Customer Reviews

Love Changes Everything - The Andrew Lloyd Webber collection vol.2

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Received the CD as a gift from a real good friend of mine (you know who you are). First of all, the CD showcases some of Sarah's most memorable songs which haven't received as much recognition as others have. This compilation features different versions of songs we're already familiar with...starting with "Love Changes Everything"...which isn't annoying & tinny, compared to the version on the "ALW Collection #1". I can't stand that version! This one has a heavier bass-line with a nicer, softer ending.

Just a little note...in case you read the review that "Superman" posted. The version of "Love Changes Everything" is NOT the same version as on the ALW Collection #1. Also..."The Phantom of the Opera" isn't the same version as on the ALW Collection #1 either. And of course...where else will the "Think of Me" come from, if it wasn't from 18 years ago? Why complain about stuff like this when you don't even talk about the new material on the CD? Why don't you get your facts straight, Superman?

"Only You" is a track which I only heard as a poorly downloaded mp3 from a cracking, scratchy vinyl. So...I never really had the chance to enjoy it. But now that it's been re-mastered onto CD, I like it. It's a wonder this one got to see the light of day at all...seeing ALW has released so many compilations of Sarah's music. Why hasn't this song come out to us sooner? Moving on, "Any Dream Will Do" appears on the Japanese Version of "Sarah Brightman Sings the Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber"...and is harder to find, due to it's rarity in some parts. I'm pleased to have it on an up-to-date compilation of ALW's finest music written for Sarah's voice.

Can't understand why "Think of Me" appears on here...if it's on the "Encore" CD...even though it's part of Sarah's repertoire which made her the star she is today. "The Phantom of the Opera" with Steve Harley is rock-based and showcases Sarah's early "duet" talents. Anyone whose seen this video will agree it's got that certain edge.

All the new songs are simply stunning and are a treat to the ears, considering we've seen & heard so many repeated songs on all of ALW's "Sarah" compilations. Finally, we hear stuff which hasn't received the attention is so very well deserves. I love John Barrowman's voice better than Steve Barton's (God Rest Steve's Soul).

Finally, ALW has put together an "SB Compilation" worth every penny. With a few odd's & ends thrown in among a collection of stunning "earlies", I don't regret owning the album.

Tracklist:

01- Probably on a Thursday - 3:29
02- The Perfect Year - 3:25
03- Only You (Feat. Cliff Richard) - 3:53
04- Love Changes Everything - 3:29
05- Seeing is Believing (Feat. Michael Ball) - 4:32
06- Think of Me (Feat. Steve Barton) - 3:12
07- Any Dream Will Do - 3:50
08- I Don't Know How To Love Him - 3:53
09- Too Much in Love to Care (Feat. John Barrowman) - 4:40
10- The Phantom of the Opera (Feat. Steve Harley) - 4:40
11- Make up My Heart - 3:32)
12- Don't Cry For Me Argentina (No Llores Por Mi, Argentina (Spanish Version ) - 5:32
13- Everything's Alright - 4:32
14- Whistle Down the Wind (2002 Version) - 3:29

About the artwork & booklet...it's simple, yet polished, just like the other SB/ALW compilations. The inner tray is blood red, which brings out Sarah's lip color. The front image is stunning and was taken with a screened effect on the camera. Sarah's eyes tell it all. Everything's beautiful about this item. Even the one solitary picture inside the booklet, helps tell the story of a long, musical journey inside a young singer's early career. For all the diehard Sarah Brightman fans...this album is for you. Great for a stocking stuffer or as a gift for that unsuspecting music lover.

I was a bit sceptical when this album was released since I owned 3 other albums with Sarah Brightman singing ALW songs: "Sarah Brightman Sings ALW" "Surrender: The Unexpected Songs" and "The ALW Collection Vol. 1" But when I read the song list, it does sound interesting to me so I decided to just go and grab one.

I was totally surprised at how this album was presented. I really like this side of Sarah Brightman. We usually portray Miss Brightman as a big powerful high-pitched soprano kinda singer, which sometimes nice but can get a bit annoying at times. But this album features more of Sarah's relaxing side. She sings all the songs softly and beautifully with a little flair of pop music as well. Most of the songs end with a fade out not with a big powerful Broadway-like ending. And her repertoire here is really interesting. Firstly, it doesn't repeat other albums that much. It also has 7 previously unreleased songs out of 14. That's half the album! Here's my thoughts on each of them:

#1 PROBABLY ON THURSDAY: This was an unreleased song. It sounds more like a pop song than traditional Broadway. But Sarah sings it wonderfully.

