Album Review: Alicia Keys- As I Am
Click here to listen to the BET Album Preview of “As I Am”
Alicia Keys starts her album off with a subtle yet powerful bang with the instrumental and musical intro. I love how she doesn’t speak or sing over the track, but prepares the listener for an artistic and musical experience.
Up next is “Go Ahead”. Alicia sings in a much lower register with a bluesy feel complemented by bluesy, soulful, and borderline rock production. Lyrically, you can’t deny that she is talented. In the song she tells her shady lover to keep it pushing, because she is fed up with his trifling ways. The production is hot…the drum breakdown at the end is fire. I’m digging this.
On “Superwoman” Alicia gets inspirational by talkin about the ills that plague society and how so many strong women persevere over them. This is the kind of song I would expect to be played during a video montage at a charity dinner. Although I thought she was going to over-sing this song…she toned it down a bit more throughout the song and really focused on the emotion of the song rather than just screaming out the lyrics. I like this a lot…we all need a little inspiration from time to time.
Hearing “No One” within the context of the album makes a lot more sense. As a single this song never grew on me…I just didn’t understand why she started screaming within the first 15 seconds. However, now I see that this entire album is just one passionate delivery from Alicia after another. This song is great if you let the album play in its entirety, but I still think its overkill on its own…still beautiful lyrically though.
Alicia channels Prince for “Like You’ll Never See Me Again”. This song is a nice departure from the other powerhouse vocal performances to a more tender and soft sound and vibe. She still manages to keep the yearning and emotional intensity without being loud. The song is about treating every romantic exchange and encounter like it could the last one. This is a wonderful love song…incredibly soulful and powerful.
“Lesson Learned” featuring an understated John Mayer flips the script from the joys of love to the pain of heartache. I love, love, love the message of this song. It’s so important to learn from the mistakes we make, not let them jade us, and apply those lessons to our future. This is a song that every person who is afraid to let go of the past and open up to possibility of love needs to hear. Simply put…brilliant!
On “Wreckless Love” Alicia tries to recapture the spark in her relationship. The vocal phrasing and delivery, and production make this song amazing. This is the kind of song that when you consider how all of the parts work together you can truly appreciate how fantastic it is. You know how it is when you are with someone, things get a little stale, and you have this sense of urgency that you need to do something to bring it back to the way things were when it was fresh and new? Well this song is like the expression of that angst and desire.
“The Thing About Love” is simply Alicia’s take on the ups and downs of love. Overall the message of the song is one of hope and trying to see past the difficult times to be able to enjoy the good times. The song works its way up to a vocal crescendo then a pseudo crash taking you an emotional rollercoaster with Alicia…another masterpiece.
“I Need You” is a banger (and I’m not talking about the club banger sense). The production is hot with its more percussion and even borderline Latin feel and Alicia sounds great of course. As the title suggests, she is telling her lover that she needs him…but not just in the sense of needing his presence, but needing him to understand just how much she loves him. I love the message of this song, because it shows that it is okay to need someone and to make sure that they know just how deeply you feel about them. You may THINK the other person knows, but do you make it a point to make sure that they know? Marinate on that lol.
On “Prelude to a Kiss” Alicia slows it down and strips down the production for a more ballad feel. This song addresses the feelings that most of us occasionally have of feeling a little out of place, lost, and other general insecurities. This is another song for one of those contemplative days where you just feel like you need some direction and time to clear your head and figure out who you are and where you’re headed.
“Tell You Something” is about saying what’s on your heart today and not waiting for a day that is not promised. In the song she speaks about how we can get so caught up in the business of our day to day responsibilities that we neglect to take enough pause to show those around us that we care. This song is so beautiful and so touching…this is a superb in every way.
Alicia closes out the album with “Sure Looks Good to Me”. This song kind of has a vintage Rock & Roll feel to it…something I would expect to hear from a Bono ballad. Alicia sings about her overall optimistic outlook on life. This song is a fitting summary of just about every issue she has addressed over the course of her album thus a perfect ending.
Overall…I think it would be totally ridiculous to rate this album as anything less than a brilliant masterpiece. I can say for a fact that everyone isn’t going to like this album…but that is more of a reflection of people’s lack of good taste. I haven’t always been an Alicia Keys fan (though I’ve always respected her talent)…but this album makes me have nothing but the utmost respect and admiration for her music. The music scene, especially the R&B one, is completely lacking a mature, relatable perspective to love, heartache, and overall life lessons…and this album so completely fills that void.
