Room With a View

Carolyn Johnson | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 7, 2001)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Arista
• ASIN: B00005B3LI
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #258,511 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best CD To Come Out Of Nashville In Years!, August 7, 2001

By 

Darren O'Neill (Mokena, IL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Room With a View (Audio CD)

"Room With A View" is a journey more than an album. Each song stands on it's own, but together they tell the story of a woman searching for love. For those of you who may not know who Carolyn Dawn Johnson is, she started her career as a songwriter, writing such hits as the #1 smash "Single White Female" for Chely Wright, and "Downtime" for JoDee Messina. On this, her debut release, Carolyn shows that she has the vocals to match the songwriting skills!

This is such a refreshing CD that it shows me that there is more to Nashville than 3 minute cookie cutter songs. CDJ (as her fans call her) has been blessed with the ability to make a song mean something, and at the same time make it friendly for radio. This has been proven in her native Canada where she is nominated for an astonishing 10 CCMA awards for her first release!

I'd like to say there is a standout track here, but they all hit their marks, from the uptempo numbers like "Complicated", "Little Bit of This, Little Bit of That" and "Just Another Girl" to the touching ballads "Room With A View" and "Masterpiece".

If there is one CD you add to your collection this year, this is the one to get. And, if you get a chance to catch CDJ live, do so! I had the opportunity to see her play the Bluebird in Nashville, and it was a mesmerizing experience.

In an industry that has been plagued with a lot of average songs in the past few years, CDJ has an edge over the rest being that she is one of the best writers around right now. Add that to her singing ability and the way she interacts with fans and without a doubt in my mind, Carolyn Dawn Johnson has the goods to be country's next superstar.

-Darren O'Neill

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A "Masterpiece"!, October 3, 2001

By 

Maren Cuykendall (Coralville, IA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Room With a View (Audio CD)

I waited so long for this album to finally be released. Carolyn was first known as a songwriter, writing hits for Lila McCann, Jo Dee Messina, Mindy McCready, Shedaisy, and the number one song "Single White Female" sung by Chely Wright. Carolyn's CD was worth the wait. The things she sings about are very relatable to a lot of people, especially young women. Even in the sad songs on the CD, Carolyn always offers a ray of hope. She wrote or co-wrote all 11 songs on the CD. Some of the best tracks are "Georgia", a song with a familiar theme (a woman leaving her man because he hasn't proposed) was the first single at radio. "Just Another Girl" is different than a lot of songs out there, that's what's good about it. Here Carolyn sings of how an ex-boyfriend gets married to someone else, so now he sees her as "just another girl". "Complicated" is the big hit right now at radio, and deservedly so. This song has another very relatable theme to it. It's about liking a friend and not being able to decide whether to tell them how you feel. "I Don't Want You To Go" is the most upbeat song on the album and it just makes you want to get up and dance or drive with your windows down. "Little Bit of This, Little Bit of That" has an interesting take on life, about how we need to have a little bit of bad to be able to enjoy the good in life. This shows the depth that Carolyn has. "Masterpiece" and "Room With A View" are both songs about death. One can't help but cry when first hearing these songs. But that doesn't stop them from being great. In fact "Room With A View" about the loss of Carolyn's brother is the best song on the album. It's simply written and Carolyn sings it with an emotion that completely pulls you in. If you want to listen to some songs with substance, you will enjoy this CD. Carolyn is the next big thing in country music.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Hands down, the best debut of the year!, August 7, 2001

By 

Kori Frazier (Kent, OH United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Room With a View (Audio CD)

Carolyn Dawn Johnson may be a new name as a recording artist, but many country fans probably know her better than they think. In addition to singing backup for Martina McBride, Carolyn has also written numerous songs for other country artists, including Lila McCann, Jennifer Day, and is best known for penning Chely Wright's breakthrough hit, "Single White Female." In addition, her first two singles have made the top thirty and she has spent this summer touring with Reba McIntire and McBride on the highly acclaimed "Girls Night Out Tour" With this list of accomplishments under her belt, Carolyn's first album, ROOM WITH A VIEW, has been a highly anticipated release. Fortunately for music fans, it lives up to every expectation one would have of this talented songwriter.

ROOM WITH A VIEW is an excellent reflection of Carolyn's talent, and is easily one of the best debut albums released this year. Carolyn has a charming, beautiful voice that is reminiscent of country divas like Deana Carter and Martina and portrays the lyrics of the songs perfectly. While the singles "Georgia" and "Complicated" are definitely two of the strongest songs on the record, there are plenty of wonderful tracks on this album. "Just Another Girl" and "I Don't Want You To Go" are definitely potential hit records, while "You Are" and "Masterpiece" (dedicated to her aunt and uncle) are gorgeous songs sure to provoke emotion from the listener. ROOM WITH A VIEW seems to be a concept album of sorts, as each of the songs deal with some aspect of relationships, beginning with "Georgia," a song about a woman leaving her painful past behind (you can just hear the pain in Carolyn's voice when she sings this) to "Room With a View," which portrays a person who has found contentment in his or her life.

Added to the strength of ROOM WITH A VIEW is the fact that Carolyn wrote or co-wrote every song on the album. The songs she co-wrote feature an all-star cast of writers, include Shaye Smith, Tommy Polk, and Troy Verges (who also co-wrote Jessica Andrews' number one hit, "Who I Am," as well as songs for Three of Hearts and Meredith Edwards).

Carolyn Dawn Johnson is an amazing singer and songwriter and is sure to make as big a name for herself as a performer as she did working behind the scenes. Her debut album is astonishingly good for an artist's first record, and showcases the talent of one of country music's rising stars. In the words of the eighth track on the album, ROOM WITH A VIEW is truly a "masterpiece."