Music: Something New, Something Old

Let's start with a music history lesson. It was (already) ten years ago that a few of the landmark albums of the decade were released. Their most commercial successes and critical acclaim were collected during these years. Alanis and Mariah respectively released Jagged Little Pill and Daydream in 1995 and later slugged it out for the year's best selling album.

A decade later, both are back, with new, or somewhat new offerings. (I wanted to do a whole entry on Emancipation, but I think I can say it here: it is Mariah's most satisfying album after Butterfly - this is how I envisioned her to mature. Glad that she made that turnaround)

Jagged Little Pill should be in your CD collection. I must admit that I don't have one (Note to self: must have one), since mine was in the cassette format. I missed out on "Your House", because the hidden track was available only on CD format. Nevertheless, it was filled with angst, and enough grit to institutionalise Alanis in rock history. Selling well over 14 million copies worldwide, this album was the mid 90s.

Now, the whole album is remade into an acoustic melodious version. The songs are there, and knowing that they were made in a different context, provides me the feeling of earned maturity, and an evolution of musical taste.

I can not help but smile when listening to the album. I still buy compact discs, as I view them as photographs of the years past. Here is an old picture, with all memories in tow, breathed into life again, by the same artist. Commercial ploy, or artistic whim? I'd go for the latter.