CD Review–I Stand

Last week I got a present in the mail. The One2One Network sent me my own copy of Idina Menzel’s CD to listen to, enjoy, and review.

I wanted to quickly pop it in and listen to it, and tried my computer first. Thanks to my son, my speakers were not hooked up, and not wanting to worry about wires and things, I went to go find another CD player that worked. Not an easy task. Really. I finally ended up in my daughter’s room playing this CD in her little boom box while I measured and taped in her room–kind of a prep for painting thing.

I was quickly impressed by Idina’s voice, and loved the first four songs.

**I stand- is a powerful song from a powerful woman. It’s got an inspirational message.

**Better to have loved- Also a great song. When my daughter was listening to it with me, I said, “do you know who this is singing this song?” She thought for a minute, and said, “Someone from wicked, I think.” She thought for a minute more and correctly identified that it was Elphaba. That’s what comes from listening to Wicked over and over on her mp3 player, I guess.

**Brave- By far my favorite song on the whole album. “I might be afraid but it’s my turn to be brave” is a great message, and a good reminder not to give up during hard times.

**Gorgeous- I’m all about the singing along to a song, and this one has a catchy chorus and is very fun to sing.

With her clear-cut voice and direct lyrics, Menzel really sounds like she’s singing truthfully. She’s got such an amazingly powerful voice, and could really sing just about anything. But I get tired of the same sound for the entire time. Maybe that’s why by the end of the CD I wasn’t as jazzed about the songs.

The last three songs on the CD seemed to be the edgy, downer songs. They seemed so angry and negative. While they may be great songs, I personally didn’t care for them. I need songs that are going to keep me upbeat and happy, not make me depressed.

Overall, I would give this album 3 1/2 out of 5 stars. It’s one I’m going to keep in the car and probably listen to quite often. If you are a fan of hers, you are going to want to check it out and take a listen.