Track Listing

1. Fear
2. Drink to Get Drunk
3. Taken for Granted
4. Blow It All Away
5. Get Me
6. I'm Not Important to You
7. Sober and Unkissed
8. Healing Is Difficult
9. Judge Me
10. Little Man
11. Insidiously

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #29926 in Music
• Released on: 2004-01-26
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Explicit Lyrics, Extra tracks, Import
• Dimensions: .21 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
Australia is not known as the home of genre defining R&B artists. Which is probably why Australian born Sia (pronounced See-ah) has managed, in her debut album Healing Is Difficult, to avoid all the usual cliché's, generic soul diva hang-ups and slickly sanitised production, and come up with the most imaginative set of tunes since Lauryn Hill's Miseducation. Not that she sounds anything like Hill, but her melding of hip-hop beats, stripped down funk grooves and enchanting melodies is just as sublime. Her captivating and quirky voice aside, Sia's natural talent lies in her flea market, mix and match attitude; marrying the rootsy beats; and jazz grooves that underpin tracks with things that shouldn't fit--Branford Marsalis styled soprano sax flurries ("Drink to Get Drunk"), the majestic orchestral march of Prokofiev's Romeo & Juliet ("Single Taken For Granted") and lilting reggae/dub grooves ("Get Me", "Insidiously" and "Fear"). Over these stray sounds she slides her supremely sexy vocals, reeling off shopping lists of emotions, fears and relationships that are as humorous as they are touching, as childish as they are wise and as innocent as they are darkly twisted. It's a bizarrely brilliant mix--from a bizarrely brilliant imagination--that puts Sia and her inspired debut in an R&B class of its own. --Dan Gennoe

Customer Reviews

Stepping away from the Mellowness
For most people Sia Furler's unique voice is associated with Zero 7's 2001 chillout album, 'Simple Things'. However, 'Healing is Difficult' sees her delve into her soul/funk /R&B influences to great effect. If you're expecting this to be a similar dose of Zero 7-esque tunes, you couldn't be further from the truth.

What strikes you is Sia's almost autobiographical content to her lyrics. The quirky opening track, 'Fear', intros with a young boy talking about what he believes fear is, only to be followed by Sia singing about the fears of her friends and family, including herself ("Sometimes I worry my boyfriend will die, my first love is already dead"). This is an artist who is not afraid to open herself up to the listener and experiment lyrically.

The most recognisable track on the album is 'Taken For Granted'. It begins with Prokofiev's grandiose 'Romeo and Juliet Ballet, Op. 64: Montagues and Capulets', until a steady 4/4 drum rhythm comes in and Sia's vocals transform it into something of classical beauty and modern anguish. It clearly shows the power behind this woman's voice and the dynamics she is capable of producing. She expresses similar sentiments in 'Sober and Unkissed' (track 7) as well.

But what is it that makes Sia stand out from the rest of the crowd?

For one, her harmonies. They seem to range from one end of the spectrum to the other. In certain pieces she can be quite "conventional" (as in 'Blow it all Away'), where they fit together in pleasant sounding chords. On the other hand, she's equally capable of pushing out those boundaries and putting together almost discordant jazz harmonies, as heard in the title track. No one of them is better than the other, but all contribute to an album that refuses to be placed alongside others of the same genre. It needs to be said though that if you're not used to hearing such changes in harmony, it can be quite distracting.

This is not your average sounding funk album. Indeed, in a musical world where a lot of new R&B releases seem to have the same feel, Sia screams above the rest. The fact that there is so much energy in her music makes for a very refreshing listen, with many aspects of it to keep you coming back for more.

Healing may be difficult for Sia, but her music certainly brings out the best and most interesting in R&B. This is honest music and deserves to be listened to.

Incredible
What a breath of fresh air, this album is a powerful, haunting, involving piece of work, it oozes with innocence and honesty and simply defies all types of categorization. I fell in love with this album and artist from first listen and i challenge anyone to disagree with me........no?....well i thought not
buy it, listen to it, get involved with it, and tell all about it
in a word marvellous

Sublime vocals from a truly talented singer-songwriter
Maybe I'm getting old, but talentless peroxide blonde Californian teenagers in school uniforms aren't my idea of what music is about. The sublime vocals of Sia are like a breath of fresh air in the post-MTV world of popular music. Calling this an R'n'B album is far too narrow a definition. The variety of sounds and styles that her voice lends itself to, further underlines what a special talent this woman is. I've introduced a variety of people to this album, and they've all been blown away. A star in the making? I certainly hope so.