’s Patience, takes on a new pang of regret as he sings about his mistakes being “of my making, no one else to blame for where I stand”, the exquisite Praying for Time hinges on the line “hanging on to hope, when there is no hope to speak of” and a gospel-esque version of Faith’s One More Try features a mournful, “looking out for angels, just trying to find some peace”. For good measure he then throws in a version of Elton John’s Idol, which is basically all about growing up in the public eye and shifting from teen idol into grown-up star, and how difficult that can be when the public don’t want you to change.
The less obvious covers stand out Feeling Good is a nice song, we all know that, but do we really need another version of it once we’ve had era-defining attempts by the likes of Michelle McManus, Pussycat Dolls and John Barrowman? The answer is no. But where Symphonica truly works and stretches itself is with the less obvious covers such as the delicate re-working of Terence Trent D’Arby’s Let Her Down Easy, which fits perfectly with the album’s feel of nostalgia tinged with regret, and, on the deluxe version only, a fairly faithful but perfectly conceived version of Rufus Wainwright’s Going to a Town.
His voice still sounds amazing Live albums are usually quite a good way of a) reminding people that someone exists, b) showing off a back catalogue or c) acting as a stop gap between albums (apparently there is a new Michael studio album proper being worked on as we speak). What they don’t always do, somewhat ironically, is showcase the artist’s voice in amongst the screaming, session-musician backing bands and authentic audio quality. That’s not a criticism you could level at Symphonica however, given that it all has a rich, multi-layered and expensive quality to it. Centre stage for it all is Michael’s voice, which still sounds incredible throughout, gliding through the sweeping notes of A Different Corner and remaining admirably understated during the lovely lilt of You Have Been Loved.
It’s the perfect album to listen to with a sherry and some slippers Back in 2002 Michael released a Human League-sampling, tongue-in-cheek political diatribe called Shoot the Dog, a song which joined the likes of 1998’s Outside and 1987’s I Want Your Sex as examples of Michael playfully deciding to rub Daily Mail readers up the wrong way. And while obviously not everything he does needs to come with a side of controversy, Symphonica feels like an incredibly safe and at times slightly dull album – perfect for a night in on a Sunday, or for when you’ve got friends round who are Michael Bublé fans but are willing to try something a bit different. It feels like a similar makeover-style album used by the likes of Tony Bennett and Rod Stewart, but George Michael is only 50. Perhaps this will cement his status as one of Britain’s greatest pop stars? Or perhaps it’s another fan-only collector’s item released to hide the fact that his last album of new material is now almost exactly a decade old.
Tracklist:
- Through
- My Baby Just Cares For Me
- A Different Corner
- Praying For Time
- Let Her Down Easy
- The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face
- Feeling Good
- John And Elvis Are Dead
- Roxanne (deluxe)
- One More Try
- Going To A Town (deluxe)
- Cowboys and Angels
- Idol
- Brother Can You Spare A Dime
- You Have Been Loved (deluxe)
- Wild Is The Wind
- You’ve Changed
Source: Guardian
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