Customer Reviews

The Diary of Alicia Keys [Limited Edition w/ Bonus DVD]

5 star:		(190)
4 star:		(28)
3 star:		(18)
2 star:		(14)
1 star:		(20)

 

 

I am completely stunned by this cd! I really enjoyed Ms. Alicia Keys' first album, but i am so overwhelmed at her outdoing herself on "The Diary..." that i find myself putting this album on repeat 24/7 for the past few weeks. This cd definitely has a more retro-60's-soul-style in it. You can hear the influences of the past and it is much more gorgeous than any album i've heard lately. My favorite tracks here are everything, 1 through 15. Especially "if i was your woman," "you don't know my name", "if i ain't got you", "diary", and all the rest of them. I won't list them all. Go out and cop this album, NOW!!!!!

The Diary of Alicia Keys is VINTAGE R&B. This CD is definitely better than her first. But this production is more mature.

Unfortunately, some think that R&B is what most of her contemporaries are doing. But it isn't. It's more pop/hip-hop. And that's okay, I have many of those CDs. But Alicia's CD is true rhythm & blues with a hint of jazz. It's what R&B used to sound like when I was growing up, and I'm 29. Her CD is current, but with a classic vibe.

If you want to listen and LEARN about the kind of music the real R&B Kings and Queens used to make, then I would start by buying The Diary of Alicia Keys. She's the closest thing without having to pull out the old vinyl. Particularly, if you're younger and can't groove with the older stuff, or just haven't had much exposure to R&B, then definitely give her new CD a try.

Warning: If you're hoping for Beyonce or Ashanti, which I happen to like, then you will be disappointed. So, I would keep an open mind and not let recent music trends influence your opinion. Alicia has a lot of talent. If you listen closely, you'll find it.

Two years ago, it was Alicia Keys madness here in the United States of America. She won tons of Grammys, "Fallin'", the first single off Ms. Key's debut album, "Songs In A Minor" was being played every twenty minutes on the radio, etc., etc. Clearly, everyone and his grandmother thought that Alicia Keys was the best thing since sliced bread. I attempted to join this craze. For Easter 2002, I recieved "Songs In A Minor". Being eleven at the time, the whole album went way over my head. I remember enjoying "Girlfriend" and "Jane Doe", the faster and poppier songs of the bunch, but pretty much slept through the rest. Anyway, when Alicia released "Diary", I was determined not to get sucked into the hype. However, one day after seeing Alicia on some morning talk show, my mother asked why I hadn't asked for this album for Christmas. I figured, "What the heck?", and told her I'd love to have it. Anyway, I started listening to "Songs In A Minor" again in mid December. Being thirteen now, I enjoyed it a little more. But as I started listening to it more and more, I realized that it is actually a great album. Two years ago, my collection was full of that Britney and N'Sync crap, but now it is full of people like Beyonce, Mya, and Mary J. Blige, Ginuwine, and Outkast so my tastes in music had changed greatly. I prepared myself for an excellent album...
and was crushed. I hated "The Diary of Alicia Keys". However, unlike with Songs In A Minor I did not give up. Two days ago, I popped this CD in my player and loved it. The beats are terrific, the lyrics poetic, and Alicia's voice is better than ever. I love Alicia Keys, but I just need some time to get used to her CDs. The same thing will probably happen with her third effort. Many males here have said that this album is to emotional for them and that only women will enjoy it. Well guess what? I'm a teenage guy and I love this CD. My favorite songs are "Karma", "If I was your woman/Walk on By", "You don't know my name", and "If I ain't got you". I enjoy the second half as well. All in all, Ms. Keys is one of the most talented musicians of our generation. Please do not pass up the oppurtunity to enjoy one of the most sexy, mature, soulful discs ever!

Alicia Keys is an amazing talent. No doubts there.

However, I feel that neither of her albums have yet to fully grasp all of her potential. On this latest work as well as the last, the entire album's supported on two to three solid tracks. The rest still seems to be filler, a la flavor of the month pop. Alicia Keys is more than this and that is why I only give her latest three stars.

Until Keys develops an entire album that is dymanic and exciting from start to finish, she's yet to show her stuff. See Outkast, for example. That's potential that's tapped.