#2 THE PERFECT YEAR: From Sunset Boulevard, This unreleased version resembles Dina Carroll's version to me but Sarah has her own take on the song which makes it more gentle and beautiful.

#3 ONLY YOU: From Starlight Express, I'm sure we all have heard Sarah's duet with Cliff Richard in All I Ask of You. But here's another wonderful duet, previously unreleased.

#4 LOVE CHANGES EVERYTHING: From Aspects of Love, Some of you might think "Oh C'mon, we have this song in ALW Collection Vol. 1" Well, folks, this is another version of it and, may I say, a better one. This unreleased version has a completely new take on the song. She sings it softly and it sounds so relaxing and she didn't go all the way to that strainful high note in the end like in the previous album (which I hate). This version has a soft ending and it's wonderful!!!

#5 SEEING IS BELIEVING: From Aspects of Love, This is so awesome, Sarah, who once played Rose in Aspects, singing with the original Alex, Michael Ball. What more could you ask!

#6 THINK OF ME: From The Phantom, This is taken from the Original London Cast Recording so no doubt that it's wonderful. I think the reason why they chose this songs is that they ran out of songs from Phantom since 4 of them was featured on Vol. 1

#7 ANY DREAM WILL DO: From Joseph, This song can be found on "Sarah Brightman sings ALW" album. But that album is very old and most of the people might not own it. So I think it's good that they included it here in a newer album. The music sounds exactly the same as the cast recording album just with a female voice instead, nice!!!

#8 I DON'T KNOW HOW TO LOVE HIM: From Jesus Christ Superstar, I found this song on 2 albums, "The Very Best of ALW" and "Sarah Brightman sings ALW" The first time I heard this, I thought to myself this is the best version of the song ever. I like Sarah's take on this more than Yvonne Elliman, really. Don't boo me for that.

#9 TOO MUCH IN LOVE TO CARE: From Sunset Boulevard, Here's another of our previously unreleased. Sarah sings this with the brilliant John Barrowman. This is my favourite songs from the show but not many singers recorded it. So I was really excited to see this song on the list and it didn't disappoint me at all.

#10 THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA: Then my nightmare comes. Sorry but I really hate this version of the song. I don't like Steve Harley's style and this song always appear on every compilation album. But one bad song couldn't hurt this wonderful album. Just skip it. As I said, they just need some songs from this show since it's what made Sarah a star. And Michael Crawford's version was on Vol. 1 already.

#11 MAKE UP MY HEART: From Starlight Express, Our last unreleased song. I really like it. I have to admit that I have never heard this song before since I didn't own the new Starlight Express album. But it's wonderful and a little heart-wrenching, don't you think... :)

#12 NO LLORES POR MI ARGENTINA: From Evita, This is the Spanish version of Don't Cry for Me Argentina. I really like it when Sarah sings the songs in other language. It's something about her voice that suits these beautiful languages. This song is also featured on "Surrender".

#13 EVERYTHING'S ALRIGHT: From Jesus Christ Superstar, This song can be found on "Sarah Brightman sings ALW" and "Surrender". It's wonderful to here Sarah as Mary Magdalene. The guys singing here are just so-so. It's Sarah who's the star!

#14 WHISTLE DOWN THE WIND: Then we came to our last song. I'm so glad they included this song on this album. The song only features on "Encore" which I didn't own for I think the repertoire didn't interest me. This song is a wonderful exit music for the album. It's beautiful. It's nice. It's great!!!

Wow, this is a long comment, huh? Anyway, for those of you who are thinking of getting Sarah's album with an all-Andrew-Lloyd songs. Here's the bottom line. If you own the Vol. 1 already, just buy it! It's much much better and the song didn't repeat itself. If you own the other album with Sarah singing Andrew's songs, you should get this too just for the 7 new songs. If you are going to buy your first Sarah's album, I'd recommend this one and "Surrender" (which might be a bit pricy but the songs are great there too) Don't get the Vol. 1, it's not that good! Hope my comments help!

