Sarah Brightman Encore label: decca released: 04.23.02 our score: 3.5 out of 5.0 buy it: here

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Okay, here's the deal with Sarah Brightman: Her voice is a perfect thing, capable of beautifying everything from her ex-husband Andrew Lloyd Webber's musicals to opera to obscure Rodgers and Hart songs, all of which are represented here. She's not, perhaps, the deepest singer, but with range and pitch like this, who needs depth? Encore is yet another greatest hits album from Brightman, with a new song thrown in to suck money out of her hardcore fans.

But who are those hardcore fans? What audience is this aimed at? If you like the shows that the showtunes are from (Sunset Boulevard, The Phantom of the Opera, Cats), wouldn't you already have their soundtrack albums? If you think her voice is stunning—which, remember, it is—wouldn't you already have the classical and original albums these are from?

The critic's wife responds: "This is the stupidest line of reasoning ever. Listen, tons of people like Sarah Brightman, because she's a great singer and she's not doing the kind of crap you're always saying is so great but really isn't. People who have heard her sing on stage or on a different album are gonna say, 'Oh, this is by that really good singer,' and buy it. So of course this is gonna sell a ton of copies. I don't understand why there's any question at all about this."

Okay, then. (I actually think she's kinda hot, too, but—unlike her last oh say six albums—this one doesn't contain any cheesecake pictures on the disc booklet. So if you're a creepy horny obsessive fan, forget it.)
11-Aug-2002 8:59 AM

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If you liked Encore...

• Sarah Brightman - La Luna
• William Orbit - Pieces in a Modern Style
• Seussical the Musical