I would also like to see more piano infusion. She prides herself as a piano prodigy, but many of the tracks are void of or lacking enough of the instrument.

I admit, I was one of the people who was calling Alicia "overrated!" after she received all the hype for her debut, SONGS IN 'A' MINOR. I thought it was overhyped and overrarted, and I still do. But she surely made a fan out of me with this album. When I first heard 'You Don't Know My Name' I was in love. I wasn't too sure about buying the album b/c I didn't want to be duped again, but I did it and I'm very glad I did because you can tell she had more creative reign on this album, and she is coming into her own. Every song on a scale of 1-10:
1.Harlem's Nocturne [Intro] - 10 (Great intro,even the name of it is beautiful.)
2.Karma-9 (This song has a phat beat with gorgeous strings in the background. It's a club banger which is something I am not used to hearing from her)
3.Heartburn-10 (This Timbaland produced track is definitely one of the highlights of the album. It is very old school, it reminds you of the Supremes and the lyrics are great)
4.If I Were Your Woman/Walk On By- 9 (At first I did not like this one because it was not as good as the original, but after listening a few times you can see she puts her own stamp on it and it turns into a nice club joint)
5.You Don't Know My Name - 10 (The first single, the thing that made me buy the album. Not much to say except it is a beautiful love song)
6.If I Ain't Got You- 10 (This is a fiery blues joint. Alicia's iano playing is great on this, and this is probably her best vocal performance ever)
7.Diary-10 (Probably my favorite track on the album. The melody is gorgeous and the vocals are so seductive)
8.Dragon Days-9 (This is another track that took a while to get used to. I thought it was wierd at first but now I love it. It's very funky)
9.Wake Up-10 (This is a Motown style song through and through. The beackground vocals are very nice on this. You can tell how influenced she was by that period)
10.So Simple-8 (This song is pretty good. I like the voice distortion, it's very Kanye-esque. It's a nice listen, but nothing too special.)
11.When You Really Love Someone-10 (This is classic Alicia doing the sound that made her. Excellent song, nice lyrics.)
12.Feelin' Me, Feelin' You-8 (This is a nice interlude. I love how her interludes are music and not silly convos.)
13.Slow Down-6 (This is my least favorite song on the album. It sounds like a Mary J. Blige throwaway. Why this was included I don't know.)
14.Samsonite Man-9 (This is a pretty mellow song. Good lyrics about a man who is a rolling stone)
15.Nobody Not Really-10 (Why oh why wasn't this a whole song?!? It is so beautiful, it is reminiscent of Marvin Gaye. Alicia definitely needs to do more of this music on her next album which I am already looking forward to.)

So there you have it. An excellent album that I was *quite* surprised with, and I look forward to hearing the next one.

Well I got "songs in a minor" box-edition christmas 2002 and unfortunately enough I never paid the attention and TIME it deserved so I never felt the vibe and it ended up in my collection collecting dust! Well last december I start hearing "u dont know my name" on MTV and I was so sad coz I did the same mistake and just said "oh my god another one" and I never listened to it again! Now what happened is... my friend got "the diary..." and send me a msg telling me that is UNIQUE and SOOOOOOOOOOO NICE! It triggered my attention (really did) and so I prepared my self to buy it! I started listening again SIAM and guess what? I started to like it!!! After few days (yesterday) I went and got A.keys` new album (w/bonus dvd) and I was really scared coz I didn't want to waste money especially when I could choose from "TLC-GH" and "PINK-TRY THIS" but I just bought it and went home... popped it in my hi-fi... and OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! Well I really really can't find a word right now to express and let u understand what I felt when I listened to the album for the first time! It's amazinggggg!!!! It's better and more solid then her first! It does (fortunately) not need much time to get use to! There's no single track I dont like or I listen just because to force my self to like it! Sooooo go and buy it! It's a guarantee that u're going to like it! I'm not in position to review track by track coz I still have to get use to them but I do that soooon :-)! PS: u should too print lyrics and follow with them (the CD don't have the lyrics)! Give her a chance to grow in you and u'll never get her out! She'll surely touch ur heart with her wonderful piano playing and amazing vocals!! Amazing 10+ second effort! Go Alicia...officialy u have another FAN!!!! ps: my fave track now is: U don't know my name lol ;)

