And, of course, the other notable solo feat is "Our Song," marrying a whimsical fiddle with a full-circle story of a good girl's heart won through small rebellions and romantic gestures: whispering on the phone, sneaking kisses through screen doors. All necessary praise aside, one of the great joys of tracing Taylor Swift's arc is seeing her sound bleed across genres, from country and pop to (half-baked) hip-hop and folk and back. "'Fearless' may have established her as a capable teenage singer-songwriter, but 'Red' is the album that solidified her confidence, sexuality, and identity as a bonafide force to be reckoned with," English wrote. It made sense then for this, her second studio album, which won her four Grammys including Album of the Year, to be the first altar in the "Taylor's Version" re-recording saga. She's endlessly accessible, easy to understand even in her later, more cryptic works, yet her songwriting is also a blank space (*cue pen-click*) ripe for filling in your personal memories and private associations. Marjorie is a tear-jerking tribute to her late grandmother and Justin Vernon-duet Evermore is a euphoric beacon of hope that feels especially poignant at the end of 2020. Acoustic guitars, violins, and banjos enjoy free reign, dancing across tales of childhood friends destined for sparks, short-lived summer love, and backroad rendezvous. These are songs that beckon celebration, hands raised over heads in secular worship of a 20-something's innate need to romanticize their life visions of nice dresses and sunsets, the epicenter of the world awaiting your arrival, hope that your beauty and grace will never fade. But what's never changed is Taylor's enchanting ability to translate a memory whether charmed or trying into a moment that feels like yours. Ranking all 129 of Taylor Swift's songs (from "Tim McGraw" to the 'Reputation' era, Rob Sheffield writes, "the weirdest and most fascinating thing about Taylor Swift will always . It's a melancholy that allows you to wallow on the condition of looking forward after the fact, holding nothing back as you let everything go. In short, her seventh LP suffers from the common complaint waged even by adamant fans: when Taylor is good, she's great, and when she's not, well she's forgettable. On Thursday at midnight, Taylor Swift dropped her 10th studio album, "Midnights." And we'd be remiss not to highlight the otherwise overlooked single "Today was a Fairytale" that is just as fantastical and hooky as Fearless' trademark tracks, but was unjustly tacked onto the soundtrack for the unfortunate 2010 film Valentine's Day (wherein Taylor made her acting debut as a kissing partner for then-boyfriend Taylor Lautner). Only vault songs are included. And on this album, in particular, the stories she tells are about how her narrators choices impact others, often in ways that cause irreparable harm. folklore in comparison merely flirts along the edges of pop mantras on songs like "the last great american dynasty" and the deeply affecting "mirrorball," while veering straight into indie-folk influence on "illicit affairs" and the finger-plucked "invisible string," among others. If you have a hard time taking a side, you can either click "I Like Both" or "No Opinion," though the catch is that the process might take longer. It's synth-pop with depth energetic beats with lyrics that linger in your mind and soul-baring moments softened with catchy choruses ("It's me, hi / I'm the problem, it's me"). Theres a Bon Iver collaboration, too: melancholy duet Exile, a slow-burning number which eventually erupts into chattering layered vocals and euphoric strings at the climax. In recent years, shes also become a music business game-changer: most notably for re-recording her first six albums in order to regain control of her masters, which has seen Swift release the Taylors Version of both Red and Fearless. "The 1" and "August" tied for the top spot. "Evermore" takes us deeper into the mystical music-writing forest established by "Folklore," but like many sequels, it doesn't resonate as powerfully as the original. It was all over the place, a fractured mosaic of feelings that somehow all fit together in the end. She's moved on, but she also wants us to know she's moved on. Its not just the shock drop that felt different, though, as musically it saw Swift dive head-first into a new sonic palette of wistful indie-folk. ", Big Machine/Republic Records/Republic Records/Big Machine. But her mounting success undoubtedly stands on the shoulders of Speak Now's case studies of condensing complex inner dilemmas seeing your parents' failed marriage as a prophecy, wishing you'd never grown up into an album still adorned with hope. Midnight's answer: she's still soaring. Offers may be subject to change without notice. But "Folklore" has a laid-back vibe that reflects the spontaneity of how this album was created. Keefe, Nearly every track on Swifts sophomore effort, Fearless, builds to a massive pop hook. There were TikTok teasers to reveal the track titles, but beyond that fans weren't given many clues about what to expect from the album. "Red" and "Lover" remain in the middle