Taylor Swift Appreciation Thread

That's exactly the way I feel about TS. I'm fascinated by her now that she's a 28 year old woman. I became somewhat enamored of her after I first listened to 1989. Before that she was totally off of my radar. I'm not familiar with much of her older music. I guess she was like 25 years old when she released 1989? 24 or 25? How old was Jim Morrison when he sang about riding the snake? I could look this info up.

There's some weird-thing about saying you like Taylor Swift. It has to do with the old Taylor and the new Taylor IMHO. The old Taylor was the young Taylor. The new Taylor is the now Taylor. The new Taylor is the 1989 and up Taylor, for me.

I think to anyone who grew up listening to TS, that this new TS might be a totally different experience. The snake stuff might have freaked some people out, same with The Swift Life emojis. To others, they may see the snake motifs and her new harder-edge as signs of the times. I'm reminded of rock 'n' roll. And now I worry about Taylor Swift. Is that too weird? I want her next album to be all about God or something. And this is because I appreciate Taylor Swift. The Stones and Bob Dylan might be tired of my ideas.

 

I've devoted some time to listen to the first two albums undisturbed. I like what I heard so far. I had very little knowledge of what songs were singles or popular live before I began. I did some research after listening to each album to see where my views compared to the general public. I do enjoy the mid tempo songs the most, and assume they were picked as singles.

Taylor Swift -
I was about to give up on the first album. The songs start out a bit down beat and slow. Not a lot of variation. Then the second half picked up the pace and variety. Very strong finish. I noticed I have the expanded edition with 3 extra songs. She made a good choice with the additions. I think "Should Have Said No" and "Our Song" were my favorites.

Fearless -
I have the Platinum Fearless. Really surprised to see how she added 6 new songs at the beginning of the album for the re-release. That's a bold choice. Her voice is better suited not singing soprano. It blends well when double tracked or in a duet too. The production is more varied here than the first album. And it helps. Not pushing the country tropes as much either. Heard some organ. The string arrangements compliment certain songs better than guitar or banjo. "You Belong With Me" was the first song I recognized from radio. Not sure if I even knew it was her at the time. Just as in the case of the first album, I thought this one finished stronger than it began. "Love Story", "Hey Stephen" , "The Way I Loved You" and the duet "Breathe" would be my favorites here.

I do think she made a mistake marketing herself as a Country artist 10 years ago. These songs could have been Top 40 pop or AC in the 90's. I even get a "Lisa Loeb" vibe on certain songs on Fearless. I feel like marketing her as teenage Country star kept many people, myself included, from giving her a fair shake early on. I enjoyed each album more as they went on. And that's a rare feat now days. I look forward to hearing how she progresses in the next two albums.

 

Wow Blimpboy, thanks. For a minute there I thought you had started this thread.. Now I'm feeling like listening to everything Taylor Swift has ever done. Taylor Swift rules in more ways than I even realize.

 

Me thinks the aural space within digital music is different than analog... There's extra room to put stuff in the digital realm. This is a saturated sound. One thing I like about REP's mix is that the vocals aren't too high compared to the music.

That's what I like about Stones albums, too. Mick is one of my favorite vocalists, and he's never too high in the mix. Taylor's voice blends perfectly everywhere on REP. A lot of modern pop music has way-too prominent vocals, imho, with everything else happening in the background.

Some other digital pop music (not Taylor's) even sounds like muzak to me. I can't listen to a whole bunch of other pop music. The REP synth-sound plays naturally to my ears, unlike the plasticine-static of bubble gum pop. REP is not that type of music. REP is a new kind of pop music.

"Don't Blame Me" is one of my current favorites from REP. It's more sparse in its arrangement than some of the other REP songs. "Delicate" has a more minimalist arrangement that I like too.

Now I'm into "New Year's Day" more and more, and it's kind of unlike everything else on the album. This one sounds like a live recording. Taylor's voice is more upfront in the mix on "New Year's Day," and beautifully so.

REP is digitally saturated... and then it isn't... "Gorgeous" is another one that isn't as digitally drenched as some of the other tunes. If that makes sense.. I can't get enough of REP! If you haven't heard it yet: expect copious amounts of digital saturation that dissipates on a few tunes, and it all sounds good.

