The James Logan Courier

By Brandie Moore, Courier Book Editor

As most people know, Kelly Clarkson was the first American Idol winner back in 2002. Seven years later she came out with her fourth full-length album, All I've Ever Wanted.

All I Ever Wanted came out last Spring. Since then, she already has three music videos out from the CD. These include My life Would Suck Without You, I Do Not Hook Up, and Already Gone.

After listening to this CD a few times, I couldn't stop. Some of these songs have such strong messages in them I just wanted to hear them more to hear the words again. Also, the music behind the words is just so well done that it drags you into the flow of the sound.
The first song on the album is "My Life Would Suck Without You." This song is about a man and woman who are so in love they can do anything to each other and still be in love. This song is easy to rock out and dance to.

The second song, and the second video from the collection, is I Do Not Hook Up. In this song Kelly sings about a girl who doesn't want a quick hook-up. but instead wants take it slow, although the music video proves a little different thematically.

The next song is "Cry." This is one of my favorites. This song talks about a couple which broke up and when the girl cries, she wants to know if that's how it feels to "really"� cry. I think a lot of girls can relate to this song and will probably fall in love with it.

Next is "Don't Let Me Stop You." This is definitely my favorite on the CD. It's about a girl wondering if her boyfriend even likes her anymore when she sees him looking over his shoulder while he's kissing her. She wants to tell him that if he wants to leave her she won't stop him, but if he stays she's not willing to share him.

The song "All I Ever Wanted" tells about how a girl wants a simple way to get over her ex when all she wants is him. The chorus in this song is really catchy.

"Already Gone," is interesting. It's a very good song. It sounds so sweet for a sad song. It's a great song to listen to, but there is one problem: the music in the beginning sound exactly like Beyonce's hit single "Halo." Kelly was mad when she found out that her writers made this little flub, but had no choose but to make the music video for it. On Canadian radio, she blamed writer Ryan Tedder, who wrote both songs, for the similarity of the two tunes.

The next song is "If I Can't Have You." I think you can get what it's about from the title. She pretty much says if "I can't have you I don't want anyone else." Just what every boy wants to hear, right? Maybe scare him off is the better term.

Next is "Save You." I love this song dearly. It's about when a girl wants to save a guy, but he won't let her. I think most girls can relate to that. It is definitely one of the better songs on her CD though. I think anyone would want to help someone who's had a hard past.

The next song has a fun title; it's called "Whyyawannabringmedown." Well, ok, maybe it's not that fun. It's just a whole bunch of words put together to make one word, the point of that? Well I don't think anyone knows. If you couldn't guess .this is yet another sad breakup-type song. Stll, this song is a fun one to dance to.

Next is "Long Shot." This tells how a girl gets intense all the time and how she wants a boy to take the "long shot" and ask her out. I love the verses in this song; the chorus: not so much.

"Impossible," is a sad song that really catches your attention. The first time I listened to it I thought "What the heck is this?", but as I listened to it more and more and learned the lyrics I just loved it. The tune is kind of haunting, giving that sound that just captivates you.

The song "Ready" I'd have to call this my least favorite on the CD. I'm not saying it's a bad song, but compared to the others it's just not as good. Clarkson could have done more to improve this song. It does tie into her whole break-up, make-up theme she has going on for this CD, though.

Next song is "I Want You." It seems like in this song she's stuttering a lot. I'm guessing it's intentional, though I don't know why she would ever want to do that. I'm not going to dis the song though because I really do like it and I think others will, too.

The last song is "If No One Will Listen." This song has a really good theme. She sings about how sometimes you feel like no one listens when you speak and you feel small and alone. She says how when that time comes, she'll listen like any of us would listen to a friend when they need us. I think that this song has the best message in this whole CD.

So if pop/rock is your sort of music, or you just want to hear something new, go check out Kelly Clarkson's new album and see for yourself just how good it is. Also make sure to watch her three music videos from the CD.