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Rating: Four years after the release of the masterpiece that was "The Diary Of Alicia Keys," the pianist from Hell's Kitchen returns with her third studio album (fourth if you count the Unplugged). Ms. Keys' new work leaves one a bit perplexed at first listen, giving the impression that it certainly hasn't managed to hold a candle to its studio predecessor nor meet many expectations. The sounds are not elaborate, sometimes even appearing to clash, in some tracks the vocal performance is limited—if not downright poor—and some songs border on the banal. However, there is something good in the album.
Pressing the PLAY button, the CD takes us through the typical scratchy hiss of vinyl into a classical piano solo ("As I Am") characteristic of all Keys' intros, which gives way after a few seconds to an up-beat r'n'b. The novelty comes in some hints of electric guitar, a prelude to the soul/"rock" turn (purists of rock, do not be shocked by the genre attribute) but nothing more. The atmospheres are intense, classic, a good start. The track continues with "Go Ahead", which might be seen as a symmetrical counterpart to "Karma" from the old "The Diary Of", a good up-beat track, still within the r'n'b field, so no flaws, but a keen ear would appreciate the trombones in the background. The third track is "Superwoman", a ballad with a poor arrangement (written, among other things, in collaboration with Linda Perry) that fares better solo. "No One"—the promo single of the CD— is a silly and repetitive track, commercial and somewhat plagiarized from here and there (see Black Eyed Peas and Akon), released solely to grab a large audience after a long absence. We return to r'n'b atmospheres with "Like You'll Never See Me Again", another ballad with a beat, where the vocal performance is quite distinctive. Keys plays a lot on voice changes in this new work, perhaps focusing too much on choral and vocal arrangement, and less on instrumental ones, a quality that positively characterized her previous works.
Rising above the general adequacy of the album at this point is the profound "Lesson Learned" written in collaboration with John Mayer, a soul ballad with slight acoustic rock interjections. The most successful piece of the album, however, is "Wreckless Love" where Alicia returns to the origins of '70s soul, revisited and renewed, as well as in "Teenage Love Affair" and "Where Do We Go From Here" where one can sense slight jazz influences, and which in my opinion represent the three best tracks of the entire CD. "The Thing About Love", again with Linda Perry, is another soft rock/soul ballad, which however does not aim for much, and whose ending features a disappointing vocal performance. "Prelude To A Kiss" and "I Need You" are completely anonymous, so I won't comment on them. "Tell You Something" is an unassuming pop ballad. The album concludes with "Sure Looks Good To Me", the last piece, once again with Linda Perry, which can be considered a good pop song.
In conclusion, if one approaches the album expecting a string of brilliant tracks like "If I Was Your Woman", "You Don't Know My Name", "Wake Up", "Dragon Days", "Diary" or "If I Ain't Got You", they will undoubtedly be unsatisfied, both for the absence of the soul vein that was so well intertwined with Keys' r'n'b tendencies, and for the few truly good tracks. However, if one approaches it looking at it as a pop album, it can't be said that the work has been poorly executed. There are some good pieces, some truly excellent, and after all, we are still talking about the musical product of an artist who still works with real instruments in an industry of tracks similar to "Umbrella," where even today it is impossible for me to find a "real" instrument. We can attribute this "As I Am" to the creative flair of an excellent artist who ventured into a field different from her origins.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
03 Superwoman (04:34)
Everywhere I'm turning
Nothing seems complete
I stand up and I'm searching
For the better part of me
I hang my head from sorrow
State of humanity
I wear it on my shoulders
Gotta find the strength in me
Cause I am a Superwoman
Yes I am, Yes she is
Still when I'm a mess
I still put on a vest
With an S on my chest
Oh yes, I'm a Superwoman
For all the mothers fighting
For better days to come
And all my women,
All my women sitting here trying
To come home before the sun
And all my sisters
Coming together
Say yes I will, Yes I can
Cause I am
A Superwoman
Yes I am
Yes she is
Still when I'm a mess
I still put on a vest
With an S on my chest
Oh yes
I'm a Superwoman
When I'm breaking down
And I can't be found
And I start to get weak
Cause no one knows
Me underneath these clothes
But I
Can fly
We
Can fly, Oh
Cause I am
A Superwoman
Yes I am
Yes she is
Still when I'm a mess
I still put on a vest
With an S on my chest
Oh yes
I'm a Superwoman
Let me tell You
I am
A Superwoman
Still when I'm a mess
I still put on a vest
With an S on my chest
I'm a Superwoman
yes i am
said your a superwoman
yes you er
you are
04 No One (04:13)
I just want you close
Where you can stay forever
You can be sure
That it will only get better
You and me together
Through the days and nights
I don't worry 'cause
Everything's gonna be alright
People keep talking
They can say what they like
But all I know is
Everything's gonna be alright
No one, no one, no one
Can get in the way of what I'm feelin'
No one, no one, no one
Can get in the way of what I feel for you
You, you
Can get in the way of what I feel for you
When the rain is pouring down
And my heart is hurting
You will always be around
This I know for certain
You and me together
Through the days and nights
I don't worry 'cause
Everything's gonna be alright
People keep talking
They can say what they like
But all I know is
Everything's gonna be alright
No one, no one, no one
Can get in the way of what I'm feelin'
No one, no one, no one
Can get in the way of what I feel for you
You, you
Can get in the way of what I feel..
