Fearless CD

MUSIC

COUNTRY

WESTERN SWING

Song Listing

Disc 1

Song Title

1. Fearless ~ Taylor Swift

2. Fifteen ~ Taylor Swift

3. Love Story ~ Taylor Swift

4. Hey Stephen ~ Taylor Swift

5. White Horse ~ Taylor Swift

6. You Belong With Me ~ Taylor Swift

7. Breathe ~ Taylor Swift

8. Tell Me Why ~ Taylor Swift

9. You're Not Sorry ~ Taylor Swift

10. Way I Loved You, The ~ Taylor Swift

11. Forever & Always ~ Taylor Swift

12. Best Day, The ~ Taylor Swift

13. Change ~ Taylor Swift

"It's a big deal to title your album, so I wanted to make sure that it was the right call," says Swift. "I started thinking about the word 'fearless' and what it means to me. It isn't that you're completely unafraid. I think fearless is having fears, but jumping anyway."

Jump? With this record, Taylor Swift takes a flying leap. Fearless is a creative snapshot of an undeniable talent taking the next big step, both in her life and in her music. The high school freshman who once sang of "trying to find a place in this world" has now seen so much more of it. It shows in the new music.

"She's 18--wide-eyed, naive, hopeful--and that's how she sounds on Fearless, her superb new album. James Reed, Boston Globe
"She writes everything, and has a feel for timeless songwriting that means she can cover Eminem's 'Lose Yourself' live, and it works. Johnny Davis, Observer Music Monthly

Album Notes and Credits

Notes & Personnel Info
	Personnel: Taylor Swift (vocals, guitar); Nathan Chapman (acoustic guitar, electric guitar, mandolin, keyboards); Bryan Sutton (acoustic guitar, mandolin); Grant Mickelson, Kenny Greenberg (electric guitar); Ilya Toshinsky (banjo); Claire Indie (cello); Tony Harrell (piano, Hammond b-3 organ, keyboards); Tim Lauer (keyboards); Eric Darken (vibraphone); Tim Marks, Amos Heller (bass guitar).
	Audio Mixer: Justin Niebank.
	Arranger: Jonathan Yudkin.
	Taylor Swift abandons any pretense that she's a teen on her second album, FEARLESS--which isn't to say that she suddenly tarts herself up, running away from her youth in a manner that's all too familiar to many teen stars. Swift's maturation is deliberate and careful, styled after the crossover country-pop of Shania Twain and Faith Hill before they turned into divas. Despite the success of her self-titled 2006 debut, there's nothing at all diva-like about Swift on FEARLESS: she's soft-spoken and considerate, a big sister instead of a big star. Nowhere is this truer than on "Fifteen," a kind warning for a teen to watch her heart sung from the perspective of a woman who's perhaps twice that age--a sly trick for the 18-year-old Swift. There may be a hint of youthfulness to her singing but that's the only hint of girlishness here; her writing--and she had a hand in penning all 13 tracks here, with six of them bearing her solitary credit--is sharply, subtly crafted and the music is softly assured, never pushing its hooks too hard. Like many country-pop albums of the 2000s, the pop heavily outweighs the country--there aren't fiddles here, there are violins--yet the production never feels garish, a crass attempt at a crossover success. It's small-scale and sweetly tuneful, always seeming humble even when the power ballads build to a big close. Swift's gentle touch is as enduring as her songcraft, and this musical maturity may not quite jibe with her age but it does help make FEARLESS one of the best mainstream pop albums of 2008.
Producer: Taylor Swift; Nathan Chapman; Scott Borchetta
Engineer: Kyle Ford; Todd Tidwell; Kenzi Butler; Mark Petaccia; Kyle Ginther; Matt Legge; Chad Carlson

Entertainment Reviews

Taylor Swift - Fearless - CD Review

By: CallmeMaddy Blogcritics.org Reviews

Published on: 11/13/2008 1:34 PM

Taylor Swift’s newest album, Fearless, which came out Tuesday, is crushing all the charts. The eighteen-year-old singer/songwriter now has 13 of the Top 15 songs on iTunes’ Top Country Songs chart, including the entire Top 10. If that wasn’t enough, Taylor also has two songs in the Top 15 of Billboard’s all-genre Hot 100 singles chart, AND Fearless holds the #1 slot at the top of iTunes all-genre Top Albums. Taylor is the only female artist ever of the Billboard country chart to release five consecutive Top Ten singles from a debut album. If her songs get any hotter, people are going to start fainting. ...read the full review

Awards

CMA Awards (2009)
	Taylor Swift, Winner, Female Vocalist of the Year
	Taylor Swift, Winner, Entertainer of the Year
	Taylor Swift, Winner, Music Video of the Year
CMT Music (2009)
	Taylor Swift, Winner, Female Video of the Year
	Taylor Swift, Winner, Video of the Year
Academy of Country Music (2009)
	Taylor Swift: Fearless, Winner, Album of the Year
CMA Awards (2009)
	Taylor Swift: Fearless, Winner, Album of the Year
CMT Music (2008)
	Taylor Swift, Winner, Female Video of the Year
	Taylor Swift, Winner, Video of the Year
Academy of Country Music (2008)
	Taylor Swift, Winner, Top New Female Vocalist
CMT Music (2007)
	Taylor Swift, Winner, Breakthrough Video of the Year
CMA Awards (2007)
	Taylor Swift, Winner, Horizon Award