of the pack. On Red (Taylors Version), we got the spellbinding 10-minute version of the song, an epic rendition that cements the tunes place as a songwriting triumph. Theres a free-wheeling, carefree attitude to the collection. It's humbling to hear a decades-defining artist at the absolute top of her career sing confessionals about self-loathing ("I'll stare directly at the sun but never in the mirror") and toxic longing ("I hosted parties and starved my body / Like I'd be saved with a perfect kiss") with less inhibition than ever before. I don't love the way the writer described some of the albums (saying Taylor sounds like a stay at home mom? After embracing folk-flecked sounds on sister albums Folklore and Evermore, for Midnights Swift instead turns to bubbling synths and percussive beats, this sleek production run under the artists late night musings. The albums standout tracks retain the narrative detail and clever metaphor-building that distinguished Swifts early songs, even amid the diversions wrought by the aggressive studio production on display throughout. Modify tier labels, colors or position through the action bar on the right. While she had flirted with a transition from country in Red two years prior, 1989 came full throttle with heightened production from soon-to-be mainstay producer Jack Antonoff (of Fun. Its a brilliantly honest moment, taken from Swifts most mature album yet. This only further proves that "Reputation" is a prime example that Swift can experiment with a variety of genres and still create magic. When "Midnights" was first announced, Swift described it as "the stories of 13 sleepless nights scattered throughout my life" and invited fans to meet her at midnight the night the album dropped. Its admirable that she tries to incorporate more sophisticated elements into a few of the songs here, but dancing with or kissing someone in the rain is a default image that crops up with nearly the same distracting frequency as references to princesses, angels, and fairy tales. " Bad Blood . Following on from the release of Swift's 10th album 'Midnights', let's take a trip down memory lane and take stock of the superstar's career so far. 40 "Should've Said No" Swift's uptempo. Taylor is again musically faithful to the source material she spawned, honoring her then 22-year-old self by jeering and tearing up right on que, though this time with an inherent air of maturity. And as critic Chris Willman wrote for The Hollywood Reporter in 2010, "Speak Now" saw Swift's music style mature while still keeping elements of her youth that her fans so adored in her previous two albums. document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id", "ae642da28755683afdf2ec0fe06ed858" );document.getElementById("facec42938").setAttribute( "id", "comment" ); Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. How do you follow-up Reputation, a revenge album filled with vengeance? Swift closes the non-deluxe edition of "1989" with "Clean," which adheres to the pop theme but is more low-key and showcases the heartfelt, haunting songwriting she's known for: "The drought was the very worst / When the flowers that we'd grown together died of thirst / It was months and months of back and forth / You're still all over me like a wine-stained dress I can't wear anymore.". Swift certainly has an . For the album ranking, I considered a few factors including cohesiveness, listening experience, the number and quality of standout songs, and if the album is musically interesting or lyrically special. What makes Evermore an essential addition to her catalog is her willingness to tell others stories with the same insight and compassion with which shes always told her own. And that's really all Swift, whose genius for conversational melodies and knack for giving every chorus a telling new twist every time around remain unmistakable trademarks.". Song for song, the album finds Swift at a new peak in her command of language. Released in 2006, Swift's first studio album is so country that newer fans may barely recognize the songstress' sound considering she has experimented with a number of other genres since then. 1 as it best represents the evolution of Swift and her music. Note: If you make a mistake DO NOT click backspace unless you find extremely necessary. Meanwhile, "Fifteen" translates the same country sentiment into a contemplative portrait of girlhood, of trying to mentor yourself before you've even grown up ("When all you wanted was to be wanted / Wish you could go back and tell yourself what you know now"). These tales spin out like spools of fine gold, delicate in their delivery, eschewing catchy hooks to instead relish in simplicity. From the first track, you know this album isn't like what you've been hearing on the radio it opens with the synthetic beats and sounds of "Welcome to New York.". But past skeptics be damned, the album has stood the test of time, with many now backpedaling their initial criticisms to revel in her unabashed outbursts of rage and ecstasy and its thematic anchor of tender love and care. But none are more affecting than "champagne problems," a first-person post-mortem