I know some people seach the world
To find something like what we have
I know people will try
Try to divide
Something so real
So 'til the end of time I'm telling you there is no one
No one, no one
Can get in the way of what I'm feelin'
No one, no one, no one
Can get in the way of what I feel for you
Oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
05 Like You'll Never See Me Again (05:15)
If I had no more time
No more time left to be here
Would you cherish what we had?
Was it everything that you were looking for?
If I couldn’t feel your touch
And no longer were you with me
I’d be wishing you were here
To be everything that I’d be looking for
I don’t wanna forget the present is a gift
And I don’t wanna take for granted the time you may have here with me
‘Cause Lord only knows another day is not really guaranteed
So every time you hold me
Hold me like this is the last time
Every time you kiss me
Kiss me like you’ll never see me again
Every time you touch me
Touch me like this is the last time
Promise that you’ll love me
Love me like you’ll never see me again
Oh Oh Ohhhhh
How many really know what love is?
Millions never will
Do you know until you lose it
That it’s everything that we are looking for
When I wake up in the morning
You’re beside me
I’m so thankful that I found
Everything that I been looking for
I don’t wanna forget the present is a gift
And I don’t wanna take for granted the time you may have here with me
‘Cause Lord only knows another day is not really guaranteed
So everytime you hold me
Hold me like this is the last time
Every time you kiss me
Kiss me like you’ll never see me again
(can you do that for me baby)
Every time you touch me
(see we don’t really know)
Touch me like this is the last time
(see everyday we never know)
Promise that you’ll love me
(I want you to promise me)
Love me like you’ll never see me again
(like you’ll never see me again)
Ohhh ohhh ohhh ohhh ohhh
10 I Need You (05:09)
Nah nah nah nah nah no... no no no
Nah nah nah nah nah no... no no no
The sand loves when
The waves come
The sky can’t wait
For the light of the sun
So how could you
Look me in my eye
And not see what
What I feel inside
Tell me how could you
Doubt the fact that I
I love you, I love you
Don’t you ever (Think like that)
Don’t you ever (Never do that)
There will never be two things
That go together better than you and me
North needs south
East needs west
And no needs
Yes, yes, yes
Up needs down
Life needs death
And no needs
Yes, yes, yes
I need you
I need you
I need you
I need you
So how could you
Look me in my eye
And not see what
What I feel inside
Tell me how could you
Doubt the fact that I
I love you, I love you
Don’t you ever (Think like that)
Don’t you ever (Never do that)
There will never be two things
That go together better than you and me
North needs south
East needs west
And no needs
Yes, yes, yes
Up needs down
Life needs death
And no needs
Yes, yes, yes
I need you (Oh Baby)
I need you (Everyday)
I need you (I need you yeah)
I need you
I need you (I need you)
Said I need you baby
Like the desert needs the rain (Like the desert needs the rain)
Like joy needs pain
Hey hey hey
Hey hey hey
Hey hey hey...
11 Where Do We Go From Here (04:10)
''My man don't love me no more
He said he needed a little time
To clear his mind
Meanwhile I'm losing mine''
We're at the crossroads, my dear
Where do we go from here?
Maybe you won't go, maybe you'll stay
Oh, I know I'm gonna miss you either way
It's such a lonely road
Where do we go from here?
All I can do is
Follow the tracks of my tears, oh
When I cry your name, and I'm crawling in bed
Oh am I waiting only to drown in pain, oh
Don't you do it, no, said don't you leave me this way
I don't know if I can lift my head and face another day
Oh, it's such a lonely road
Where do we go from here?
All I can do is
Follow the tracks of my tears
You seem now the kind of girl who's lost and looking for direction
Who could this be, staring at me
When I'm looking in the mirror trying to find a resolution
Me too far gone, to find my way home
Where do we go from here?
All I can do is
Follow the tracks of my tears, oh
Where do we go from here?
Maybe you won't go, maybe you'll stay
All I can do is
Follow the tracks of my tears, either way
Oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
12 Prelude to a Kiss (02:07)
Sometimes I feel
Like I don't belong anywhere
It's gonna take so long
For me to get somewhere
Sometimes I feel
So heavy-hearted
But I can't explain
Cuz I'm so guarded
But that's a lonely road to travel
And a heavy load to bare
And it's a long, long way to heaven
But I gotta get there
Can you send an angel?
