Annie Lennox - Bare

By Joshua O'Connell
Posted Tuesday, July 1, 2003

It's been 20 years since Annie Lennox first hit it big with the Eurythmics. It's been 12 years since her first solo CD, and more importantly, it's been eight long years since her most recent solo effort, Medusa. One of two things could be expected when an artist of the caliber of Annie Lennox releases a CD after that long: either it'll sound a bit dated or rusty, or it'll be an effort that's been awhile in the making but well worth it.

Those who were expecting the latter will realize quickly that even that is an understatement. The latest release from Lennox, 'Bare' is arguably her strongest effort to date.

The beauty of this album is that one could listen to it a couple of different ways. One could listen to some of the stand-out tracks such as "A Thousand Beautiful Things," which builds beautfiul musical tension quickly and starts the album off with a bang.

For the next strong track, just move to track two, "Pavement Cracks," a meloncholy track lyrically yet punchy song musically, with an extremely powerful bridge.

The next track, "The Hurting Time," is equally good, even with its length clocking in at over 7 minutes. This slow track talking about more pain in her life as well as the life of a love.

Track four, "Honestly," is a beautiful piece with layered vocals and different lyrics in the background as she's singing in the foreground, which creates an interesting rhythm in this mid-tempo track.

Astute readers get what I'm saying here - every track on this CD, start to finish, is potent, strong and some of her best work. Which leads me to the second way you can listen to this CD. The best way to really enjoy her latest album is to listen to the CD from start to finish, and even put it on repeat during longer listening sessions. The album's flow is excellent, and falls into one of the rare CDs that have been released the past 10 years that really are worth the money spent.

Lennox wrote every track on this disc, opening up her emotions for all who listen to the CD. The name and album cover become obvious. She confidently says that she's opening herself and offering herself, bare, through the music on this latest effort. It's obvious that the time, energy, and emotion behind this album is true, and works from start to end.

In an age of throwaway tracks on albums, and even songs released, this is a refreshing change. Those who are fans of Lennox, or more importantly, the best of what music has to offer doesn't have to look farther than this disc. This is truly a spectacular accomplishment from an artist who's already done so much in the music world.

Click here to order 'Bare' by Annie Lennox
Order from

 E-mail this page
 Printer-friendly page