Glad to have this TS thread here, so I can lay down all of my musings in the future. Will write more about REP later, because there's so much to take in. Thanks TS, for being awesome.

 

She's talented, and I look forward to seeing where she takes her music. Even though she's only 28, it seems like she's been around forever and girls in their teens and early 20's tend to discard female pop stars very quickly. She needs to figure out how to keep that audience, because as she ages, she isn't likely to be appealing to young girls. I noticed that this week's Billboard Top 10 is filled with female artists, but they are all relatively young and new - Camila Cabello at #1, Halsey at #5, Dua Lipa at #8 and rapper Cardi B at #4, #7 and #10. That doesn't mean that the likes of Taylor, Katy Perry, Lady Gaga and Rihanna are done, but that's a lot of new competition. Since they won't attract many teen and pre-teen fans, they need to remain appealing to their original fans as those fans get married, get jobs and do other things that women in their 30's do. I find it pretty interesting.

 

Yeah you're about to hit the mother lode! Wish I could be having that experience for the first time the way you're doing it.

 

Nice replies from everyone. Steve, I'm convinced now that I must listen to Taylor Swift's entire back catalogue. I took my own advice, and allowed Blimpboy to be my guide. I hope he continues to share his thoughts with us. I have a feeling we're both about to embark upon a fantastic and rewarding journey.

 

One of those artists I always give a listen too just to see what she is going to do next - I think she consistently manages to pull something out of the bag - I do prefer the old stuff but I do have time for the new stuff

 

The first time I heard Taylor Swift was "Tim McGraw," her first single in 2006. Country radio hadn't yet gone completely down the toilet, so I still had one of my car radio presets on a country station. When I first heard the song, I thought it was amazing. When I found out that it was written and sung by a teenager, I was awestruck. I especially loved the first three lines of the song:

He said the way my blue eyes shined
Put those Georgia eyes to shame that night
I said, "That's a lie."

"Tim McGraw" reminded me of some of my favorite coming-of-age songs like "Summer (The First Time)" by Bobby Goldsboro and "Strawberry Wine" by Deana Carter.

When the song didn't come out as a 45, I found a copy of the promo CD single, which I usually didn't try to do unless a song hit #1 on the country charts (it peaked at #6 country and #40 pop, the latter without a pop remix).

I am slowly realizing that there was a period of my life where I must have heard almost no new music at all. I looked at a list of Taylor's hits, and I don't remember hearing any of them between "You Belong with Me" and "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together." I also feel the same when I look at the contents of the Now That's What I Call Music! volumes of the same period...

More recently, it took me a while to warm up to "Look What You Made Me Do." Sometimes, a cover will give you new appreciation for the original version, and such was the case when then 13-year-old Grace VanderWaal, another talented-beyond-her-years singer-songwriter, did a live cover for a radio show gig about a month after the song came out. Grace even put a melody line behind the spoken chorus. She recognized that behind all the production and hype, "Look What You Made Me Do" is a pretty good song.

 

Thanks Tim, those are some excellent thoughts from you. Welcome to the Taylor Swift oasis of love. The official release of "Look What You Made Me Do" is kind of unnerving, to me, when Taylor says, "the old Taylor is dead." It's just a shocking moment. My heart sank when I first heard that song.

IMHO, if they did a remix of "Look What You Made Me Do," and omitted the 'death of the old self' bit, the song would be an instant classic for the ages. Listen to the chorus, it's solid gold - makes me want to dance. Listen to her phrasing, all perfect. But when she says, "the old Taylor is dead," I'm sorry, that's disturbing. I've never heard anything like that before in a pop song.

Everything else on REP is mostly-not metaphysically dark. She doesn't actually sing about any snakes. Well, the one song about the magician is dark. Mostly, though, I hear a person singing about strength and hope. These are dark and weird times we're living in now. I expect artists to be flipping out - that's why they're artists.

Okay, so I've been listening to some stuff from Red. This is good music. However, I'm way more into REP and 1989; and especially REP now. Everybody listen to REP, she's provided us with a collection of songs that keeps on giving.

Here's how I feel about Taylor:



This is good music, pleasant and engaging.

