Plumb - Beautiful History
Artist:
Title:
Beautiful History
Type:
Album
Released:
01 Apr 2011 (US), 03 Nov 2009 (UK)
LTTM Rating:
Your Rating:
Review
Confession: I used to be a Mariah Carey fan. Not just when I was young enough to get away with it. I bought the Always Be My Baby single on its release, when I was sixteen. This is terrible for my future career as a reviewer for cool music websites such as LTTM.
Worse: I didn't just buy the normal single - it was the one with 5 terrible remixes of the title track. This (and the love of Mariah) wasn't so much to do with music as my reaction to the pretty lady on...
Read More Confession: I used to be a Mariah Carey fan. Not just when I was young enough to get away with it. I bought the Always Be My Baby single on its release, when I was sixteen. This is terrible for my future career as a reviewer for cool music websites such as LTTM.
Worse: I didn't just buy the normal single - it was the one with 5 terrible remixes of the title track. This (and the love of Mariah) wasn't so much to do with music as my reaction to the pretty lady on the cover, wearing a tight, snakeskin top. Thankfully, it was when I got home and played the b-side remixes that I had an epiphany: some music is rubbish. My search for good music had begun.
However, it's also this early(ish) love of Mariah that I blame for my pickiness about female vocalists. Dolores O'Riordan (Cranberries) was in favour for a while, and similarly Florence And The Machine more recently. Cathy Burton has had a place in my collection since I saw her support Delirious? years ago. My Brightest Diamond has unbeatable power and beauty. Others have fallen by the wayside in this time.
I was introduced to Plumb years ago by a mate who was into Acid Jazz. This is weird, because Plumb is actually pop with a rock-tinge and a female vocalist who easily contends with the best. Plumb's (really a solo artist called Tiffany) voice is very intense. She has sweet vocal purity and range, with an ability to work inflections and nuances that convey profound depth and provoke interest.
She also happens to be an intense song writer, with some incredible pop lyrics. Damaged is a brooding track from the viewpoint of a sexually abused child - one of the most interesting and emotive songs I've ever heard. Cut deals with self harm with empathy, avoiding patronisation or indulgence. In My Arms is one of those very rare things: a worthwhile song about parenthood. The intense writing and vocals blend beautifully - listen to her sing the single line 'healing comes so painfully...' on Damaged and you'll begin to understand - she has the dangerous potential to stir the deepest emotions.
Unfortunately, problems have crept into this album. Firstly, some of these songs are neither intense or brooding - Blush is actually a bit boring. Secondly, this is a 'Hits Collection' - a collection of popular tracks that doesn't go anywhere in particular and represents a 'sell-able' Plumb, rather than the best of Plumb. And thirdly...
Thirdly, and most horribly, the bonus disc. This is where those b-sides from the Mariah Carey single come back to haunt me. This disc has eight tracks - all dance remixes of the songs on the main album. Reading the record company's sales pitch, there is talk of trance, of club tracks, of proper DJs. But no, these are pop songs with silly beats and funny, tweeky noises. There's even that weird sound like somebody playing a Casio keyboard underwater that was popular in early nineties rave.
Overall, this album is a great idea, containing some of the best song writing and pop vocals I know of. Sadly, it is badly spoiled by some very unwelcome ideas - but these can be largely neutralised by never, ever, ever playing that bonus disk.
Review by Jon Piper
LTTM Rating 4 out of 5 Stars
Standout tracks
Damaged
I Can't Do This
Beautiful History Articles
Plumb has released her new album 'Beautiful History: A Collection of Hits'. The 20 tracks, on two CDs, include some new songs and some previous songs remixed for the album. Plumb, a.k.a. Tiffany Arbuckle Lee, arrived on the music…
