Customer Reviews

Twelve Months Eleven Days

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Gary Barlow has had a hard time of it. His American record company ruined his previous release by not allowing him do his thing and paired him with some of the most talented musicians in the US. The resulting album was a tepid mix of ballads and mid-tempo songs. Thank you to the people who produce Celine Dion. (The title track 'Open Road' was a masterpiece)

Also, he has had to fight comparison with former bandmate Robbie Williams. I enjoy Robbie, too, but he has nothing on Gary in the singing department.

This album is 100% Barlow. His voice and musicianship are in fine form, but the album is weighed down in love ballads, beautiful though they are. It would have been nice to have a couple of good dance-pop tunes a la his remake of "Relight My Fire" from his Take That days. Although, "Stronger" comes very close.

That said, it is a lovely breezy album and perfectly showcases his voice and songwriting ability. Standout tracks include "Arms Around Me," "All That I've Given Away," "Before You Turn Away" and "Wondering."

I was a little surprised to hear that Gary was not necessarily happy with his last album, "Open Road." I personally thought in all respects that cd was terrific. This cd almost captures the essence of "Open Road." The track that immediately stands out on "Twelve Months..." is "Stronger." This has an amazing hook and you will definitely be singing along by the end. "For all that you want" is essentialy "Superhero" (from Open Road) except that he now says "...your life, your hero" instead of "Superhero". The rest of the cd is basically just good 'ol pop music. Plain and simple. Some of it syrupy (after all the guy just got married). But for the most part very enjoyable and pleasant. I'm pleased that I purchased the cd and hope you will be too.

while still enjoying listening to his first album, he released his scond album, after twelve months and eleven days!!!
compared to his debut album, this has less powerful materials to present them to te world, well, at least "for all that u want and "stronger" has continue his journey, after "love wont' wait", i bet u'll like this 2 numbers.
his second album hasn't help him much to climb higher in the entertainment industry, unlike his first album, with variety of rhythm and choices, this album did not show what direction is he going to achieve in him future albums, but this is worth a listen, if u'r gary's fans and just misses his voice so much, then, get this, u won't be dissapointed by enjoying his vocal performance!

I was a fan of Take That, but since Mr. Barlow went solo, I have a greater appreciation for his voice. This man has one of the most beautiful voices I've ever heard on a man. The songs are awesong, romantic, fun, and you just want to listen to them over and over.

Sad thing is everyone (I mean EVERYONE) has become too critical of Gary Barlow since Robbie Williams (fmr bandmate) stole the spotlight from him. That is too much pressure to carry for GB. While RW is treated as a superstar, everyone assumes that GB's career is over... What's that all about? He totally blew all the speculations with this excellent 2nd album. Sure, I'm sure there are some experiments. He worked with Jon Douglas (known for working with George Michael on "Fastlove," "Star People 97" and more) on several tracks. Results, more sophisticated sounds with GB's more mature singing. I didn't even TRY to like this album. I heard once, and loved it. Listened to it carefully again and again, and loved it even more. I can't really say which song was especially good since all songs shows GB's growth as a singer, and as a songwriter. So, he may not be on top of the chart. So he may not have as much ego as RW. Screw all that. I could really see his humility and willingness to make better music, and suceed as a song writer. Hats off to GB's great effort. I'm sure his effort will pay off even without ego.

After the phenominum of Open Road Barlow had his work cut out in an attempt to better his debut solo album, but this pushes it to the limits! Despite disapointing sales in the UK Barlow in this instict produced some of his best and most mature work yet. Songs such as 'Fast Car' and 'Don't Need A Reason' show Barlow's brilliance and ability to write a melodioc soothing love song which hits home with everyone. Other tracks on the album may be a bit more up-beat such as 'stronger' and 'arms' again proving Abrlow to be at thbe pinacle of his career so far. A must buy for all music lovers!!!!

"Twelve Months Eleven Days" is not a bad album. In fact, there are some jolly nice tracks on it. But I can't help but feel Gary Barlow was writing better songs in the last days of Take That than he is now on his own. The majority of songs on the album are love songs or slow pop ballads, with some occassional experimentation. But there isn't a "Back For Good" or a "Never Forget" among them. In my opinion the strongest songs are "All That I've Given Away" (it's quite hummable and memorable), "Fast Car" (the lyrics aren't too hot though) and "Nothing Feels The Same" (for some reason it reminds me of Air Supply). "Stronger" and "Yesterday's Girl" are perhaps on the experimental side, and work rather well, but are not the stuff #1 singles are made of. In fact, I will be very surprised if any one of the songs on this album will resurrect Mr. Barlow's career. None of them are below average or unbearable - the biggest weakness in his songs are the melodies of the verses - they are utterly forgettable. To discover what songs you might like, I suggest listening to the sound clips of the enchanced CD ROM - these sample the refrains. The best description of the album is: "It's fine." Some good tracks, some average ones. No breakthroughs, no unqualiified hits. It's sweet, Gary Barlow's voice is soothing and has a great range. But I can't help but feel the reason I embraced these songs is because I felt sorry for him. That was certainly the reason I bought the album in the first place - it was disenchanting to hear how badly it was doing in the UK. Twelve Months... is a superior effort to Open Road. But there isn't much more charisma (the biggest thing Robbie Williams has over Gaz - and one of the most important) or fufillment of potential. The songs are improved, but the frustrating thing is we all know Gary Barlow himself could and should do better.

As a Gary Barlow fan, i tried hard to like this cd. It is an improvement over 'Open Road'. It has upbeat tempo like 'Arms Around Me' and 'For All That You Want', which by the way is the same 'SuperHero' song in the North American release of the Open Road album, with one line changed. It also has some nice ballads like 'All that I've Given Away'. The problem is a lot of the songs have simple rearrangements and are marred by poor sound engineering. Some songs sound like Gary is singing behind a curtain or something. Don't get me wrong. He sings very well. It is the sound quality of the cd I am talking about.

Nice thing about the cd is it is also an enhanced cd rom. Elegant interface. It includes two videos. BTW the enchanced cd rom does not work on a mac though one should be able to open the video files to play them.

I like Gary barlow because of his lyrics and his voice but this latest album of his is a bit bland. I only like less than half of his tracks. But I must admit that STRONGER is a strong single indeed. The video clip is cool as well. Better buy his singles intead of the whole album. Sorry Gary but I write all this based on my honest musical view. Fast car could have been a good song but the chorus is totally anti-climax... so damn boring! But i personally love your lyrics. Yesterday gerr is very boyzonish... 2 thumbs down. To be your life and hero is catchy and one of the stronger tracks. If he was one of the spice gerrs, he would be geri harliwell and Robbie williams ,Melanie C. Robbie is doing very well because of his choice of music. Come on Gary, I know that you can be more creative than this. You;re very talented. Do justice to your talent! Be stronger next time!

Barlow doesn't dissapoint on this release. key cuts include "fast car", "lie to me", and "walk". his voice sounds great and the songwriting is generally good. if you liked the "open road" cd you'll like this too.