after rejecting a marriage proposal a classic "it's not you, it's me" scenario with simple piano chords accompanying the guilt of walking away and the peril of being mentally unwell ("'She would've made such a lovely bride' / 'What a shame she's fked in the head,' they said"). The album has been described as escapist, cottagecore-inspired, and was written and recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic. When you pose the question of why Taylor Swift is among the most distinguished artists in popular music, the strength of her narrative songwriting is among the best answers. How does Midnights compare to its worthy predecessors? But Midnights and its seven "3am" bonus tracks are still steeped in singularity, mostly due to its ultra-honest subject matter and intriguing concept parsed out with Taylor's expert execution. Taylor Swift's folklore rose from quiet shadows at the peak of isolation and uncertainty, written and produced in quarantine and released during the first COVID summer. But clearly, Taylor is capable of much more, and her nine subsequent albums are proof. First released in 2008, its original release won the Grammy for Album of the Year, and thirteen years later in 2021, Fearless (Taylors Version) became the first of Swifts re-recorded albums to drop. Keefe, In the run-up to the release of her sixth album, Reputation, Swift was excoriated by fans and foes alike for too often playing the victim. The album's opening, "Ready For It?," is an aptly-titled shockwave to the system compared to her previous work, abandoning instrumental lead-ins for a feel-it-in-your-bones bass machine accelerating into a rap? Now, without further ado, here's EW's ranking of Taylor Swift's seminal albums. Let's be clear: There are no bad Taylor Swift albums. It's no exaggeration, then, to say almost every emotion has been articulated by Taylor Swift at some point, whether in broad-stroke breakup anthems or close-to-the-chest confessionals. Taylor Swift surprise-released her eighth album "Folklore" on July 24, 2020. 1989. rep. Red. Though the album is gorgeously hooky as a whole, and overall perfect for belting in the car for a pick-me-up, it's not hard to imagine Katy Perry or even Demi Lavato as a stand-in singer for the LP's lowest moments. This is based on A. Report RESET RANKING RESET TEMPLATE SAVE/DOWNLOAD TIER LIST Template by lucy Though she was praised for her songwriting right out of the gate, what Swifts self-titled debut truly shows in hindsight is how diligently shes worked to hone her craft over the years. Listening to folklore then is like wiping the cuff of a cable knit on fogged glass to peer in on private moments. evermore - 85. evermore was Swift's ninth studio album. The worlds defining voice in music and pop culture: breaking whats new and whats next since 1952. Her earlier works' fanciful twang and youthful daydreams still linger on tracks "Speak Now" and "Mean," but where Fearless was purely starry-eyed, Speak Now instead wields a wonderstruck vernacular like a cherished childhood locket and scorches a hole in the heart-shaped photo. Back in 2006, a little-known country singer called Taylor Swift released her debut single Tim McGraw. Casting aside the usual lengthy album campaigns or meticulously planned drip-feeding of singles, T-Swiz uncharacteristically announced Folklore the day before it was released. Lists Evermore: Every Taylor Swift Album, Ranked According To Reddit Evermore: Every Taylor Swift Album, Ranked According To Reddit By Meah Peers Published Dec 12, 2020 With two new albums, Evermore and Folklore, released this year, how does Taylor Swift's new work compare to her classics? to ultimate effect (and influence to mega-fan Olivia Rodrigo's raucous debut). And on Midnights, Taylor turns to us, yet again. And a follow-up to 1989 would always have big shoes to fill but Reputation lacked the stone-cold smashers Swift has proven time and time again shes capable of. 'Red' is filled with top notch tunes: the brilliantly snarky 'We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together' (Swift's first ever Billboard 100 Number One) and fizzing '22' are stone-cold smashers. Taylor Swift's Track 5s, Ranked 9. Here are the 40 biggest Taylor Swift songs, based on actual performance on the weekly Billboard Hot 100 (through the chart dated December 17, 2022). What's likely the most famous track on this album, "Teardrops on My Guitar" is a textbook example of a popular Swift trope: a relatable song about a boy punctuated with clever lyrics. Red is filled with top notch tunes: the brilliantly snarky We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together (Swifts first ever Billboard 100 Number One) and fizzing 22 are stone-cold smashers. From Austin Butler and Cate Blanchett to a potential Best Supporting Actress toss-up, see who EW thinks will win at the 2023 Oscars. "Epiphany," track 13 on "Folklore," is written with Swift's grandfather in mind. Between those extremes is a reliable lineup of ultra-catchy mega-hits that infected the cultural consciousness through Top 40 countdowns and, later, TikTok videos. 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