Shania Twain: Now

I have been a faithful Shania fan since her second album, The Woman in Me, with its hit single Any Man of Mine in which she clearly outlines her expectations for any man who wants to be with her.  It is unapologetically country and that is precisely what makes it such a great album.  Her second album, Come on Over, was a commercial hit that really launched her into the spotlight and firmly established her as a country-pop queen.  This album features some of her most recognisable and popular singles, including That Don’t Impress Me Much (if you didn’t love Shania before, you did after her super hot head-to-toe leopard print ensemble in the video for this song), You’re Still the One, Man! I Feel Like a Woman! (and another smoking video that paid homage to Robert Palmer’s Addicted to Love but with Shania supported by hot male guitarists), You’ve Got a Way (which featured on the Notting Hill soundtrack) and From This Moment On (which, sadly, radio stations and bridal couples managed to ruin for me).

Her third album, Up!, did not disappoint either with hit tracks such as I’m Gonna Getcha Good, Forever and Always (a beautiful ballad that remains one of my Shania favourites) and Ka-Ching (a commentary on commercialism and greed).  The album, much like those preceding it, also has a strong feminist message with songs like She’s Not Just a Pretty Face which asserts that women can succeed in any profession because there is more to them than society dictates.

Then Shania took a break from recording, largely because of personal issues surrounding her divorce from her producer husband, Robert John “Mutt” Lange, who allegedly had an affair with her best friend, as well as a disease that affected her vocal chords.  And I waited and waited for her comeback – I knew there would be one.  My patience (and that of her fans) paid off with a brand new album in 2017, appropriately titled Now.  Though while the title focuses on the present, it also makes references to the pain of her past but with an optimistic message of healing and moving forward.  A Pitchfork review sums it up perfectly: “And while Now still rings with Twain’s irrepressible optimism, its most impactful songs explore what happens when that unstoppable force meets heart-shattering, life-changing betrayal.”

Swingin’ With My Eyes Closed: The perfect song to set the tone for the album with its reggae beat and the promise of summer, freedom and the absence of fear.

Home Now:  A foot-tapping track with a signature Shania country twang that speaks to the comfort of home, and returning to this safe space after “roamin’ round the lost and found”. 

Light Of My Life: I love the chorus of this catchy ballad – “You are the light of my life / My little piece of the pie / American beauty, apple of my eye”.

Poor Me: This is a darker feeling and sounding track that speaks to the pain of the past (“Why do I keep looking back?”) and a desire to get over lingering self-pity, with some great word play thrown in (poor me – pour me another).

Who’s Gonna Be Your Girl: A song that reinforces the importance of the present (“All we have is here and now”) while still asking questions about the future.  It feels like a compliment to Forever and Always.

More Fun:  A perfect anthem to celebrate the end of a long week and the promise of a carefree weekend ahead – “The weekend’s here and all we want to do is be together / Get a little crazy and forget what happens later”.  I concur wholeheartedly with Shania’s sentiments:  “More fun is what we need”.

I’m Alright:  And we’re back to the hurt of the past with this song.  However, there is an assertion that she is no longer mad and she thinks she is “gonna be okay”.

Roll Me On The River:  Billboard provides the perfect description of this track as “a swamp-core shuffle with a beat like pistons that sounds universes away from anything Twain’s ever done”.  Indeed, it feels as though it could feature on a True Blood or True Detective soundtrack.

We Got Something They Don’t:  A song that celebrates the longevity of a relationship despite naysayers, which feels like a combination of You’re Still the One (“They said we’ll never make it / But just look at us holding on”) and I’m Holding On To Love (“Not even Dr. Ruth /
Is gonna tell me how I feel,  I know our love is real”).

You Can’t Buy Love:  I am skeptical about a song that opens with “when life gives you lemons” and proceeds to talk about making lemonade.  The song doesn’t really get much better from here, with a chorus that ends with “You can’t make sunshine / But you can make love”.  Not my favourite on the album.

Life’s About To Get Good:  This is it.  The song that brought Shania back into our lives. What an anthem.  I have listened to this song more times than I can count and it always made me feel that life really is about to get good.  The video is also pretty cool, with Shania discarding her parts of past and emerging into the light of a brighter future.  In lots and lots of chiffon.

Soldier:  A sad ballad concludes the album, one in which she asks if anybody as seen her soldier, “just trying to get home”. 

Besides the excitement of a new album, Shania has also announced tour dates to promote the album so I am holding thumbs that I will finally get to see her live on stage this year.  NOW, that would impress me much (sorry, I couldn’t resist).