Taylor Swift's "Speak Now" is the latest addition to the young country singer's discography. Released October 25, 2010, Speak Now is, according to Swift, a "concept album" with the overall theme being "things" that she should have said or wanted to say to different people in her life. In her sophomore album "Fearless", Swift already was said to be pulling away from her original country style, and "Speak Now" seems to have pulled even further away.
The album begins with the lead single "Mine", a story about a skeptical girl finding "true love" and keeping the love alive through hard times. The upbeat song has a catchy tune, and shows more maturity in Swift's lyrics.
Following "Mine" on the track list is "Sparks Fly". Sparks Fly had been performed by Swift live before it was even announced as one of the tracks, and certainly sticks out as one of the best tracks on this album. The lyrics tell of a girl who "sees sparks fly" every time her boyfriend smiles. Incredibly well-written and would do well if released as a single.
"Back to December" takes a different tone than the previous songs. A slow tempo, with the lyrics apologizing to a ex who the singer hurt the previous December. The tune connected with the lyrics make this one of the highlights of this album. "Speak Now", the title track (originally released as a promotional for the album), tells of a girl who's love is marrying another girl, to which the singer wants to object when the preacher says "speak now". A catchy tune, with irresistible accompaniment, but the words need a bit of polishing...
"Mean" is Taylor Swift's letter to all those who criticise her abilities. This piece is by far the closest to country as Swift comes on this album. The following track "The Story of Us" goes the other direction, removing almost every trace of Country influence. Telling of a love that's failed, and the two parties avoiding each other.
"Innocent" is Swift's reply to Kanye West after his actions during Taylor Swift's acceptance speech at the 2009 MTV VMA awards. First performed at the 2010 MTV VMA awards, this song is extremely well written in every way; and shows that Taylor Swift is willing to forgive even some of the worst grievances.
Speak Now was a success musically, and an enormous success comercially (over 1 million copies sold first week, and over 4 million copies sold over the following months). It shows a more mature Taylor Swift, and gives little to criticize.
