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| Artist: Alicia Keys
Label: J-Records
Category: Music
List Price: $13.98
Buy Used: $0.88
You Save: $13.10 (94%)
New (65) Used (172) Collectible (1) from $0.88
Avg. Customer Rating:  751 reviews
Sales Rank: 449
Media: Audio CD
Discs: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.2
Dimensions (in): 5.4 x 4.9 x 0.4
MPN: 20002
UPC: 808132000222
EAN: 8081320002228
ASIN: B00005JXS6
Publication Date: 2000
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
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| Customer Reviews:
 Soul Is Reborn! Still Her Best, & Better Than All The Rest. January 10, 2008
33 out of 33 found this review helpful
Alica Keys' is the sexy Aquarian that won five Grammy's for this her debut album for a reason, she is that good! Take a piece of Roberta Flack, Al Green, & Stevie Wonder pour into a twenty first century Motown gal & you'll have Alicia Keys'. Rich soulful vocals, warm melodies & catchy lyrics that make this album a winner. Since she is classically trained it is clear after only one listening that her timing is perfect.
There are sixteen tracks including two remakes, "Someday We'll Be Free & Prince's How Come You Don't Call Me." These two were fine but I like her tunes far more. They range from slow, midtempo, to fast. "Fallin," is hands down the best song on the album & for me the best ballad since the Rolling Stones "Almost Here You Cry" from 1989's "Steel Wheels" album. "Fallin" should have been the number one song of 2001, not Christina Aguilera's screaming tune. "Fallin" has an Acapella intro & the violin of Miri Ben Ari that comes in with a smooth feeling. "A Womans Worth," has a satiny flow of lyrics as she tells her guy about her fine qualities & how she deserves to be treated. Then how she will reciprocate because he is worth it. "Butterflz," a fine tune with a jazzy piano & flowing lyrics. "Never Felt This Way," has classic piano sounds & lyrics describing a first love.
Other good tunes are "The Life," its catchy lyrics & an alluring melody give it a sensual 1960's soulful vibe. "Rock Wit You," is a funky song with a rich vocal delivery. "Girlfriend," has a rocking instrumental intro that was a pleasant surprise. With this album you will never have to hit the skip button. I love Alicia Keys' unique approach & the way she can immerse herself into the songs, whether they are her own or remakes. Lastly, she is the best new artist since the Police's first album came out in the late 1970's.
One of the best R&B debuts of this decade so far October 6, 2007
A throaty, passionate singer and a first rate pianist, this album was a breath of fresh air from the formulaic wasteland that contemporary R&B is becoming today. When you listen to "Fallin'" you can tell that this girl has deep respect for masters like Aretha Franklin and Chaka Khan. Alicia Keys prides herself on being a musician more than anything else, and for that she earned a Best New Artist Grammy for this album.
A strong force in the music world June 1, 2007
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Alicia Keys, asside from her somewhat corny change of name, is a very giften vocalist, songwriter and pianist. She will most certainly be around the popular music scene for a long time.
Doesn't get any better than THIS!!! January 30, 2007
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
The beautiful heart-wrenching ballad"Goodbye"ALONE,makes this album worth its' weight in DIAMONDS'!!!The lyrics have the ability to hurl you backwards'through TIME,to the exact moment of your very FIRST heartbreak!! Alicia does,an UNSURPASSED job of making you see(and FEEL)this through the eyes'of a(young innocent) individual who's encountered this(DISCONCERTING)life,experience for the FIRST time!!!Nostalgic lyrics such as"Is THIS the END?!? Are you SURE??How should you KNOW when you've NEVER been"here"BEFORE?!?(followed by)It's so HARD to just LET GO,and this is the one and ONLY,love I've EVER known!!!" I get a chill in my spine,when I note the confusion and hurt in Alicias' voice as she sings that line!! The first lines are very thought-provoking:"How do you LOVE someone that HURTS you oh so bad??With intentions"good"was all he EVER had..But how do I let go when I loved him for so LONG,and I've given him ALL that I COULD!!! Summed up with:"HOW do you find the WORDS to say...To say"Goodbye"..."Find,the words'to say"Goodbye"...."When your heart DON'T have the"HEART" to say...To say"Goodbye"!!!(other chilling lyrics'include:"Maybe love was a HOPELESS"crime",giving up what SEEMS your lifetime!!" "Was it something wrong that WE did?!?" "Or 'cause OTHERS infiltrated?!?" "What went wrong with something ONCE so good??!!?" Alicia sounds SO emotional and troubled with:"When it's been SO long!!" I can't leave out her brave confession:"I know NOW I was naive',never knew where this would lead"...(ANTI man-bashing warning)And,I'm NOT trying to take away...From the GOOD man that he IS(notice she didn't say"was")!!Alicia turns'it personal when she belts' out:"MY heart dont have the heart to say"Goodbye."Alicia does an amazing rendition of Princes"How Come You Don't Call Me"while"The Life"is a totally original tale of a young lady being mentally tormented trying to survive living in the "fast lane."Powerful lyrics(that an admitted former hustler/gang-member myself can identify with)here include:"Everyday I realize,that this might be the LAST day of my life!" "Slowly internally I'm DYING,pillow-casing wet from all my CRYING!" "Looking back,I've SEEN all the HORRORS,this madness makes me want to HIDE!"