Women of Country - The Internet's #1 Guide to Female Country Music

Album Review

Shania Twain - Come On Over
Mercury Records

What do you get when you combine tacky songwriting with a wanna-be Spice Girls sound? Well, do the math and you have Shania Twain's newest release Come On Over. Raw pop instrumentals dominate most of the album. Combine that with over mixed vocals and you have an album that's hard to listen to.

Since when did it become necessary to add in a little vocal "Oh, oh, oh" or "yeah" at least a couple times a song? The talking intros into the ballads aren't much better. If you eliminated this aspect alone, the album would improve greatly. All it does is interrupt the flow of the music.

It amazes me what Shania Twain can get away with. An album like this, recorded by any other artist wouldn't be put on the air. It would be pushed over to pop. Yet, Shania can throw on some tight clothes, flash her body around and she is country. The songs become hits too.

The albums best tracks are those carrying hard hitting messages liked "Black Eyes, Blue Tears" (ignore the scratchy hold out in the beginning). The duet with Bryan White "From This Moment On," is very well done. We could have left the talking intro out of it though. 45 seconds of that half talking, half singing thing just doesn't work. The sassy "Don't Be Stupid (You Know I Love You)" is a winner.

Shania Twain has better music in her. Just look at The Woman In Me, which was a far superior album. Come On Over will appeal to all the people who are reading this while waiting in line for the newest Spice Girls album. Other than that, I can't recommend this one.

Album Review by Jeff Krasky

The WOC Rating Scale

The album stands above the rest. This is a record that every country music fan needs to have in their collection.

This album is better than the average release. A strong record with some flaws that keep it from reaching that 5 star level.

This album is an average country release. Doesn't posses qualities that make it stand out among all the other albums out there.

A weak record that lacks solid songs or good vocal performances. Sample before you buy.

This record is a bargin-bin reject that just isn't worth the time or the money. Completely misses the mark.