Product Description

There's nothing particularly fancy about Tracy Chapman's particular brand of folk-rock; she just blends the folk into the rock more appealingly than most anyone out there. Her music has enough verve to have vaulted her out of obscurity twice. Her fifth jaunt, TELLING STORIES, continues her charmingconsistency with an alluring set of picture-perfect tunes.
The bouncy title track opens the album with a clever circular play on a deceptively simple line, "there's a fiction in the space between.".., which makes it clear from the startthat Tracy remembers the value of a good pop song. Good popsongs abound on TELLING STORIES, from the country-rock of "Less Than Strangers" to the singer-songwriter folk of "Unsung Psalm" to the upbeat dance of "It's OK". Between her acclaimed debut and TELLING STORIES, very little about Chapman has changed, which is both comforting and good, the world needs good, well-meaning folk-pop songwriters and good, well-meaning folk-pop songs.

Track Listing

1. Telling Stories
2. Less Than Strangers
3. Speak The Word
4. It's OK
5. Wedding Song
6. Unsung Psalm
7. Nothing Yet
8. Paper And Ink
9. Devotion
10. Only One
11. First Try

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #36937 in Music
• Released on: 2000-02-14
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Enhanced

Amazon.co.uk Review
Telling Stories is Chapman's first album in over four years. With this collection she has gone back to the spare, unsentimental feel of her early work, recapturing some of the urgency and simple melody lines that made her 1988 self-titled debut such a classic. There's maturity here, and strong sense of spiritual metaphor. On "Unsung Psalm", for instance, she imagines her funeral, singing: "I'd have a halo and flowing white robes / If I live right", while "Wedding Song" has the devotional line: "I reach out for your hand / For you I'd don a veil". The musical arrangements, too, are pared-down, with ghostly bluegrass banjo, silvery fiddle and guitar woven into subtle drum loops. Though not as immediate as her debut, it's Chapman's most focused work in a long time. --Lucy O'Brien

Customer Reviews

Best album by Tracy!
There are five tracks (1, 3, 4, 5 & 11) on this CD that deserve to be on a Tracy best of collection. That is enough to make this her best CD. The grade would have been a perfect 5 unless the other songs were good rather than average. For sure she hasn't made anything better after this CD.

Stories Of Love And Life
Obviously Tracy Chapman has been a name practically everybody on the planet knows if not they know and love her song 'Fast Car' from way back in 1988. 'Telling Stories' Chapman's fifth album is probably one of if not my favourite album of hers. I came across it by sheer accident i lent a CD to my older cousin and when i got it back this CD was in the case of the other (Smashing Pumpkin's Gish to be precise), I thought 'cool lets give it ago' i was blown away i ended up listening to it the whole night and ended up buying it a couple days later, I love this CD.

1.Telling Stories - Basically the song is about people lying about themselves to make them seem more interesting and appealing to others.Also the song could be about the affair Tracy had with acclaimed author Alice Walker back in the ninties i guess it wasn't a good break up then Tracy!
A brillantly written song which is one of my favourites 10/10

2.Less Than Strangers - One song that i personally identify with. She does a great job of expressing what it feels like to come face to face with an ex-lover; the kind of wistful awkardness that arises when you realize that you cannot even say hello to someone who you used to be able to share the most intimate of conversations with a beautifully sad song in the sense that it just goes to show you how much you can share with someone in the blink of an eye be nothing at all great song writing yet again, maybe another one about Alice Walker! 10/10

3.Speak The Word - I love the way her vocals are on this one, one of the sub-topics on this album is obviously love and this one is a clear indication of that.In this song we see Tracy trying to get people to feel and share this word 'love' as in the world there never seems to be enough of it almost like a gospel song just 'speak the word' and maybe it will come to you dont be afraid. 9/10