Can you send me an angel
To guide me
13 Tell You Something (Nana's reprise) (04:28)
Get so caught up everyday
Trying to keep it all together
While the time just slips away
See I know nothing lasts forever
Imagine there was no tomorrow
Imagine that I couldn't see your face
There'd be no limit to my sorrow
So all I can say
I wanna tell you something, give you something
Show you in so many ways
'Cuz it would all mean nothing if I don't say something
Before it all goes away
Don't wanna wait to bring you flowers
Waste another hour, let alone another day
I'm gonna tell you something, show you something
Won't wait 'til it's too late
I can't wait, I can't wait, I won't wait, I don't wanna wait
I can't wait, I can't wait, I won't wait, I don't wanna wait
I won't wait 'til it's too late
Just a simple conversation (...sation)
Just a moment is all it takes (Yeah)
I wanna be there just to listen (I wanna be here)
And I don't wanna hesitate (Oh no)
Imagine there was no tomorrow (Imagine)
Imagine that I couldn't see your face (Your face)
There'd be no limit to my sorrow (Oh no)
'Cuz there is nothing that can fill this space
I don't wanna put it off for too long
I didn't say all that I had to say
I wanna take the time to right the wrongs
Before we get to that place, ooh
I wanna tell you something, give you something
Show you in so many ways
'Cuz it would all mean nothing if I don't say something
Before it all goes away
Don't wanna wait to bring you flowers
Waste another hour, let alone another day
I'm gonna tell you something, show you something
Won't wait til it's too late
Just lean on my shoulder
It's not over 'til it's over
Don't worry 'bout it
'Cuz I'm gonna make sure
I'm gonna get stronger, yeah
I don't wanna wait until the storm
There's something wrong
And now you're gone
And I can't find ya
I wanna tell you something, give you something
Show you in so many ways
'Cuz it would all mean nothing if I don't say something
Before it all goes away
Don't wanna wait to bring you flowers
Waste another hour, let alone another day
I'm gonna tell you something, show you something
Won't wait til it's too late
I wanna tell you something, give you something
Show you in so many ways
'Cuz it would all mean nothing if I don't say something
Before it all goes away
Don't wanna wait to bring you flowers
Waste another hour, let alone another day
I'm gonna tell you something, show you something
Won't wait 'til it's too late
I can't wait, I can't wait, I won't wait, I don't wanna wait
(I won't wait 'til it's too late)
I can't wait, I can't wait, I won't wait, I don't wanna wait
(No, won't wait, no no)
I can't wait, I can't wait, I won't wait, I don't wanna wait
(I won't wait 'til it's too late)
I can't wait, I can't wait, I won't wait, I don't wanna wait
(No, no, no, no, no)
No, no, no
I can't wait, I won't wait
No, no
I can't wait, I won't wait
14 Sure Looks Good to Me (04:31)
Oh, oh
Oh, oh
Yeah, yeah, yeah
Oh, oh
Oh, oh
Yeah, yeah, yeah
Life is cheap, bittersweet
But it tastes good to me
Take my turn, crash and burn
'Cause it's how it's supposed to be
So don’t rain on my parade
Life’s too short to waste one day
I’m gonna risk it all to freed on the fall
Yes, it sure looks good to me
Time passed by and leaves you behind
Taken as you leave
Heaven knows, there’s so much more
More than what we see
So don’t rain on my parade
Life’s too short to waste one day
I’m gonna risk it all to freed on the fall
Yes, it sure looks good to me
Hey, it sure looks good to me
Oh, oh
Oh, oh
Yeah, yeah, yeah
Oh, oh
Oh, oh
Yeah, yeah, yeah
Deep in my mind I'm secure we can buy
I wanna life before I die or a lie in an empty space
The darkness comes and I’ve been telling my soul
And me and myself we turn around, we’re getting old
But the lightning crashing, foolish emotions
Of the bruises and the beauty of this moment that we’re feeling
And I feel like I’m seeing the world inside of me
But I can tell you that no, it's getting easy and I’m free
There’s a cold in the morning, endless equation
Of who’ve we become, it’s a complex situation
So live, love, lie, give love
Live, love, lie, give love
Live, love, lie, give love
It’s who are we anyway
So don’t rain on my parade
Life’s too short to waste one day
I’m gonna risk it all to freed on the fall
Yes, it sure looks good to me
Hey, it sure looks good to me
I'm telling you, it sure looks good to me
Yeah, it sure looks good to me
Yeah, yeah
Looks good to me, oh, yeah, yeah, yeah
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