Common Sense Note
Parents need to know that there's nothing offensive in this collection of sentimental love ballads.
Families can talk about what happens physically, emotionally, and mentally when people fall in love. Why does falling in love make people want to listen to sappy music? How does it make what you've heard thousands of times/ways sound new and fresh?
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Kathi Kamen Goldmark
On A THOUSAND DIFFERENT WAYS, Clay Aiken delivers covers of 14 romantic, sentimental, and mostly well-known love ballads. A CD like this requires a certain mood, as well as an absolute suspension of coolness. But Aiken does a beautiful job reinventing the love-ballad wheel.
For tweens in the throes of first love, Aiken's interpretations of songs made popular by Elton John ("Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word"), Bad English ("When I See You Smile"), Bryan Adams ("Everything I Do [I Do It for You]"), and Celine Dion ("Because You Loved Me") not only do justice to the material but often transcend the originals. He's a guy who seems to know what works -- and what his audience expects -- and plays it very safe in terms of content, style, and musicianship.
Are you a dreamy pre-adolescent fantasizing about your first future boyfriend? Aiken will say all the right things, always be adoring and faithful, and will never let you down. Are you a teenager in the throes of budding romance? Aiken will provide the soundtrack for that first, exquisite kiss. Parents of lovestruck kids have nothing to worry about in terms of lyrical content, which includes only the gentlest and subtlest innuendo.
If you are NOT in the required altered state of being in, or longing for, love, A Thousand Different Ways probably won't work for you. But for those who aren't afraid of sentiment, these are smooth, lovely offerings, sung with passion and integrity and produced with loving care. Leave your hip-hop attitude at the door, and enjoy the sentimental stylings of a talented musical interpreter.
Fans of this CD will also enjoy the original versions of the songs Aiken covers, especially ones by Celine Dion and Elton John, as well as Aiken's previous album, Measure of a Man.
Rate It!
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Sexual ContentOnly the subtlest of innuendo. |
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ViolenceClay's a lover, not a fighter. |
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Social BehaviorClay presents himself as a loyal, perfect boyfriend. |
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Drug/Alcohol/TobaccoLove is the only drug. |
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