Compilation Appearances

	Now That's What I Call Music Vol 27
	Now That's What I Call Music Vol 28
	Now Country
	3D Concert Experience
	Radio Disney Jams 11
	Radio Disney Jams 11
	Now That's What I Call Music 30
	Super Hits 12
	Now That's What I Call Country Vol 2
	Love Drunk
	Now 32
	Valentine's Day (Original Soundtrack)
	Now 33
	2011 Grammy Nominees
	Now That?s What I Call Country 4
	2012 Grammy Nominees
	Strange Clouds (Explicit Version)
	Strange Clouds
	Hunger Games: Songs From District 12 and Beyond
	Hunger Games: Songs From District 12 And Beyond (Limited Edition)
	Now Country 5
	Two Lanes Of Freedom
	2013 Grammy Nominees
	Now 46
	Now Country 6
	Now That's What I Call Music 37
	Battle Studies

Associated Artists and Works

	Karaoke
	Speak Now: Taylor Swift Karaoke edition ~ Karaoke

Technical Info

	Release Date : 11/11/2008
	Original Release Date : 2008
	Catalog ID : BMRATS0200
	Label : Big Machine Records
	Number of Discs : 1
	Studio/Live : Studio
	Mono/Stereo : Stereo
	SPAR Code : n/a
	UPC : 00843930001378

Professional Reviews

Rolling Stone (p.90)
- 4 stars out of 5 -- "Swift is a songwriter savant with an intuitive gift for verse-chorus-bridge architecture..."

Rolling Stone (p.94)
- Ranked #39 in Rolling Stone's 50 Best Albums Of 2008 -- "Swift proves no one can match her ninjalike professionalism."

Entertainment Weekly (p.72)
- "Her supple, lightly twangy vocals fit the album's lilting melodies....It will be exciting to watch her precocious talent grow." -- Grade: B

Blender (Magazine)
(p.80)
- 4 stars out of 5 -- "[A]ll over her fantastic second album, the country phenom gets bedeviled by the boyfolk, making the thrills and spills of a two-week teen romance sound as torchy as one of Patsy Cline's marriages."

All Music Guide 8 of 10
Taylor Swift abandons any pretense that she's a teen on her second album, Fearless -- which isn't to say that she suddenly tarts herself up, running away from her youth in a manner that's all too familiar to many teen stars. Swift's maturation is deliberate and careful, styled after the crossover country-pop of Shania Twain and Faith Hill before they turned into divas. Despite the success of her self-titled 2006 debut, there's nothing at all diva-like about Swift on 2008's Fearless: she's soft-spoken and considerate, a big sister instead of a big star. Nowhere is this truer than on "Fifteen," a kind warning for a teen to watch her heart sung from the perspective of a woman who's perhaps twice that age -- a sly trick for the 18-year-old Swift. There may be a hint of youthfulness to her singing but that's the only hint of girlishness here; her writing -- and she had a hand in penning all 13 tracks here, with six of them bearing her solitary credit -- is sharply, subtly crafted and the music is softly assured, never pushing its hooks too hard and settling into a warm bed of guitars and keyboards. Like many country-pop albums of the 2000s, the pop heavily outweighs the country -- there aren't fiddles here, there are violins -- yet Fearless never feels garish, a crass attempt at a crossover success. It's small-scale and sweetly tuneful, always seeming humble even when the power ballads build to a big close. Swift's gentle touch is as enduring as her songcraft, and this musical maturity may not quite jibe with her age but it does help make Fearless one of the best mainstream pop albums of 2008. - Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Bio

Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift became one of country-pop's brightest (and youngest) faces in 2006, when the 16-year-old vocalist released her first album. Although new to the American public, Swift had been performing since early childhood, taking inspiration and encouragement from her opera-singing grandmother. She sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" before a Philadelphia 76ers game at the age of 11; the following year, she began practicing her guitar skills for several hours each day, only stopping when her fingers began to bleed. Swift's parents realized their child's dedication and began making regular visits to Nashville, TN, where Swift would perform casually and meet with songwriters in the area. The family then decided to move from their native Pennsylvania to an outlying Nashville suburb, which accelerated Swift's career.

While performing at the intimate Bluebird Cafe in Nashville, Swift caught the eye of music industry veteran Scott Borchetta, who signed her to his newly formed label. Swift joined the roster at Big Machine Records and released her debut single, "Tim McGraw," in August 2006. The song drew upon her experience as a lovelorn high-school student, a theme that Swift revisited throughout her self-titled debut album. Released in late 2008, Taylor Swift catapulted the young songwriter to stardom, spawning a handful of hits (five consecutive Top Ten singles, a new record for a female solo artist) while earning multi-platinum sales. Swift also received a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist, an award she ultimately lost to Amy Winehouse. Two subsequent EPs -- Sounds of the Season: The Taylor Swift Holiday Collection and Beautiful Eyes -- helped maintain Swift's popularity while whetting public demand for her sophomore release, Fearless, which arrived in November 2008.

BloomReach Content

Fearless (2008) - Grammy Winner - Album of the Year

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