Taylor Swift - ‘...Ready For It?’ (Live At Capital’s Jingle Bell Ball 2017)

In comparison, The Jingle Ball is Totally awesome, and thank Goddess.

That's why this had to happen:



I was looking for a single pic of the broken cage... Can you see that? Zoom in.
That's where the caged bird used to sing.


Edit: I don't know why I can't get two of those TVs to appear on the screen. Everybody listen to and watch the whole Jingle Bell Ball, if you haven't already. Get ready to experience the free Taylor, the now Taylor, and the wow Taylor. Compared to the 2017 Jingle Bell Ball, the 2013 Red acoustic video is stuffy and stifling. She did good music back then. I just like her new songs better. She's free now. The artist has overcome the constraints imbued within her past images.

 

You should think about the consequence
Of your magnetic field being a little too strong

There are serpents at the oasis with the queen of clubs
I wrote in bad English, to say don't follow me

Down to the snake pit with a statue of a golden calf
Turning away from an illusion, I once called a higher voice

Yesterday I wanted to live forever
Today the clouds turn red in the iron rain

Carrying an illusion of love to the alley
Searching for the man who died on a cross

Oh wait, is this my own poetry thread? My love letter on the blue highway. I see green lines under things that I decide to keep. I just do that. It's my way of covering Keith Richards' "The Worst." That's my review of REP, right there. What do you think? REP is like rock 'n' roll to me, and memory loss. REP is my own groundhog's day the movie, and everything started with the snake. The rock ’n’ roll dark eyes.

The REP narrator, imho, goes to the serpent for protection; kind of, that’s one way of looking at TS’s snake infatuation. Every time I heard somebody sing, “I wear a cobra snake for a necktie," that was cool. That was rock 'n' roll. Taylor Swift produced by Jack White would be awesome. Taylor Swift is more rock 'n' roll right now, compared to many of her peers in the pop world, IMHO.

In my wildest dreams this is really that Bill Murray movie set in Japan. Can I even write that on here? I don't mean in reality… I mean, that's the way her music makes me feel, with my eyes closed. TS makes me feel inspired to write. I want to be your King of Hearts and the scarecrow, constantly in a cycle of reincarnation. That’s what people say. This is the stuff I get banned for.

I just don't want to end up like the high functioning dude from the new Salman Rushdie novel, that I read the Cliff Notes to.... If people have ideas about me I let them. Think about approximately a decade and a half of this, and you writing the next Tempest in 2033.

Now everybody’s mad about that hyphen. I’m mad about you. The divine madness makes them think that I’m broken. I make you think things. The world has gone mad. Now will Hoffman host my impromptu T.S. blog? Is this too over-the-top? Next I will analyze Taylor’s lyrics. That will be later on in this thread, provided that I’m not shut down for writing too much.

 

Don't spend too much time analyzing what I capitalized. I just didn't want the post to say "edited," for once. The Queen of Clubs. The King of Hearts. The song "Gorgeous" is really an incredible tune. I have a hard time writing about music. I can write while I'm listening to music. What do you say about music? I'm about ready to post cover tunes again. Everybody, continue doing what you're doing. It's good to know I can write about TS someplace. I think the REP lyrics are great.

 

I'm back with my next installment of the Taylor Swift catalogue as heard for the first time by a middle aged man. I spent time at home and in the car this time to see if the environment might change the experience.

Speak Now -
I had to listen to this album twice. I was so blown away by the improved production that I was losing track of the lyrics. She and her team are growing with each album. It's nice to hear them build on her strengths as an artist who is also learning about life as an adult at the same time. I like the mid tempo ballads here the best. You can hear her voice dead center with the instruments building around her. I like how they isolate instruments in either the left or right channel. Not an approach I'd expect from a radio friendly artist in the 21st Century. Top notch guitar work this time around.
"Innocent" stands out to me. I could almost imagine Stevie Nicks singing this with Christine McVie and Lindsey Buckingham on harmony vocals. I am still impressed by her ability to have strong songs deep into the album. It keeps the experience fresh. FYI - The pop mix of "Mine" included as a bonus on the Target bonus disc and versions outside of North America is far superior. Guitar is heavier in the mix, and some kicking bass with little synth flourishes. I hope this a practice exercised in latter albums. You should service the song, not the intended audience when mixing IMHO.