BTW: get the version (limited tough) with DVD coz it's so nice! It features 35mins of her diary! :)

Alicia Keys is a phenominal singer, songwriter, producer, performer, musician, and 5 time Grammy winner! At the age of 21, she has already captured all the accolades that can be bestowed upon a musical artist. She's a rare talent that comes along once in a decade. She has only touched the surface of her enormous musical ability.
As I carefully listened to her new CD "The Diary of Alicia Keyes", I was blown away! She takes "Neo-Soul" to the next level with this collection of geat songs. Every song on the CD is either very good or great! If you are a lover of R&B, Jazz, Soul, Hip-Hop, or appreciate very good music, you'll love this CD.
My favorites are:
1)"You don't know my name" --- A classic. . . the best song on the CD. I really love when Alicia croons the chorus "OOOOH,OOOOH, You don't know my name"!

2)"If I ain't got you" --- This is a sweet, sweet song with a lot of emotion and a good message.

3)"Diary" --- Beautiful song of having total trust and confidence in your lover to keep your secrets.

4)"If I were your woman/ Walk on by" --- I'm sure Gladys Knight is proud of Alicia's rendition of her classic song.

5)"Karma" --- Haunting hook, nice beats and great production.

6)"When you really love someone" --- This song sounds like "Fallin" and "A woman's worth".

7)"Slow Down" --- Alicia's vocals are so sweet and seductive on this track.

8)"Wake up" --- This song sounds a little like "Lovin U".

Alicia Keys is truly blessed with remarkable musical talent and it's scary that at - 21 - she will only get better with every CD she releases. The sky's the limit for this beautiful songstress!

At first listen, I find myself a bit struck at the lack of tracks that articulate and deal with the nuances of life and its travails outside of the realm of amorous relationships. This type of song, for me, is what distinguished Songs in A Minor from the usual "lovey-dovey" dreck of Keys' contemporaries. Keys, in largely confining the topics addressed in Diary to plain love songs (excepting one track, shoved behind the album's 14 other tracks), reveals only her amorous side. Thus, little else of her personality comes across in this collection, and what is a diary if not personal?

With respect to her vocal delivery on this album, it seems to fall short of the preceding album wherein Keys utilized all sorts of textures of her voice, and varied her singing style from track to track. In Diary, however, the vocals are much less adventurous, and almost every track is sung in more or less the same tone and voice, belying Keys' ability and range as a vocalist.

Aside from these two gripes, Diary is a solidly good album. If it had been her debut (i.e. if I didn't know she could do better), it would have earned five stars from this amateur reviewer. It's musically adventurous with its paeans to funk, disco, and classic 70's soul. Keys' frank, smart, and contemporarily flavored (i.e. 2003 street) lyrics lend a freshness to the album that elevates it from the retro-land in which it might have otherwise resided. I love Miss Keys, and that's why I'm kinda' disappointed with this album. I want to know more about her, not about her man.

This is one of the first CDs I ever bought and it is one of the best in my collection. The songs on here are so well crafted and put together that it makes Alicia seem like she has been doing this for over 10 years. She is so different from most of the divas out there who shake their butt, like Beyonce, Ashanti and Ciara, and I have to say, she is probably the best arrival so far in this millennium. Nearly ever song on this album deserves a 5 star, and I hope she keeps coming up with good music in her years to come. The DVD is very interesting because it talks about her journey through life and how she became an artist and who helped her and influenced her along the way. It also shows her on tour and the places she went to and how that had a part in the development of this album. This album was the reason I bought Songs in A Minor, which is also another excellent piece of work, and I know she will win many Grammy Awards this year. I highly recommend this album to all Alicia fans.

I will be the first to admit that I bought her first cd solely b/c of the hype surrounding it. I hated it! So when they started playing "You Don't Know My Name," it took a while for it to grow on me. The day this album came out, my friend went to pick some up for some people. I told him to pick me up one. I almost told him not to worry about it. And I'm so glad I did. This album is good and worth a listen. A. Keys gets you from start about the middle of the album. Yeah, the second half, after Diary, is pretty much a downer.

My favorite tracks are Karma, Heartburn, If I Were Your Woman/Walk on By (nice cover of Gladys), You Don't Know My Name, If I Ain't Got You/With this cd, she definitely made a believer out of me.