It was all we had

Pretty soon "Brief & Beautiful" is going to take the title of the most recycled song ever. Look, it's lovely--I'll admit that; it's got an exquisite melody. Though Norwegian singer Maria Arredondo's version didn't make my year end countdown of my favorite singles of 2007, it very well could have.



Spanish singer Edurne's Spanish adaptation "Fue Para Los Does" is lovely as well. I believe it was the first version to be released, with Maria's being second but the first to be released as a single (in Edurne's case it was initially just an album track).



For the international pop fan, another version really didn't seem necessary after those two--could any other version really bring anything new--well, new and desirable--to the table? Both Maria and Edurne have perfect voices for the song--they aren't the same, but both have qualities that mean they really bring out its emotion. We'd even got two separate arrangements as a result of Maria and Edurne's version. That meant that I wasn't really excited about Anna Sahlene's version, except for the hope it would mean more new material from Anna--there wasn't really anywhere new she could take the song.



Do you know what we have now, though? ANOTHER Spanish language version! But NOT "Fue Para Los Dos"--it's actually a whole different adaptation--it's got different lyrics. It's by Mexican group Timbiriche, who have called their new version "Vuelvo A Comenzar."



Plus, if you've REALLY not got enough of the song yet, there's always the demo at songwriter Hanne Sorvaag's MySpace page. At this rate, I'm expecting a version on the next NKD album and one by a Japanese artist or group that I'll probably never hear about...

But I won't forget all that is unsaid

Yes, a certain Swedish trio-turned-quartet-turned-trio is back back BACK, and I'm very excited about that, but they'll be more to say when we actually hear the song, apparently going to Swedish iTunes on Monday. There's another Swedish artist who we've just heard is back with a new single, though: Anna Sahlene! ESC Today says that she'll be debuting her new single, "Brief And Beautiful," at Eurolaul.

Now, normally I would be jumping up and down at the thought of her return--I adore Anna--but there is something holding me back: "Brief And Beautiful"?! What are the odds it's the Hanne Sorvaag co-penned "Brief And Beautiful"? Don't get me wrong, I love that song (it nearly made my year end countdown as well) but we've already got two (great) versions of it, one from Norwegian singer Maria Arredondo and one from Spanish singer Edurne! Actually, scratch that--three, since Hanne put what I presume is her demo up on her MySpace. From the perspective of an international pop fan and temporarily ignoring whether or not she'll have success with the song (I'd love her to be successful, and I expect she'll sing the song well), that doesn't make this release an exciting prospect at all. Hopefully I'm wrong about what song it is.

Well, at least ESC Today says we'll be getting an album later this year--that's worth looking forward to. If it is Maria Arredondo's "Brief And Beautiful"/Edurne's Spanish language version "Fue para los dos," though, it doesn't look like it'll be all disco, so don't count on a bunch of stuff like "This Woman."

Though I tried, I couldn't be there for you

I have to say, it's been a disappointing past couple of days in terms of albums for me. Maria Arrendondo's latest album is one of those albums so far for me (though maybe time will change that; to be honest, my listening so far has been superficial at best), but there are at least three complete and utter gems on it that are quality through and through. One of those is "Brief And Beautiful," which I've posted before and is still just as lovely as it ever was. I'd love to get a look at the writing credits for this CD just to see who wrote the other two songs I like on the album, but I don't feel I can justify buying the whole physical album if I'm so far that unenthusiastic about it (and the cover and new promotional shots aren't exactly enticing me into buying it either). Enough being negative, though--let's move on to what I do like, namely (besides "Brief And Beautiful") "For The Best" and "Too Much Ain't Enough." These are both songs that fit Maria's voice very well but that I can also see being part of the recycled songs circuit, so I wouldn't be surprised to find out that they were or will be released by other artists. "Too Much Ain't Enough" is a mid-tempo pop song, with Marie wistful as usual, albeit in a stronger way than on some other songs; the song relies on hitting the first and last words of each line of the chorus strongly. At the moment, I think I prefer the following song more, though.

For The Best--I guess this is mid-tempo as well, but it also feels somewhat more ballady than "Too Much Ain't Enough." Primarily piano-based, this song takes full advantage of Maria's voice--she does this...well, I used the word "wistful" before, but I'm not sure how accurate that is (especially for this song's lyrics). She sounds lovely on this song, though, whatever the proper word to describe its tone is. If you were really the guy she was singing to, I don't think you'd find much comfort from her assurances that your break-up was for the best and she didn't mean to hurt you and that she'll still be there for you as a friend--sure, there's some pretense at sympathy, but I imagine for her former partner she'd sound a little too strong and a little too magnanimous for her words to make him feel better at all. That's not so important for the listeners, though--the strength in the way Maria sings here makes the song catchier. And every now and then, just because that's the way Maria's voice works, it does sound like she is really experiencing some sad emotion. In essence, lovely catchy kind of MOR-y song theoretically expressing regret to the person Maria's broken up with.

Edit: or, actually paying closer attention to the lyrics, maybe a more likely interpretation for the reason Maria talks about remembering breaking his heart and making him cry so much is because she's trying to make herself feel better--those opening verses sure make it sound like her partner has moved on and is doing OK; maybe she's more trying to reassure herself, remembering what she felt like, even if she dwells mainly on her memories of the other person, not of how she felt--comparing how she actually felt and feels to what he actually felt and feels would be too painful. "Know that it was for the best" is probably more sung in hopes she'll remind herself (who still has a picture of this guy on her wall) of that fact (or hope) than to actually remind her ex-boyfriend, currently "doing fine" and with a new girl, of it, even if she's pretending it's vice-versa.

To buy Maria Arredondo's album For A Moment, go here (physical).

Next up: maybe that American singer.

We never had a chance to begin

I got pretty sidetracked when writing about Norwegian singer Maria Arredondo's new single the other day--I hardly spent any time writing about the song itself. Consider this post an attempt to remedy that as well as share the best quality version of the song I've got so far--still not normal quality, but listenable. It is a radio rip, though, so the ending is clipped. As for Maria herself, she's released two pop albums (one in 2003 and one in 2004, both selling platinum) and one holiday album so far. Her voice does have that certain sweetness you'll find in some other female Norwegian singers' voices, but not quite to the same extent, and there's maybe a hint of the potential for her to sing country as well.

Brief and Beautiful--that slight sweetness suits this song really well--it's a great combination of voice and melody (and the songwriters' work really has to be recognized--the melody sounds like a big hit). Great match of melody and lyrics (or at least lyrical sentiment) as well--the bittersweet lyrics about a short-lived relationship (I love the line "like every good thing, it's not yours to keep") and achingly sweet melody (those quick rises and falls in the chorus's vocal melody might as well be the quick rise and fall of the relationship). In short, fantastic beautiful song matched with a singer who brings out its best elements

Since this is a new single, it'll only be posted for a little bit.

I'm not sure of anywhere where you can buy Maria Arredondo's new single "Brief And Beautiful" unless you have access to the Norwegian iTunes store, but you can buy her earlier albums here (physical). They're also listed on Amazon.

Edit: this probably doesn't deserve its own post, but Shayne Ward's video for "No U Hang Up" has debuted over here (you'll have to scroll down a bit, but you'll see a video player). Be warned that it involved black and white, water, and a general lack of clothes.

Next up: a Swedish or American group.