Dani257's Full Review: Fan Dance by Sam Phillips (Singer)
In my earlier review on the tv show Gilmore Girls, (shameless plug alert!) I wrote how completely obsessed I became with this show, after some stubborn resistence on my part. Well, not only did I fall in love with the characters, but I started noticing the music and fell in love with that too. One singer they use frequently is Sam Phillips.
First of all, let me say that she is a departure from my usual style. I've always been a fan of ballads and pop sounding songs. My favorite singers are people they play on Magic 101.9 (Celine Dion, Savage Garden, Billy Joel, Peter Cetera). Some snappy tunes, some ballads. Nothing too out there. While I wouldn't call Sam Phillips 'out there', I know her music isn't the kind that they play on that station. I had never even heard of her until this show. But, after hearing a couple songs, downloading them and playing them over and over, I was finally ready to buy a cd of hers. The only one available at the time was Fan Dance, so I took the plunge.
There are 12 songs here. I started playing the title track, Fan Dance, and was frankly disappointed. It starts of way too slow for me, and her voice sounded kind of droning. But, wait! It soon picked up, and right in the same song. In fact, I like it enough to list it as my second favorite on the cd. As I said, it starts off very slow and dismal. She sings of a violinist putting his violin away and of an empty stage. Then, the next verse is where things pick up:
"But when I do the fan dance
I'm all the red in China...
"Shaking down the curtain
To find the dragon parade"
This gives me images of a woman on an empty stage. Suddenly, the music begins, and she can't help but dance, because it's in her blood. The twangy background music lends a kind of exotic quality, along with the lyrics of someone swaying around with a fan. Other images she uses are of being firecracker lightning. She is released
through the music.
Wasting My Time is my third favorite. It begins with her singing, 'I'm wasting my time,' over and over. Somehow, I don't tire of this, because the beat is soothing. It is a kind of depressing song, but it sounds good.
Love is Everywhere I Go is my absolute favorite. It was played on the season opener of Gilmore Girls this year. Coincidence? Maybe, but this is a beautiful song. The first verse just brings you into the mind set of someone who is seeing everything through new, loved filled eyes.
"Going down this broken road
I've found a new world
There is no end to the good."
Unlike bubble gum music (which I admit to liking), this isn't the love of fireworks and balloons, but a quiet one of sunshine and daisies (Another Gilmore reference! They're taking over) Listening to this, you won't feel giddy, but you'll feel quietly happy.
These are the highlights, but the cd is filled with music that I can't help singing along to. The most bouncy upbeat song is How to Dream. Another interesting song is, Is That Your Zebra? No, I don't understand the meaning of it, either. It only consists of the words 'What, When, Who, Where, When',sung in a way that makes them blend unto each other. The rest is filled with non-words. 'Ah-ah-ahahaha' It looks worse here, but it works. (Or maybe it's because I'm used to every episode of Gilmore Girls having someone singing just 'la-la-la' somewhere. And I promise, that's my last reference to the show in this review.) Incinerator is a song that makes me imagine someone in a smoky 1940's nightclub. I could see Lauren Bacall singing it to Humphrey Bogart.
The only song I didn't like is Below Surface. It just didn't click with me. I will say, the music does give you the feeling that she is singing either underwater, or deep in a cavern, which is a nice touch and fits the title.
If you're looking for light, easy songs, this isn't the cd. There is a slightly melancholy feel to the majority of the songs (except Love is Everywhere I Go, and like I said, it is a quiet happiness). The lyrics are also a departure from the easy to understand songs of my usual fare. Her songs are more like abstract paintings, not immediately decipherable. But, they are interesting and worth listening to until you can catch the meanings.
I'll always be a pop loving, die hard Peter Cetera fan girl, but everyone needs to branch out a little, and Sam Phillips is just the person I'd like to do it with.
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