P.S. If you're interested in some other people singing Andrew Lloyd Webber's songs, try "Michael Crawford Performs Andrew Lloyd Webber", it's great too!

This is a beautiful selection of songs performed with Sarah Brightman's glorious voice. The combined talents of Andrew Lloyd Webber's music and Sarah's voice make this the kind of CD that one wants to listen to over and over without tiring of it.

Comparisons between the two volumes are inescapable. When one listens to both albums one after the other, the differences are quite obvious. Vol. 1 showcases Sarah Brightman's range clearly, and the songs are melancholy in feeling. Vol 2 on the other hand, shows the more laidback aspect of Brightman's voice. The album is dominated by duets and the most notable is Only You with Cliff Richard. Hearing Michael Ball with Brightman in Seeing is Believing is interesting. His voice seems to vibrate a lot and it's not very pleasant listening to it in my opinion.

As other reviwers have said, the version of love changes everything here is much much better than the earlier ones. There are no strainful high notes, and the songs flows more fluidly... Although half the songs have already been released before, listening to them in this cd seems like the first time. I'm not sure how, maybe just the atmosphere that the first 3 songs set (which are unreleased tracks).

This is a very enjoyable listen, and recommended for every one... For those who grumble because of the increasing number of ALW collections with Sarah Brightman on it, please dont judge them by the similarity in track listing. Just ask yourself why there are no other ALW collections with some other artist starring... Maybe, just maybe, no one can cover the different styles of singing (from Phantom of the Opera to Make Up My Heart) with the same dexterity as Sarah Brightman does.

Her voice is just as beautiful as ever. I have almost all of her cd's - and this one is already one of my favourites. Go Sarah! *and her version of "Think of Me" - is far superior than any film person.

I've long hoped that one day all of Sarah Brightman's recordings of Lord Lloyd-Webber songs would be released together in one comprehensive collection. This handsome CD, a sequel to her better-known Lloyd-Webber collection, is a treasure-trove of gems, focussing on lesser-known recordings and boasting several unreleased tracks. Brightman tackles a wide range of songs from the Phantom theme to a beguiling Spanish version of Don't Cry For Me, Argentina. But there are rarities on this collection: we get to hear Brightman shine in Mary Magdelene's two songs from Superstar, and kick back in her rendition of Any Dream Will Do, which we normally associate with Donny Osmond or Jason Donovan. Half the CD is made up of rarities and duets. It is a treat o hear her duet with Sir Cliff Richard on the B-side of the All I Ask of You single, Only You, and also her take on the Sunset Boulevard song, Too Much in Love to Care. It is also a treat to hear her in two songs from Starlight Express, and also in the unreeased early ALW song, Probably on Thursday. I konw this collecion reprised her recording of Think of Me from the Phantom London Cast album, and also her lovely rendition of Whistle Down the Wind, but it really makes it a treat to buy this collection without splurging on the other CD. A pity that this CD doesn't include Half a Moment from Jeeves, as there would surely have been enough space. A pity also that the rare song English Girls was left off the CD too, let alone the Spanish version of Amigos Para Sempre. In short, a lovely sequel to her ALW Collection volume 1, and perhaps more worthy than the hastily-assembled Encore collection. Now if only Decca and Really Useful might consider combining all of Brightman's ALW recordings into a comprehensive set...

Sarah Brightman has a beautiful voice, and this selection of songs is just made for her. I really enjoyed this CD when I first checked it out at my local library -- and then I decided to buy it new, something I don't do except when I REALLY like the CD and intend to listen it it over and over.

The quality of her voice, the other performers, and the variety of Webber songs makes for an excellent combination!

an outstanding collection of songs that prove the consummate vocalist in all her glory. No one else has so wonderfully bridged the gap between opera and pop. This one's a keeper.

I really enjoy this CD as it is uplifting. The words to the songs are printed and great to following along. The words to "Love changes Everything" are really very meaning and I believe to be true. We all need to love someone in our life.

If you are a Sarah Brightman fan, you will love this CD. It shows all aspects of her voice, and is a CD I listen to over and over. It's probably my favorite of all the CDs of hers I have listened to.