Who needs electricity with a voice like this? (Unplugged - Alanis Morissette)

Member Name: owensmum

Product:	Unplugged - Alanis Morissette
Date:	08/09/08 (71 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Fantastic live performance

Disadvantages: Sore throat from trying to sing along

Listened to this again today for the first time in a while and remembered just how great it is.

Alanis Morissette shot to world wide fame with the release of her bestselling and fantastic album 'Jagged Little Pill'. Her follow up album 'Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie' was no where near as critically acclaimed although in my opinion is still a brilliant album.

The MTV Unplugged album has a mix of songs from both the aforementioned albums along with some extra tracks which are all performed acoustically.

This album demonstrates the strength and versatility of Alanis' voice as well as her ability to rework her songs, giving them a different sound, but yet making them as good if not better than the original versions.

The album has a total of 12 songs which are as follows:

The tracks originally from Jagged Little Pill are:

You Learn
Head Over Feet
Ironic (my fave karaoke number)
& You Oughta Know

and from Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie:

Joining You
That I Would Be Good
& I Was Hoping

The other tracks are 'No Pressure Over Cappucino', 'Princes Familiar' 'These R The Thoughts', 'King Of Pain' and 'Uninvited'

The first song I ever heard by Alanis was 'You Oughta Know' and at the time I had just gone through a bitter break up myself. This song summed up my feelings at the time and has remained one of my all time favourite songs. The version on this album is just as powerful even without the heavy guitar and bass line of the original. She still manages to build it up in the choruses, mainly just from her voice, but with a little help from strings.

'King of Pain' is a cover of a Sting song, but as I have never heard his version I can't comment on the difference between them. The lyrics are about all the stuff thats wrong with the world and ends with Alanis singing 'Queen of Pain' which I'm assuming is her own touch.

The weakest track (but by no means weak) on the album is 'These R the thoughts'. It starts off with the lyrics 'these are the thoughts that go through my head in my backyard on a sunday afternoon' and its basically a list of all the stuff that goes through her head! Its a kind of long ramble, but even so, it still makes good listening. She has a unique way of starting sentences on one line and finishing them on another and this song demonstrates this a lot.

The other two new songs 'Princes Familiar' and 'No Pressure Over Cappucino' have some great lyrics and are catchy upbeat numbers. The first is about looking for Mr Right and all the things he needs to measure upto as taught to you by your father. I like the way she ends this song with the words 'Just like my...' You know this sentence ends with the word daddy but yet she doesn't need to actually say it.

There are a fair few highlights to the album in my opinion. They include Alanis playing flute at the end of 'That I Would Be Good'. It comes across really hauntingly and she plays it well. Her live harmonica on 'Head Over Feet' is stunning and she adds a touch of humour by reworking the vocals on 'Ironic'.

In between the songs, there are a few comments from Alanis, who comes over as very humble and grateful for any crowd appreciation.

My favourite track on Unplugged is the final track 'Uninvited'. A haunting song with plenty of strings and piano, which Alanis sings brilliantly and effortlessly. This song builds to a crescendo and is a great end to a great live album.

The cover has pictures of Alanis on a chair with her guitar surrounded by musicians in what looks like a very chilled setting. I would have loved to have been at this in person.

Alanis has recorded several albums since this and has continued to produce quality, original, awe inspiring music. Even so she has seemed to slip out of the limelight over the years. But if you have never listened to any of her albums then go and buy one, you don't know what you are missing! And for anyone who enjoys singing she is an absolute challenge to keep up with!

Summary: Alanis proves she can cut it live