Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Adele transcends her previous albums and holds true to her incredible talent. After waiting 4 ½ years for a follow up to her sophomore album we finally get to hear what she’s had in store for us and the wait is well worth it. Her heart has mended and has grown even larger with the addition to her family. You can feel the love in her songs. I read in her Rolling Stone interview that she wrote a bunch of ‘motherly’ songs that but they dumped them, even so, you c an tell that there was something amazing Adele went through since her last album (even if the songs aren’t ‘motherly’). There are 11 gorgeous songs on this album and as fabulous as each song is on its own they form a really cohesive album. Here is my breakdown of the individual songs: 1. Hello: This song is her first release and it was just what we needed to get our toes wet again with the lovely sound of Adele. I’ve listened to this a thousand times (pun intended) and it feels to me that she is trying to ring up her old self to let her know that’s its all good. Life has moved on from the old flame and she is fine. She has risen above the heartbreak. 2. Send My Love (to your new lover): This starts with a lovely bit of just guitar and Adele with some beautiful humming then it moves on becomes really catchy, like really catchy. It kind of reminds me a bit of a couple of Lily Allen’s songs. Fun, upbeat and you just want to bounce a bit and sing along. This will be a big hit for the youtube car sing-alongs. I found myself snapping my fingers to this a lot. She’s telling her ex to send some love to his new lover and telling him to treat his new lover better. 3. I Miss You: This has an incredible drum beat that makes me wanna break into some modern dance. I hear a liitle Sia & Florence and the Machine in there but that’s my opinion. This is the one you are going to turn up the radio on and just dance around the house. 4. When We Were Young: I just love this song, the video was released a few days ago and it is so sublime. The way she can lower her voice and sound so freaking sexy and then hit that amazing high note at 3:49 just blows me away. This song is just so sweet and the lyrics are magical. I think it brings back a lot of memories for anyone who had some great moments when they were younger and love looking back on our youth with fondness for our past. I just can’t stop singing, “It was just like a movie, it was just like a song. My God this reminds me of when we were young. Let me photograph you in this light in case it is the last time.” I’m not sure who wrote that line (I’m hoping Adele did) because it is stunning. 5. Remedy: This one brings in a piano at the start and has some lovely lyrics. “When your heart makes you feel like a fool I promise you will see that I will be, I will be a remedy. “ It is about how our hearts will break and we will feel awful but she will be there to help when the pain cuts too deep and the night keeps you from sleeping. It is a lovely ballad. She has a lovely humming bit towards the end that was just so light. 6. Water Under the Bridge: This is a really fun upbeat song that makes you wanna stand on the edge of a tall building and sing it to the city. It is about love, breaking up, and the water under the bridge. The backup vocals are spot-on. The beat will make you think you are a bit of drummer and you’ll be tapping to it through the entire song. 7. River Lea: This is a song that makes me feel she opened up her heart and soul and I almost felt like I saw something that I had no right seeing. Like when you walk in on a conversation between 2 people and you heard personal things. It was beautiful and brings a tear to my eye each time I hear it. Just some lovely vocals on this on. It is a hauntingly beautiful song. 8. Love in the Dark: This is what will remind you most of the Adele everyone fell in love with years and years ago. Very strong vocals and a ravishing ballad. This will have more covers than you can ever watch on Youtube (my two cents.) 9. Million Years Ago: This is like listening to Mariah’s ‘My All’ they both make me feel like I’m listening to a beautiful performer at a small café that has more talent than they know what to do but they just like the simple life and pour their hearts into this song. I’ve always loved ‘My All’ but now I feel Adele has taken over with this one. It is eerily angelic. She talks about the things she misses from a million years ago. 10. All I Ask: This is Adele. I feel some 60’s and 70’s pop love song and a bit of country influence on this. That doesn’t make it sound as inviting as I wished. Because this is a lovely song. She hits some marvelous notes and once again you want to learn the lyrics as soon as you can so you can sing along. I feel that she really did some amazing vocal calisthenics that I’m not used to with her but I love it. I heard from a friend she wrote this with Bruno Mars and that makes sense if you know that and listen to the song again. The lyrics talk about how to end a relationship because it matters because if it is ended wrong, what if she is never able to love again? Pretty heartbreaking. 11. Sweetest Devotion: The intro and outro has a little child that you can hear a bit and in my mind it is her son, Angelo (I’m not sure it is him.) This song is one of my favorites in this album, you just hear that voice and want to stop everything and sing. I heard a few days ago that there was a song she wrote for her boyfriend, Simon, and I can only think this must be it. It is so sweet and adorable. I won’t try and explain it, you are on your own with this song. I hope you love it as much as I do. My top 5 are (in no particular order): Send my Love, I Miss You, When We Were Young, Million Years Ago & Sweetest Devotion Obviously I haven’t a bad thing to say about this album. I’ve never written such a long review on an album. But I’ve been dying to hear her new album and was so excited to get my mitts on it. If you had any doubt that she couldn’t pull it off again, just put them away because she shines. I felt heartbroken after listening to her album, 21 the first few times. It truly drained me but this album makes me think that Adele is happy. Sure there are some songs that pull at my heartstrings but I feel happy after each album repeat. She has the world in her hands and she’s not gonna let go for a while and I’m quite fine with that.