Speak Now Live -
I've never seen Taylor Swift perform live. Not even on television. I've seen pictures of her holding guitars, but have no idea how much she actual contributes to a show. I am saving the DVD that came with the disc for latter. I want nothing to distract from the songs. I had very high hopes that the live disc would have very little sweetening or overdubs. I appreciate Pink as a live artist because she has a actual touring band and can sing on stage with only a guitar as accompaniment.Taylor should be good at the intimate material, but is she a showman? I expected there was going to be a lot of screaming from the young crowd.On to the show!

I think this is a very genuine live show. She has a stronger voice than I expected. Very engaging with the audience between songs. The song I appreciated more live than in the studio was "Mean". She puts more into here. My biggest fault with the show would be too much emphasis on trying to reproduce the sound of the album live. It's at it's best when it's in the most intimate moments and the audience is singing along without the band. . As in the first verses of "December"and "Speak Now". I think I would have left the strings at home. The covers of "Drops of Jupiter" and "Bettie Davis Eyes" are how a few more of her own songs should have been performed. She killed on the latter. She should write more songs were she sings lower than her usual fare. More of a heavy timbre in her voice.
It's funny to hear her talk about music from L.A. throughout the concert. Like it is rare for artist to come from there and make it big, or that the audience is unaware of that. So innocent.

 

Welcome to the new TS fan club, now hosted by two middle aged men. I've been handling all the poetry dedicated to Taylor, while Blimpboy continues to provide us with his irreplaceable first impressions of Taylor's music. I'm excited about this thread now. Just starting out my morning here with REP on shuffle. Seriously, thank you for your thoughtful replies, Blimpboy. I'm usually listening to music, playing music, or at least thinking about music on some level. However, I just don't write about music that often. Some other people I know who play music don't even know how to write.. Well, they probably know how to write their names. I doubt if they could tell me what a prepositional phrase was, though. Don't do drugs and stay in school. I love rock 'n' roll. And I love TS.

 

Taylor is persecuted in weird ways, seemingly for her art. Her persona is on trial all the time. That's what's in the news, and within the computer gossip columns. I feel for Taylor as a person because I'm into her art. I can relate to her. And then I can't. Good, as mentioned, I'm tired of listening to dudes singing. Taylor wants somebody to make her feel "brand new." Only a woman could say that. I want to count the number of words within the songs on this album called REP. There are lots of words here.

Listen to REP. By the time you get to "Gorgeous" everything is cool. "Guess I'll just stumble on home to my cats," she says. Taylor is not going home to her snakes. In fact, she never mentions anything about snakes. Once you get past the old Taylor/new Taylor-thing, you can hear within the music that the snake imagery is an affectation, sort of. Because the snakes aren't there... The snake imagery is a mirage. She's going through a phase. Or more like something she already went through.. I don't want that to sound the wrong way. I go through phases. Grown men go through phases. So whatever. I feel that Taylor has already written her next album, and that the current one is a touchstone of sorts. She thinks ahead.

This is for my old time fans. Just this paragraph, briefly. Mods bear with me. I wish somebody would write something about a meteorite chair. You know, The iron chair that transports mortals to the stars of the north. Oh anyway, I just watched the whole new X-files season. They missed that whole thing. They thought everything was about Mescalito from the"Panama Red" song. Don't miss my point. Picture reading me for 16 years or so. Then it took until the 17th year for everything to get better. Now picture 20 more years of my writing. I don't have any other threads, so I have to put everything here. Goodnight Hollywood. I don't ask anybody to read this stuff.

 

One day we'll look back at the 2010's and recognize it for what it is: "The Age of Taylor Swift."

 

She's just getting started.

 

I want a meteorite chair.

 

Me too.

 

Shake is a modern classic pop song

 

That's a fun tune. The rest of 1989 is totally different in so many great ways. 1989 is a masterpiece in its own right. How do you follow that up? With the snake, apparently...Just want everybody to know that I did date an attorney for a while. And she still practices law, I guess. That’s getting to be a long time ago now….I need some smart chick to correct my grammar and stuff. Good afternoon all, and drive safely. Welcome to the T.S. oasis of love.