4.It's OK - Now this song is interesting it has of a baseline that most of her songs with a hip-hop beat.The song is about loving someone so much that their flaws don't phase you at all as alot of relationships take alot of work because both parties are different somethings are harder to tolerate than others so you 'keep the walls from falling down' for the love you have for that people and 'its OK' to be you 10/10

5.Wedding Song - Now since i've had this album this one the song that stuck out prominantly.The contents of the song is in the title really about giving yourself to someone who you love. The song is just so touching i love the melody,the lyrics,the vocal arrangements everything it's just one of the most perfect songs i've ever heard and you might think thats drastic but this song just spoke to me in others haven't it's my favourite song on the album and probably my favourite of her whole career. 10/10

6.Unsung Psalm - As well as love the other sub-topic is religion, almost like 'Wedding Song Part II'. I love the imagery she conjures up by the words she sings in the sense that it seems to me that she wants to be a pastor and like giving yourself to god, as i'm not a christian it doesn't really touch me in that way but i do love the song it's a nice down tempo ballad, almost heartwrenching it put me in the mind of an Anthony Hamilton song called 'Pass Me Over' which is of a similar subject (he could have been inspired, doubt it though) great song 9/10

7.Nothing Yet - I have to admit as much as i was touched and inspired but the whole album in general i'm not overly keen on this one.It has a sharp guitar riff, with a somewhat political mindset,I just got the feeling it was about city life in one way or another and how we treat others if u think it's bad now, 'you aint seen nothing yet' i like the lyrics it makes you think about society and your own situation but I felt it was a tad too long 7/10

8.Paper And Ink - A clear favourite of min, She sings about how material possession arent really that important and that money is only paper and ink,I do love the song alot but i thought that Tracy must be a bit disillusioned if she thinks that money isnt everything because truth be told it is, weither we like it or not which is a sad thing to comprehend but it's true
but in an ideal world i guess it would only be 'paper and ink' 10/10

9.Devotion - Another religious flavoured song, also very short too the lyrics are pretty straight forward i got the impression she was saying that if your devoted to your word then you'll go far, whatever kind of problems you have if you have the faith in yourself that you can stop your wrong doings then it will happen 6/10

10.The Only One - I really like this song it features background vocals from one of my favourite ladies Emmylou Harris,a nice laid back country-feel song. The song itself seems like a death of a loved one abeit a mother of sister..etc
i love the lyric "does heaven have enough/angels yet" i thought that was very sweet. Tracy and Emmylou work very well together they both have that distinct voice that just sounds beautiful (kinda like when Emmylou sang with Beth Orton)
great song to wind the album down. 9/10

11.First Try - This is another one like Wedding Song that i fell in love with, now with this song i felt that it could convey alot of different things but I felt that this could be about sexuality, especially with the lyric "Can't learn to except that its alright" i just started to think maybe this is another one about Alice Walker now as Tracy doesn't really talk about her personal life i don't know if shes ever been with men but if she has then this would be about either first try with a male or with a female i like the mystery the song holds and the jangly guitar riff gives it a mellow but sombre feel to it and the vocals are near to flawless definately favourite 10/10

Top 5
1.Wedding Song
2.First Try
3.Telling Stories
4.It's OK
5.Less Than Strangers

Shes one of the most iconic singer songwriters of the 80's/90's and she still one of my favourite and this album also falls under that catagory.

Tracy Chapman meets drum loops in the 21st Century
Remember all of those acoustic tracks from her debut album, the near perfect production, clean and detailed recordings of heart felt songs....

Well Tracy has returned, after quite some time away, and she's still overflowing with the meaning of life experience, still producing music that demands to be listened to, but she's discovered some digital technology along the way.

No problem with that, the sample loops blend effortlessly into the soulful lyrics and spacious mixes.

The CD has been mastered as an HDCD, and it shows.

Buy this album if you love the Tracy Chapman of the 20th Century, or you love quality singer songwriters, or you just love beautifully produced CDs that make your hi-fi sound gorgeous.