This Fire

Paula Cole

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 15, 1996)
• Original Release Date: October 15, 1996
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Warner Bros / Wea
• ASIN: B000002NBO
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars See all reviews (154 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #36,563 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
After a promising but overlooked debut album, Paula Cole kept the bills paid with a fateful stint as Peter Gabriel's vocal foil on his 1994 Secret World tour. Gabriel's immersion in richly theatrical, primal vocals only magnified Cole's already fevered attack; it's obvious that his sense of adventure as a producer and writer also struck conceptual sparks with the Massachusetts singer-songwriter. This Fire, Cole's self-produced 1996 breakthrough, finds her investing her songs with outsized emotions, framed by consistently inventive arrangements built around Cole's keyboards, and reaching a zeitgeist-piercing intensity on "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?" and "I Don't Want to Wait," making Cole seem very much like Fiona Apple's older, slightly less cracked sister. --Sam Sutherland

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Passionate, wistful, ethereal music, December 21, 2001

By	Aaron Blight (Westminster, Maryland United States) - See all my reviews

For years I have been about 80% committed to buying this album, but I never actually did. Recently a friend recommended it to me, and that was enough to finally get me off the fence and buy it. I'm glad I did; I really enjoy it.

This is really an excellent album. Besides the hits, "I Don't Want to Wait", "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone", and "Me", Paula Cole presents a compelling collection of songs on This Fire. This is not music for the casual listener; you will hear Paula Cole passionately sing about her vulnerabilities, her problems, her sorrows. Some may find such material too heavy, but it's precisely that intense level of introspection and occasional outrage that makes the album compelling. A wonderful surprise is Peter Gabriel's cameo appearance on "Hush, Hush, Hush", which is a beautiful song in its own right but is even better with Peter's distinguished contribution.

I would not hesitate to recommend this album to fans of Lillith Fair artists (such as Sarah McLachlan, Sheryl Crow, Shawn Colvin, etc.). If you like intelligent, passionate music and can handle heavy lyrics, then you will appreciate this album.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Unusual Style - Not for Everyone, November 21, 2002

By	Lonnie E. Holder "The Review's the Thing" (Columbus, Indiana, United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

"This Fire" is one of the most interesting albums I own. I originally purchased this album for the pop hit "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone". Other than this song, I wasn't familiar with Paula Cole, but I was sufficiently impressed with the single that it convinced me to buy the album.

I found that in addition to the above mentioned song, "I Don't Want to Wait", "Throwing Stones", "Carmen", and all the songs after "Me" all have a pop sound, albeit with a wide range of pop styles and themes.

The other songs on this CD offer an interesting span of styles. "Tiger", "Mississippi", and "Nietzsche's Eyes" have some vocal sound effects that remind me of Bjork. "Road to Dead" also sticks out, sung angrily in a style that I associate with Alanis Morissette.

There is a lot of art to this music, and I struggle giving it a high recommendation because it isn't the kind of music I usually like. I will say that if you like Fiona Apple, Alanis Morissette, or virtually anyone associated with the Lilith Fair, except Sarah McLachlan, then you may find this music enjoyable. While Paula Cole seems to have the vocal capability to sing in a style similar to Sarah McLachlan, she generally chooses to sing in a style all her own that is different from Sarah.

I'm giving this CD four stars because of Paula Cole's talent and vocal capability. However, do not judge the album by "Where Have All the Cowboys Gone" and "I Don't Want to Wait". Much of the rest of the CD is very different from these two songs. This CD is one where I strongly recommend you borrow a copy and determine whether you want to have it forever before you buy it.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding!, January 14, 2000

By	Adrian (Ljubljana, Slovenia, Europe) - See all my reviews

First, I have to admit that before hearing this album I haven't had the slightest idea who Paula Cole is. But then, a girlfriend of mine borrowed me this CD and suggested that I should listen to it. And I did. It was a whole new experience, as I am much fond of female singers like Kate Bush, Tori Amos, Sarah McLachlan and Madonna, but Paula's voice gave me something different.

The album begins with a great song "The Tiger" and flows into "Where have all the Cowboys gone?", there is an outstanding ballad "Nietzhe's eyes" and the end of the album is also the top: "I don't wanna wait" with a reminiscent of "Me" at the very end of the song. There are few songs I could skip without any harm, but this CD didn't come off my CD-player for a very long time. I suggest you listen to lyrics very carefully, especially in "Where have all the cowboys gone", "Throwing stones" and "Carmen". Her language is honest, passionate, almost brutal, but this is the point - sometimes you just have to be agressive to people for they could see the real world we live in.

Of course, I went to the store to hear out also her other two albums, debut one and "Amen", but they left me totaly without any impression, because, compared to this one, they're much too blend. A great CD!