I should be able to give everybody a more in-depth review of REP, especially lyrically, this afternoon. I'm going to listen all the way through, like, a few times in a row. This is my all-REP day. I have some time to dedicate to my wildest dreams this afternoon. Welcome to Saturday. I don't have a date. There will be no attorneys here tonight, as far as I know. T.S. rocks my world!

 

I just listened to REP and nothing in the lyrics reminded me of a snake. I don't know if "affectation" was the best word to have used. What if you felt that you had driven somebody to the snake? What if you thought you had said that snakes were popular or something.. and then the next thing you know...

REP is a mixed offering, but I really enjoy all of these songs. There are three 1989 outtakes that I can hear: "Getaway Car," "Dancing With Our Hands Tied" and "King Of My Heart." The lyrics throughout REP make me think of the nature of obsession and lost love. And I also think about the artist, where she's at within these songs, and all of the people that she's come up against: the "narcissist" who is the "magician" that she has to slay. Looks like those scratches weren't worth the pain. The playboys aren't worth her time either. She doesn't want to "let them think they’ve saved" her. Then there's some dude who breaks stuff, and she has to take these things away. That's why they "can't have nice things." Trust is an issue. Sounds like my life.

"Friends don't try to trick you." People lie to her, and then she lies. This is all in the lyrics: the mentions of lies and mistrust. When she says, "Even through my worst lies you saw the truth in me," well, that's the way I feel sometimes about the internet, etc. And then I feel like T.S., the narrator of REP feels: "so go ahead a light me up." I feel like I'm that witch sometimes because people put me in that place. "And if I get burned at least I was electrified." Or that's what people want me to be. So, I get what I think I deserve. Or something.

I jotted down notes while listening. I love the REP lyrics... T.S. said: "Say my name and everything just stops." She makes me think of the "Golden Tattoo" and what that tattoo might look like. You gotta listen to the song "Dress." You've gotta listen to REP. There's a lot to take in. Hopefully I'm not being annoying on this thread. If I ever thought this was annoying to Taylor Swift I would never write about her again on the internet. Hopefully she doesn't mind this thread. I'm really interested in her work. And who knows, by the time we get to page three I may be telling the future....

 

Listen to that line, from "Love Sick" live, "You must have went through my pockets while I was sleeping." Remember that time when you felt safe enough to dream, then all of a sudden you thought everything wasn't in its place? We might have gone looking and wondering down those same corridors. We remember when the sense of betrayal sank in. We ran into the people with the hungry eyes who wanted to make Goats Head Soup. There was glitter on the floor after the rock ’n’ roll party. “I don’t trust nobody and nobody trusts me.” It's for a sense of abandonment that we got bogged-down in the tar pit. “They’ll stone you just like you got hit by a truck." The rock 'n' roll writing-style on REP reminds me of all of this imagery. The Stones are all over REP too. Change everything to 4/4 and REP is a Stones album. Even though "Black Limousine" is played in 3's, right? You remember that one.

Anyone could do a completely different review of REP, if you only picked a few different lines. Taylor mentions ‘lies’ only twice, on the whole album, that I can remember. And the first time she was the one being lied to. She’s honest. We have all told lies at certain times. None of us are God-like. But when people start thinking you have to be either ultimately good or ultimately bad, well, then maybe you're in a new club. I can relate to the feeling of wanting to build a wall around your whole house. Yeah, so far I haven’t turned into a chick from listening to Taylor Swift. Although I might need a box of Rob Lowe’s diet chocolate bars after this long winter of snacking...The post-Super Bowl depression isn’t helping matters at all. Now I know how a bunch off other people have felt before - worst Super Bowl ever. The whole-thing has sent me into a stream-of-consciousness. “Pain sure brings out the best in people, doesn't it?" Don't call me Shirley. “Sometimes I think about you, baby. Sometimes I cry about you.”

 

She writes really good songs. I think much of her catalog will be covered over the next several decades by other artists who will be able to relate to what she writes.
I think that may be her strongest point, even more than her singing. If she can stay grounded, I think writing could keep her afloat long after she declines as a performer/artist.

 

Posted on Taylor's Instagram today....