!" "Trying to get over." "I'm GONNA get over!" "When it rains,it POURS,isn't life worth MORE?!? "I don't even KNOW,what I'm hustling FOR!!" "There is NOTHING MORE,to be here for,take me AWAY,I can't live that life no more.." "Livng will ALWAYS be a struggle,looking for someone "TRUE"to love you.." "You gotta do whatcha' GOTTA do,JUST to make it through,all the HARD times that's gonna face you!!" "Walking the streets I find,I'm coming closer and CLOSER to losing my mind!!" "Gotta KEEP movin',movin' "Can YOU see what I'M seeing?!?" "This is MY life!!" "Jane Doe"touches on the underhanded ploys a lot of(conniving)women use to get the man they want,regardless of WHO gets hurt in the process.."Rock With You"is a nice"change-of-pace" upbeat track.. On"Mr Man" Alicia touches on "skanky"scandulous chicks who can't WAIT for their man to turn his back on them for a mere SECOND,so they can(shamelesly)scheme on getting"picked up"by some other dude!"BOY,did I know a chick JUST like that!!"The "Straight-to-the-point"simple message of"Fallen"is made over an excellent beat and turns out to be a modern day classic!! "Troubles"is a very PASSIONATE song with touching(and frightenly familiar)easy-to-relate-to lyrical content played to a haunting piano.The song starts out with a desperate and heart-felt prayer from Alicia:"Dear Lord can You take it away?!?This pain in my heart,it follows me by day,and at night it stalks me like the shadows on my wall." "OH MY GOODNESS!!"One line from this song that REALLY"hit home"with me was:"Continuous mistakes,I know i've made BEFORE!!" More notable and heart-felt lyrics incude:"WHY does it feel,that my MIND is constantly tryin'to pull me down?!?" "I can't seem to get AWAY!!" "Feel like the WORLD is closing on me!!" "Feel like my dreams,will NEVER come to me!" "How LONG will I feel so OUT-OF-PLACE?!?" I love the part of the song that sums the point up:"If you're troubled,you just gotta let it go,If you're WORRIED baby,you just gotta LET IT GO!!" "All your hustles aint for NOTHING!!" "You just gotta take it SLOW!!" "Don't you worry,no need to worry!!" "Never felt this way before" and "Butterflies"are two absolutely BEAUTIFUL songs that chronicle the way one feels when they've just fallen in love with someone.."Why do I feel so sad"is a song that deals with the pleasure and pain of this thing called"love." "Caged Bird"is a melancholy,touching and thoughtful song.BIG-UPS'to Alicia,for this MASTERPIECE of an album!!! I,reccomend this album as STRONGLY,as I recommend wearing WARM clothes in Michigan,after August,to EVERYONE,who appreciates touching/true-to-life ballads!!
Songs Of A Classic! October 28, 2006
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
Considering the fact that I heard her sophomore album "The Diary Of Alicia Keys" before hearing "Songs In A Minor", the multi-platinum, critically-acclaimed album from singer/songwriter/pianist/musician Alicia Keys, I had high expectations of this album. Surprisingly, this album is just as good as its successor, showcasing all of Alicia Keys' talents to the fullest degree. Although this album is a lot more ballad-heavy and slightly lacks the diversity of her sophomore album, that doesn't mean that this album is any less soulful, emotional or stellar.
"Fallin'", the classic R&B/Soul #1 U.S. smash hit piano ballad that solidified Alicia Keys as a force to be reckoned with, tells the story of a woman indecisively caught up between leaving or staying with her man, and with a combination of ethereal choir background vocals and moody violins towards the end of the song, it's definitely one of the best tracks on the album ; "A Woman's Worth", another masterfully arranged classic R&B/Soul where piano keys and wah wah guitar strings (amongst other instruments) are used in all the right places, finds Alicia Keys soulfully singing about how a real relationship is nothing without respect and how materialistic offerings won't always make the cut ; "Troubles", with its true-to-life lyrics and darkly moody instrumental arrangements, sounds both depressing and uplifting at the same time ; "How Come You Don't Call Me", a self-explanatory piano ballad written by none other than the Purple man himself Prince, finds Alicia Keys effortlessly pushing her powerful vocals to extraordinary heights with emotion and passion ; the huge assortment of instruments on the production of "Rock Wit You" is downright amazing if not a bit too lengthy ; "Mr Man", one of my album favourites, is a classy duet violin ballad with forgotten R&B/Soul singer Jimmy Cozier (the album's only guest artist) ; "The Life", another piano-driven ballad, finds Alicia talking about life (obviously) ; and the Hip-Hop-lite production from Jermaine Dupri supports Alicia Keys' feelings of envy and jealousy against another woman on "Girlfriend".
Alicia Keys, being the multi-talented songstress she is, has managed to create a wonderful debut that has "classic" written all over it. Perhaps the album's only weak points lie in the following two songs - "Butterflyz" & "Caged Bird". The former track lacks the lyrical complexity and genuinely captivating realness of the other tracks, while "Caged Bird" falters with its overly mellow production. However, such flaws can be excused because Alicia Key's vocals are so vibrantly soulful and hypnotic that such flaws fly past with little to no notice. Definitely 5 stars!
5 Best Tracks:
"Fallin'"
"A Woman's Worth"
"Troubles"
"How Come You Don't Call Me"
"Girlfriend"
Album Favourite:
"Mr. Man (feat. Jimmy Cozier)"
Honourable Mentions:
"The Life"
"Rock Wit You"
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