It is so wonderful and incredibly refreshing to hear an album from a woman with such an optimistic perspective with content that showcases the dignity and strength of a woman (or person in general) through the ups and downs. Other artists need to take notes and I can only hope that people really internalize the messages of the album and let this be more of an inspiration rather than songs like “Irreplaceable”.
I wholeheartedly recommend this album to anyone who is looking for music that doesn’t just scratch the surface of booty call and playa anthems. If you can actually appreciate the lyrical content and amazing singing…then pick up a copy of “As I Am” (do not bootleg!) when it hits stores November 13th.
What do you think about the album? Did you find the lyrical content relevant to your life and inspirational? Isn’t this the kind of real music that the game has been missing? Is Miss Alicia back with a vengeance?
Posted by Reecie
As you said this album is a masterpiece…..Her best yet
no one is a great introduction. its powerful, full of energy, conviction and passion. its hits you hard - its “desperate yet triumphant”. too many artists focus on the intangibles, excelling only in montony whereas she isnt afraid to be vulnerable and reflective. with this album she is less guarded…iunno bout you but shes making me excited about love again. the chopin intro is a killer…at least i think its chopin correct me. lynsma & lesson learned are the truth. her convinctions are solidified on the impressive sure looks good to me and tell you something which recalls her struggles with her grandmothers passing. to me , this album is a movement. a movement back to sensibilities. it is undesirable to believe a proposition when there is no ground whatever for supposing its true. the material is genuine and consistent.
what ever happened to “teenage love affair”?? hidden track?
on a side note is it just me or is lenoa lewis’s “yesterday” the perfect song for mariah carey…i mean she can blow but to me its all a bit contrived…im not convinced yet
Why do Alicia Keys’ fans have to be so self-righteous? As if listening to her music is some sort of moral responsibility. That immediately makes me discount your perspective as that of an obvious fan, and not one from an objective point of view. This is the same thing I got on Paul about in the old Amy Winehouse thread: elitism.
Oh well, I’ll have to check the album out.
Ave.
I wanted to buy this album but I couldn’t because the store I went to didn’t have it. So I was only able to get that Jay Z album but I’m looking forward on getting this.
Well Ave…as I stated in my review I’m actually NOT an Alicia Keys fan. I’ve always admired her talent…but have I gone out and purchased one of her cds or even bothered to bootleg it? No. I initially didn’t even want to review her album, because I wasn’t feeling “No One” and wasn’t expecting her album to be something that interested me…but I couldn’t have been more wrong.
My response to her album isn’t from some contrived stance of WANTING to like it or even feeling like I had to like it..it’s a genuine knee jerk reaction to what she is talking about. I can only speak from my perspective and this album really resonated with me.
I don’t see anything self-righteous about appreciating her lyrical content and talent. I also don’t see how it is elitist to be inspired by her optimism and refreshing viewpoint. I mean really…listening to some of these broads sing is just sickening (i.e. Mya’s “Ridin” around town trying to hunt down her cheating man…whatever happened to dignity?). Personally I hold myself to a higher standard in life and this album is more in line with my viewpoints…so if that is elitism then I guess it is what it is.
If you check out the album and don’t like it more power to you…like I said this album isn’t for everyone…but I would HOPE that whether you like it as much as I do or not that you can take something positive away from it nonetheless. At any rate it’s definitely not accurate to just discredit what I have to say about her album by assuming that I’m predisposed to liking her music when I’m not.
Stallion….her album actually hits stores next week Nov. 13th.
[...] a review of the new Alicia Keys album. Thinking of getting it with my eMusic credits. Since I can’t [...]
Oh my freakin goodness!! I don’t know if I’m just over-enthused or whatever, but this album is absolutely amazing. It’s fabulous. I’m sitting here at work and I can’t control myself. Wreckless Love! Oh my goodness.
Haven’t heard the album yet, but “No One” is very soulful. I like that type of R & B. You know some music you can put on around kids, and you don’t have to explain what “grind on me” means…lol
Seriously? I’ve been looking forward to As I am for a while now but your review has me even more excited. Kind of off topic, you have a beautiful flow to your writing.
Peace.
i concur that wreckless love is the standout song on the album, i like that one the most
i too wasnt that anxious to hear her album, bc i felt, although i liked the first 2 singles (especially the prince inspired one), she sounded rather raspy and hoarse—- but when all the different elements come together on the album that becomes an afterthought
Run Of The Mill, stop fooling us with the prodigy shit.
Tell you something…. is my favorite, there is no overexagerated misconception of the love she is feeling. I just love how she tells it like it is.
Why wait to tell someone you love them?
Great review. I like your writing style, and I may just check out this album afterall.
Thanks Pirouette & Maxine!
