Nothing Compares To Sinead (So Far... The Best Of - Sinead O'Connor)

Member Name: stoffy

Product:	So Far... The Best Of - Sinead O'Connor
Date:	25/09/03 (317 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: wonderful haunting vocals, outstanding songs, much more on offer than 'Nothing Compares 2 U'

Disadvantages: may not be for everyone

Whether she’s ripping up a picture of the Pope on American television, declaring her lesbianism or becoming a priest, Sinead O’Connor is never too far away from the headlines. This is despite the fact that most people can only name one of her singles (which incidentally was the only one to date ever to breach the UK Top 10). However, her 1997 collection ‘So Far The Best Of…’ indicates that her work was often just as interesting as her antics in the media.

Her biggie, ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’, is undoubtedly one of the finest cover versions of all time. Originally written by Prince for one of his proteges, O’Connor made it her own with a scintillating emotional vocal that seemed to be 20-something years of bottled-up pain released in 4 minutes. Helped by a memorable video which saw a spontaneous tear roll down her cheek (allegedly caused by the lyric ‘all the flowers that you planted mama’, which was particularly poignant given her mother’s death just weeks before the shoot), it rose to number one on both sides of the Atlantic.

Despite that song giving the public a the image of her being a weeping willow, the rest of this album demonstrates that whilst she is vulnerable and fragile, she also has her moments where she can be angry and feisty too. Her debut, largely forgotten in the wake of her future fame, was the Top 20 hit ‘Mandinka’. A young shaven-headed Irish girl with her guitar and grimace, she was the polar opposite to her musical peers. Whilst perhaps this put some people off, ‘Mandinka’ was a fantastically hummable track which made the most of her rangy vocal.

Like ‘Mandinka’, another passionately sung track with more of a rock edge is ‘Fire In Babylon’, where she wails for her life. Her follow-up to ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’, ‘The Emporer’s New Clothes’ is also included and is more ene
rgised than some of the more sedate and emotional songs.

One of the most interesting tracks is ‘Thankyou For Hearing Me’, which is unusual in that it lacks a chorus. Almost psalm-like in its structure, it’s a minimalist song with some slightly Eastern-instrumentation and is packed with emotion as she documents the end of the relationship that meant the world to her. Whilst O’Connor is not a big-voiced diva, but there is a sharpness and clarity to her voice which is refreshing to listen to and has never sounded better than on this song.

Equally intriguing was her choice to cover Julie Covington’s ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’ from the film ‘Evita’. Pre-dating Madonna’s version, it maintains the theatricals of the original, and seems surprisingly apt for the tenderness of Sinead’s voice.

Possibly the most under-rated track on here is ‘Success Has Made A Failure Of Our Home’. Whilst moderately successful in the singles chart, it is an epic that deserved much more acclaim. Very stage-like with its sweeping strings and complex orchestral arrangements, it starts off gently before building up to an amazing climax where O’Connor sings with an awesome passion and intensity. Absolutely beautiful and impossible to imagine anyone else singing.

Some of the other interesting songs include ‘Empire’, which was her experimental electronic collaboration with dance-pioneer Tim Simenon (Bomb The Bass) whilst ‘I Am Stretched On Your Grave’ is a million miles away, but just as interesting and listenable.

The late 90’s and early 00’s say Sinead mellow out somewhat, and is now happily married. After releasing a couple of more solo albums such as ‘Universal Mother’ and the Irish-folk cover collection ‘Sean Nos Nua’, she collaborated on Massive Attack’s comeback single ’Special Case
s’ before announcing her retirement from music, although on past form this is unlikely to be permanent.

Aside from the more recent ‘Jealous’, her best work is on display here, and is an excellent place to investigate her sound. Whilst her minimalism is undoubtedly not for everyone, and some may still fail to shed her baggage and listen to her music objectively, O’Connor possesses one of the more intricate voices in modern times, and on these songs, the song-writing ability to match it.

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