In 2014, the New York Times’ review of the original “1989” declared, “Ms. [Taylor] Swift is aiming somewhere even higher, a mode of timelessness that few true pop stars...even bother aspiring to.” That same year, the success of “1989” prompted iconic journalist Barbara Walters to declare Swift, “the music industry.”
Therefore, following the announcement of “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” at the August 9 show of “The Eras Tour,” pressure mounted on Swift to follow up her most commercially successful album of her career. Swift has been re-recording her albums in an effort to reclaim her masters following a dispute with her former record label over the sale of her first six albums.
“1989 (Taylor’s Version)” continued the precedent of having two major parts of the album: the re-recordings of the original songs and the “vault,” songs that were initially cut from the final original album but re-recorded by Swift in the new version anyway. As such, and as with The Rotunda’s review of “Speak Now (Taylor’s Version),” this review will be split into these sections as well.
The original “1989” represented a break from Swift’s past artistry. “Red” was a strange-blend of country and pop that somehow worked, and her first three albums sat entirely in the country genre. Therefore, it was a surprise to critics when Swift made a 80s-inspired synth-pop album – and it was actually good.
As with the original album, some of the best music lies within the hits, notably “Style” and “Blank Space.” Note the exclusion of “Shake It Off,” which while its fun lyricism and endearing corny bridge are highlights, it isn’t exactly one of Swift’s best.
“Style” has divided fans, who have complained that she strayed too far from the original recording, including sparkle effects through the song and making the initial guitar riff sound funkier than the 2014 version. I entirely disagree, and “Style (Taylor’s Version)” remains my favorite song from the album.
However, saying the best music from this album lies with the hits would be doing a disservice to the album tracks. “Clean,” in which she uses addiction-based imagery to document letting go of a broken relationship, is a highlight of the album unfortunately buried deep into the tracklist.
That said, there were other songs on the album that seem like downgrades of the original. “Wildest Dreams (Taylor’s Version)” loses the emotion that made the original so powerful. The solo version of “Bad Blood,” already lyrically-horrific to begin with, just feels like an empty version of the original. That said, the version featuring Kendrick Lamar improved with better production and fresh vocals from Swift and Lamar.
That said, while the re-recorded songs have their moment, most of the attention surrounding any of Swift’s re-recordings goes to the vault.
When Swift announced ‘“Slut!”,’ fans had a myriad of predictions about how the song would sound. Personally, I hoped for a punk-rock sound with the sarcasm of “Blank Space.” However, despite its incredible lyricism, the song disappointed many sonically. Swift said that she chose “Blank Space” over ‘“Slut!”’ for the final tracklist – and thank God she did.
The highlights of the vault for me where “Say Don’t Go” and “Is It Over Now?,” two purely synth-pop songs with the best lyricism out of the vault. The former discusses the emotional turmoil of heartbreak and the complexities of longing for someone while feeling left behind. The latter explores similar themes as “Out of the Woods,” writing about intimate moments between a couple and feelings of betrayal – but uncertainty of what the future looks like. These two songs sit within the top 5 on the album for me.
All in all, “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” is now – by far – my favorite of the re-recorded albums Swift has put out. She remained true to the original album, making it even more 80s-inspired along the way. With two re-recordings left, “Taylor Swift (Taylor’s Version)” and “reputation (Taylor’s Version),” Swift looks next to metaphorically reclaim her name and her reputation. If she can do as much justice to these albums as she did “1989,” I look forward to what is next as she closes out the re-recording process.
4.5/5
Taylor Swift's The Eras Tour - 8/9/23Courtesy of People