Wreckless Love and Lesson Learned are my favorite tracks…but really the whole album is greater than the sum of its parts.
I think this has to be the most educated, intellectual, though-provoking music review I’ve ever read — complete with questions for the “class: at the end, LOL. I’m actually a hip-hop music fan, so I am driven by the beat or mood first and the lyrics second. If a rap song is too vulgar, the lyrics bother me. Otherwise I just rock to the beat. R&B has to really really really grab me by its melodies tha send chills down my spine or by its hip-hop R&B beats. An album like this will take a very long time to grow on me. Off the bat, I like
Go Ahead - Nice melody like a Stevie Wonder tune
No One - The remix with rappers that I heard (not on the album)
Like You’ll Never See Me Again - This will grow on me soon.
Wreckless Love & I Need You - YES! That’s the rhythmic sound I love.
The rest is too mellow for me right now. I’m not into this like I was her 2nd album, but time will tell.
i need you = HOT!
I so totally agree with this review, it’s as if i wrote it myself and I am not, or was not a big Alicia Keys fan. Ms. Keys has definitely stepped up her game and certainly injected new life in the slowly dying world of “R&B”. This album is a true masterpiece! Not only am i buying it for myself but also for family and friends. Alicia is an angel and i am so happy she answered to a higher calling. Like she said, if you ain’t feeling her, you’re dead! She is indeed back with a vengeance and is taking no prisoners.
Alicia Keys is hot!
This album is masterpiece. Every song is brillance. I love it on the first listen.
Also “Teenage Love Affair” and “Where Do We Go From Here” are on the album.
Excellent review. You need to write Rolling Stone review of this album.
[...] PS- If you haven’t already, check out my album review of “As I Am” [...]
I know one thing about Alicia is that when she sings she sings from the heart when she sang fallin I felt that what I was hearing in her voice, was in her heart. That’s important. You can sing well. You can play well, but the key is that you can feel her heart in it.”
[...] Related: Album Review: Alicia Keys “As I Am” [...]
I, unlike many of the people who have posted earlier, am a huge fan of Alicia Keys. It is definitely refreshing to have an artist on the scene that embraces the art of music and does everything from the soul. And she always kills it on the keys. I have been looking forward to this album since unplugged. It is really nice to see people that are real music lovers appreciate Alicia’s music. Songs in A Minor was phenomenal, but I think this album is the best yet! My favorite songs are Superwoman, Teenage Love Affair, and I Need You, but like mentioned before, all the songs come together to make an all-together hot album.
Alicia Keys is one of the only artists in my era actually putting out QUALITY work. I appreciate thats she takes time to grow,which shows in her work. I have the album and its everything I anticipated.I think some consumers have to listen to it twice because their so use to hearing garbage.
Please BUY the album!!!!
I totaly Love this Album , I’ve not been a fan of Alicia or even have listen to her songs before, but this realy is a very great album!
Alicia did a hell of a job on this album. Such a talented musician. Its performers like her who deserve the big dollars. Not those other people who just have the image and no talent. Alicia is definitely what R&B needs-originality and pure talent!
I went out today, bought the cd, and wish I hadn’t. Limewire would have been better.
Her single “No one” tricked me! I really really like this song. I’m not going to lie…she tore this song up!!! But the rest of the tracks just seem like after thoughts. =( Almost like she said, “let’s work on ‘No one’ really hard, then we’ll try to get to the others before we my album!”
Diary was a AMAZING!!! Alicia fans, quit posting these jaded reviews that elevate the album to something it is not worthy of! It is far from a “masterpiece” and every song is not “brilliant”! Your reviews are too premature and WAY too flattering! Your on a fanatical high if you think this is better than Diary! Alicia fans, if you haven’t bought it yet, prepared to be upset…bc this album is only her 2nd best!
Let me end with this: if she couldn’t play the piano, she wouldn’t be much of anything, bc her voice is not what gets her along as an artist, that’s for sure!
I agree Michael.
For me, the album sounds too pretentious. Her first album had this raw energy. She was hungry. Now, I think she was specifically trying to craft a certain sound instead of just letting it flow.
This album isn’t as diverse as her previous attempts. It’s more well rounded. Even the subject matter/lyrics are more congruent than previous albums. I think that’s cool, but I would have liked to see more of something different from Alicia. I would like more diverse lyrics as well. To me, good lyrics are more than just saying ‘tell the whole world’ and ‘only GOD knows.’ We’ve heard all of that from Alicia before. When I finished album, I honestly said aloud, “That’s it?”
I think Alicia Keys is extremely talented. However, I’m still waiting for her to shock me. I’m waiting for something different. I don’t think she’s lived up to her full potential. I think this record is very well crafted, but very safe. I don’t want to listen to another ‘As I Am’ in a couple of years.
