Customer Reviews

Jackie's Strength / Father Lucifer

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I was quite skeptical when I saw Jackie's Strength was remixed. The reviews were also not that impressive. I thought I might get a beautiful song massacred by disco drum beats. If you buy Tori singles for the B-sides and covers, do NOT buy this CD. If you collect remixes, then this one has some merit. Let's get real folks, most remixes of any song does not do justice to the original version. Therefore, when buying a maxi-single of remixes, I expect to only like one of the tracks. If I get any more than that, then I am a happy camper. My criteria includes staying true to the original version, while adding something new. Very few remixes are better than the original. This one is no exception. I only like the Wedding Cake Club Mix of Jackie's Strength, but the original version is far superior. It definetly is not on par with the Sticky Extended Vocal Mix of Raspberry Swirl. Surprisingly, the Father Lucifer Sylkscreen Remix is very good and may surpass the original. In summary, if you love the tenderness of Jackie's Strength and are unfamiliar to what most remixes do to songs, do NOT buy this single. You will be greatly disappointed. If you collect remixes, then you may want to give this one a try given that you share similar expectations for them.

Tori Amos is one of those few artists that still puts out a lot of singles to please collectors and long time fans. But by far and large she is a full-length album/CD artists and you really need to buy those to get an appreciation of her unique style.

That being said, I think "Jackie's Strength" is one of her best single releases. The song is one of Tori's most beautiful -> a breathtaking and thoughtful ballad. Her fans have many different views on the song's meaning: my feeling is that she wrote it about Jackie Kennedy.

Unlike most of Tori's releases, "Jackie's Strength" was remixed and promoted to dance clubs, and reached #1 on the Billboard Dance/Club Chart in the spring of 1999. The Wedding Cake Club Mix is the definitive mix here and made this into kind of a dance floor smash. The mix gives "Jackie" an unmistakable groove but maintains its beauty and its serious and contemplative tone.

Most of Tori's biggest fans and purists are against having her songs remixed. But I think we can make an exception here. Only a tiny handful of Tori tracks have been remixed for dance clubs, namely "Professional Widow", "In The Springtime Of His Voodoo", and "Don't Make Me Come To Vegas. Over all these tracks "Jackie's Strength" stands out as the Tori's best dance floor adaptation to date.

I bought Choirgirl Hotel on a hunch at a local cd store. I did not know Tori Amos as a performer at all then. It was a classic right away. The songs haunted me with their melodies, chasing me and casting me to dreams. The whole of her other cds followed, receiving a special place next to my cd player. Amos is not the average performer. She is a fabulous artist and her songs are just spell-binding. When I clicked on the song "Jackie's Strength" to preview what I was buying I noticed a distinctly different sound. It wasn't Tori at all. But that fact made it more Tori than anything. It has the element of surprise. It's her, all right. But the dance beat in the back ground gives the haunting spell of the song a delicious twist, teasing, taunting, pulling you closer in a bewitching embrace. I loved it at once. Although the cd was to be a present for my sister, I ordered an extra copy to keep for myself. These are the little twists that can make the same song come alive in a distinctly different divine avatar.

If you like the song Jackie's Strength that doesnt mean youll like this cd maxi single. These are remixes Jackie's Strength dubbed and torn apart to create a GROOVE...and it works. I think the Dubs are the best...There's a mix where they extend Tori's line The Real Thing over and over making you wanna shake your hips. And as a bonus a fresh up to date recording of Father Lucifer. If you wanna hear Jackie's Strength in a new light This Is For You!

This maxisingle has several remixes of "Jackie's strength", all of which are pretty much the same. The Sylkscreened "Father Lucifer" is on THIS single. The videos are on the OTHER "Jackie's Strength" single that has been out for a while. The cover picture for THIS MAXIsingle is a picture of Tori clad in a beaded dress looking very sleek and creamy. Her hair is as red as ever (orange?) The OTHER single is much cheaper, and it has a B&W of her in the infamous wedding dress. this maxisingle is definitely good for the Sylkscreened Father Lucifer, but the price is kind of steep. If you want to buy this, I would reccomend you listen to a friend's copy first. If you are a DIE HARD toriphile, go for it. For the rest of you, stick with the B&W single. Cheaper and more diverse...

I love the album version of "Jackie's Strength," but make no mistake, this single is not just more of the same thing.

These versions are filled with techno mixes and dubs, layering Tori's voice and lyrics with several different rhythmic themes. One or two of the mixes are fairly close to the original, but some of the others introduce a whole new layer of sound to the song which isn't present in the album version (for instance, track #2 "Father Lucifer.") A wonderful example of the musical fusion created when you mix Tori's voice and style with the best that techno has to offer.

If you are looking for classic Tori, you won't find it here... However, if you want something to dance to this is the single to get. All the versions of "Jackie's Strength" are remixed with grooves and dance beats. I rate this CD somewhat low because I consider "Jackie's Strength" too serious of a song to be remixed but I enjoy the remixes of "Father Lucifer" -- those remixes I believe actually enhance the song and make it better. A must have for dance fans, but look elsewhere if you enjoy Tori's (sometimes) quieter and more serious side.

The reason I bought this single was because I love the song "Jackie's Strength" and its one of my favorite songs from one of my favorite performers. So, I was quite displeased when I made the discovery that the remixes are just like every other remix around, with no bit of originality, much less than Tori Amos deserves.

The high points, which are few, are the "Wedding Cake Remix" and the "Sylkscreen" mix of "Father Lucifer". Still, there's little bite to even those, and to have such a gorgeous song be reduced to dance club mixes do make me a little perturbed.

Tori is not incapable of good remixes, as the "Cruel", "Spark", and "Raspberry Swirl" remixes are really nice, but it doesn't always work like that I guess.

I like Tori remixed - remixes are meant to be enjoyed in clubs, and when your feeling the need to dance or feel good , image a world with no remixes - doubt half of us would know who Tori Amos is and im sure we wouldnt be dancing to tori in clubs. I myself discovered her by hearing a remix, which led me to find out more and come to love her many albums.

But these "wedding cake" mixes of jackies strength are not the best. Was an acapella even used to remix this? Or was the beats just layered over the original?? It seems to me like the latter. In parts towards the end you can hardly hear tori for the beats are too loud. These could of had real potential if mixed correctly by some big name remixes at the time. The slyscreen mix of father lucifer is awesome. Can not find a fault. I actually prefer it to the original.

"Jackie's Strength," a beautiful track off Amos's fourth solo album "from the choirgirl hotel," saw two commercial single releases. This is the second release that consists of remixes only. All four remixes of the title track would fit quite nicely onto any dance floor. However, the mixes of "Father Lucifer," from Amos's third solo album "Boys for Pele," are a different story. They are quite unique and very effective mixes that you can't always dance to. The instrumental version just might take your breath away.