Customer Reviews

I Wish I Could Have Loved You More

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

 

 

The end of a relationship is full of false dawns. Only they happen after dusk. Long grueling nights in which you resurrect shallow-buried resentments to fling in the face of your lover. Who responds in kind. Only kind is not exactly the word. But little matter, this is not the end. By morning the raging reality has given way to a bland lie: we love each other still. So it goes. Until one heart summons the courage to express itself honestly in the cold light of day. Forcing the other to face the truth. It's over.

Or is that just me?

Candie Payne's debut album is about lovers coming to terms with their love affairs. But this is a break-up record that steers clear of false dawns. There is no wailing and gnashing of teeth. Ms Winehouse does the bunny boiler anthems. And does them very well. Ms Payne is concerned with what happens after the meltdown.

Her heroines have accepted the truth of their lives. They either plan to move on, have moved on, or never will. The heartbroken among them still issue desperate pleas to their men, but the words are not flooded with emotion nor studded with expletives. The only lip is of the stiff-upper variety. From the Liverpool-born songstress, these are very English affairs.

Not that the tunes themselves are reserved. By Tomorrow is a real toe-tapper, bustling along like Oxford Street during the January sales, while Payne assures herself she'll make the right move in her romance.

On the title track a girl breaks a boy's heart before expressing sorrow. But she ain't ever going back. As such, the vocal is mournful but the music shimmers and sparkles.

The album is produced by Portishead collaborator Simon Dine. He pastiches perfectly the backing tracks of 60s divas like Dusty Springfield, who Payne's strong soulful voice most resembles. Dine does add a trip-hop slap and dash to the drumming, yet the album overall is like many from the Deltasonic stable. Defiantly retro.

The lyrics are very 21st Century, however. Payne is unafraid to assign herself traits traditionally considered male. Such as a roving eye. In Why Should I Settle For You an unhappy woman looks to trade-in her current beau. But the joke is on her. "To my surprise, nobody catches my eye, but you."

Candie Payne herself has caught the eye of many fans of great music. I hope she sticks around for the long-term.

...

For Fans of

Dusty Springflield, Amy Winehouse, Portishead.

Firstly, this is not "one star" for Candie Payne, but rather one star for the fact that this is not the CD in the product description. The description gives the impression that the CD contains all (nearly) of the songs on her full-length CD with a bonus "enhanced" track. This CD contains the following: "I wish I Could Have Loved You More", "That's All", "All I Need to Hear (acoustic version)" and "I wish I Could Have Loved You More (video)". I love the tracks that I received, but wish the CD contained all the tracks listed in the description. I hope this review helps you avoid the same mistake I made. Peace