I still think that Amy Winehouse and Joss Stone’s albums has this beat. I also liked Alice Smith’s “For Lovers, Dreamers, and Me” as well as Corinne Bailey Rae’s latest more. These people are her competition now.
She faces the same criticism that her collaborator John Mayer receives. They just don’t ‘go there.’ They don’t take that chance. They don’t show their full potential. They hold their self back. This is why I love her live performances better than album versions of songs.
Now I’m not asking Alicia to come out in a cat suit and play the piano with her buttcheeks. (We all know that she’s an undercover freak.) I just want to hear another side of her personality musically. I’m just ready for her to just bust up on a record and be like ‘you know what, i’m a damn freak.’ That will have everyone listening. If this is all that she has, she’s wasting our time.
Best song: “Tell You Something (Nana’s Reprise)”
3.5/5
After hearing “As I Am” i wished that she could be as she was. I thinked that album sucked big elephant ——–. It has no theme or direction. The writing was weak and the compositions were shallow. I always thought Alicia Keys was a lightweight writer with great singing ability and Clive Davis’ money behind her, andd this album prooves it. Beyonce’ walks over Alicia Keys and John Legend. This is a crossover attempt. She sold out!
Eddie D
I’m as big an Alicia Keys fan as there is. While I appreciate the sincerity
in her voice and lyrics, sonically the album bored me to tears. To me it
was repetitive and lacked the soul and edge of her first two joints.
I only like 4 out of the 14 on there. I don’t I’ve ever been this
disappointed with an artist’s album, especially one I have so much love for.
I think her previous albums are classic to me, because I could put them on and just zone OUT! I can do that with this album too, but it’s more straightforward and really showcases where she is in life. I heard in a couple of interview she’s stronger and isn’t afraid to be herself, instead of this always-perfect-answer celeb. It shows in her vocal style and arrangements. It’s about power and overcoming personal issues and demons. Some say she’s straining, but I’d rather listen to her voice than a clear perfectly pitched boring ass voice. She really knows how to channel her emotion through her voice. And for those who say it is boring… Newsflash, it’s Alicia Keys. She’s known for making ballads and a lot of times you have to be in a certain mood to listen to her. Anyway, this album is wonderful! I don’t have Alicia’s albums on repeat anymore, because sometimes I can get stuck in that mood and get way too carried away. But whenever I listen to the album once in a while to zone out… It’s wonderful. Her lyrics may sometimes be lacking, but i think it’s all in her delivery more than ever. She delivers you straight up emotion on a silver platter. That is what I appreciate from her! She carries you through a journey of emotions. Love it.
Each album is different. I like that about her. Songs in A Minor, she def. sounded hungry indeed. Like a soulful butterfly. Diary was a little more intimate/romantic and polished. This album is a little rougher, more passionate, rawer, with a little more poprock thrown in there. It reminds me of Pink’s transition. I don’t want Alicia to go all, poprock, but I’m just saying. I think this album does showcase some new aspects of her creativity, but I’m still pending. Is this her best album? No. But it definitely isn’t a bad album on itself. Stop searching for that hot beat/catchy, timeless melody for a second, and think about what it makes you feel, what do these songs mean to you. Could you see these songs playing in the background to some of the things you went through? Did you also feel like screaming out your devotion, regret telling someone you loved them because they’re gone now, feel thoes tingling butterflies when you were young and in love, wish you tried someting but you didn’t because you were scared? I did, and I feel EVERY word she sings about. See, the biggest improvement she made on this album is making you feel every word she is singing. Although lyrically still lacking, she knows how to put emphasis on her words and make them powerful.
The thing is, she always leaves people hungry for more. She’s one of the few people love seeing evolve, change, and try different things, because she knows how to balance what appeals to the majority of the crowd, and stay true to herself as an artist. I’m already looking forward to her next effort!
Alicia keys has put her musical stamp on “As I am”. There is an artistic progression rarely seen in an era R&B booty shakers. Any one with a good ear and has loved,lost and loved again will relate. For post feminist America , Alicia is staking her claim as a woman;funerable and of flesh and blood;lyrics steeped in emotions. Her musical influences range from Hip Hop, Chopin,The Beatles,Prince to Joni Mitchell on this album;all wrapped in Alicia’s musical world. And loses no direction in her ability to bring the listener into her true voice. This lady will be around long after the rumpshakers can’t shake it any more. You need only look at Nina Simone and Roberta Flack and know she’s taken from the best to make Alicia what she is;pure talent…nuff said.
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