Queen of Me

Most people know Shania Twain for going totally crazy and forgetting she's a lady, not being impressed by Brad Pitt or his car and serenading newlyweds from this moment on.  She's come a long way since her string of 90s hits and her latest album, Queen of Me, is a more pop-friendly collection of self-affirming and empowering anthems with just the right amount of country twang to remind listeners of 90s Shania.  Queen of Me has reached number one on the UK charts, making it her third number one in the UK, while the album also entered the Official Vinyl Albums Chart at the top spot.  

I have been a big Shania fan since her early days and Come On Over remains one of my favorite albums of the 90s.  I was fortunate to see her live on her Now Tour of 2018 and she was incredible.  So I was excited to hear that a new album was on the horizon, and even more so after I heard the lead single, Waking Up Dreaming.  I'm happy to say, after my first listen, I was not disappointed; it's an album by someone who is living her best life after a bumpy road to get to this point and I'm here for it.  Here is my track-by-track assessment of the album (I got the Target edition which includes two bonus tracks).

1.  Giddy Up!

She gets the party started from the first track, one that you can imagine playing max volume while cruising down the highway with the top down (if you drove a convertible).  There is also a dance that goes with the song (think Achy Breaky Heart but way cooler) that did the rounds on TikTok.  It's one of my favorite songs on the album (despite it's somewhat ridiculous lyrics like "got a litty in the cup") and I can see it being a firm favorite for the dancing cowboy-boot-clad barbacks at Saddles.

2.  Brand New

A more introspective mid-tempo ballad with a message of moving on from a broken relationship.  I'll admit that when she sings "You prick" in the chorus, I wasn't quite sure if she was using it as a noun or a verb (or perhaps both). 

3.  Waking Up Dreaming

The first single to be released from the album.  Today described the song as an "absolute bop" with a music video that is an "ode to the 80s", complete with sequins, big hair and even bigger lashes.  It's an upbeat call to dream big, not stopping at the ceilin' but making your way all the way to Mars.

4.  Best Friend

A feel-good track about that bff who is always there to pick you up and/or take the blame: "Just remember who you got / When you feel a little lost, I'll find you".  The lyrics are clearly not about her former best friend who had an affair with her husband.  

5.  Pretty Liar

Another one of my favorites.  I love the mocking/childlike tone when she sings "Your pants are on fire" followed by the less childlike line "Such a fucking liar" (sung with wonderful acidity).

6.  Inhale/Exhale Air

This is a celebration of life and all the other positive things that air gives us (including balloons and bubbles).  It was written after Shania survived Covid-related hospitalization.  

7.  Last Day of Summer

A more laid-back track with a strong piano medley and a nostalgic vibe which feels a little flat in relation to the rest of the album.

8.  Queen of Me

This is a top-tier anthem in which she asserts her independence and power: "I don't need a king / So keep the ring".  It's the kind of song that makes you want to shout "yasss Queen!" after listening to it.  

9.  Got It Good

I love this track, which feels like classic Shania yet fresh and "now" at the same time.  Indeed Rolling Stone suggests the song has some of "the old maximalist Twain energy, but it’s underpinned by a sleek disco beat out of Kylie Minogue’s Fever era and ABBA-style vocal harmonies".

10.  Number One

An appropriate title for a song on this album, considering it's number one position in the UK (and undoubtedly other countries too).  It's got a great disco-pop energy with a repetitive and catchy chorus.

11.  Not Just A Girl

This wasn't an instant favorite but grew on me after the second listen.  Like several of the songs on this album, it's a female empowering anthem that accompanied the Netflix documentary with the same title that explores the highs and lows of her life and career.

12.  The Hardest Stone

The song, produced by Twenty One Pilots’ Tyler Joseph, is a pleasant surprise to conclude the album's tracklist.  I love the "hmm mm-mm-mm" layered over harmonies, distorted vocals and hip-hop beats with lyrics that suggest an internal monologue about lessons learned.

13.  On Three (bonus track)

A song in which the guitar takes center stage before a beat kicks in and we are line dancing once again.

14.  Done and Dusted (bonus track)

This is country Shania at her finest: hand clapping, boot stomping hooks and just the right amount of honky tonk; it's impossible not to have a good time when this song is blasting through the speakers.