Women of Country - Album Reviews

Album Review

Faith Hill
Fireflies
Warner Bros. Records

With each new release Faith Hill has followed Shania Twain’s footsteps and moved further and further into cross over pop. This all lead up to the disastrous Cry in 2002 which in this humble reviewers opinion failed in just about every possible measure. It’s a shame because Faith Hill possesses one of the best voices in all of country music and it got tossed away on such pop garbage.

It was quite apparent that Faith Hill needed to take some time to get refocused. By the time Cry was released it was obvious that she had lost sight of what had made her a household name in the first place. Thankful, whether by intention or not Faith ended up taking a few years off and that time seems to have helped her. Faith’s new album Fireflies is a substantially stronger release than her last few albums.

Fireflies feels like an album about getting back to your roots. Many of the layers of excessive production have been stripped away leaving an almost folk like feel to the album which lets Faith’s expressive voice take center stage. The most surprising thing about this album is the inclusion of three songs written by Lori McKenna. Lori has long been a hidden gem of a songwriter in the music business and Faith picked some real winners to record. “Stealing Kisses” is a haunting tale of a dying marriage and the feelings of isolation that follow. This is one of the best songs recorded by a mainstream country artist in a long time. “If You Ask” and “Fireflies” are also winners written by McKenna and sung to perfection by Faith. This slower, more thoughtful Faith Hill is a welcome change to some of the huge pop ballads we’ve come to expect from her. “The Lucky One” is bound to be a big hit single and it deserves to be. It’s a perfect example of the trademark Faith Hill country pop sound without going overboard with it like she’s done so much in the recent past.

Unfortunately, there are still songs on the album like “Sunshine and Summertime” which fails more because of just being a poorly written song than anything Faith or the production team did. “We’ve Got Nothing But Love To Prove” is an admiral attempt to be patriotic but it features an absolutely terrible chorus that effectively kills the song.

With Fireflies Faith Hill has made huge strides towards regaining her standing as one of country music’s biggest female stars. It isn’t perfect, she still has the tendency to pick weak upbeat songs and then produce them to death. But with any luck at all some of the brilliance shown here will continue to spread through the rest of her music. If that happens, we will all be in for a real treat next time around. Welcome to Faith Hill’s strongest album since It Matters To Me.

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.