A Short Tori Amos Discography - With (approximate;-D) "So Sure" Ratings
• "Y Kant Tori Read" (1988) 5.5/10
Tori's debut as a "rock chick" with an unconvincing, too enphatic pop-dance record with the band Y Kant Tori Read. But the seeds of a great talent were already in there... Best songs: Cool On Your Island, Etienne Trilogy, Floating City, Fire On The Side, On the Boundary
• "Little Earthquakes" (1992) 9.5/10
Tori's solo debut with a striking collection of intimate, psychanalitic, confessional songs: surprisingly realistic, raw, poetical and tender at the same time... rebellion and sacrifice meet passion and sensitiveness through an uncommon voice and an amazing piano playing
• "Under the Pink" (1994) 9/10
The "natural son" of the "Little Earthquakes" is an eccentric, complex collection filled with metaphors and suggestive simbols about female rivalty, personal failure, emotional loss, religious oppression, masturbation, broken love stories and friendships, hope, empathy and affection
• "Boys for Pele" (1996) 8.5/10
Maybe her most challenging work ever, with essential, experimental arrangement and cryptic, obscure lyrics that lead the listener through a knee-descent voyage to the darkest side of the unconscious... and the most fascinating sides of human nature. Dreamy, weird and releasing
• "From the Choigirl Hotel" (1998) 9/10
Under the fascination of rock and electronics, Tori discovers the love for rhyhtm, for life and the life force. More straight and personal lyrics tell about loss, guilt, anger, abuses, refusal and self-accusation, but also about love, marriage, empathy and trust. Her voice is even more appealing and multilayered. Moving and passionate, it's one of her most inspired and well-balanced work ever... A "missed" masterpiece leaving something hidden and something unsaid
• "To Venus and Back" (1999) 7.5/10
TVAB is a 2 cd set. The first cd, "Venus Orbiting", is a studio album with 11 essential, elegant, minimal songs filled with electronic effects, extravagant lyrics and "harder" arrangements, ruled by the synths and her siren-like voice. Not entirely convincing, sometimes a little disappointing, the cd is still enjoyable and interesting, with a much more relaxed and optimistic atmosphere.
The second cd, "Venus live, still Orbiting", contains 13 live tracks recorded during the Plugged Tour '98 and some of her best live performances ever, ranging from material she wrote in the eighties to recent b-sides, rarities and new versions of old hits. A very precious recording
• "Strange Little Girls" (2001) 7/10
A cover album containg 12 songs written by male artists "masters of the words", all re-interpreted by Tori in a very original and personal way, ranging from Velvet Undergoround, Stranglers, Boomtown Rats, Joe Jackson, Tom Waits, Neil Young to Eminem, Depeche Mode, Slayers, 10cc, Lloyd Cole and The Beatles. She reinvents herself, too, and gives 13 female different characters their own voice. A little unconvincing, maybe a bit disappointing in some passages, yet a brave and interesting experiment, also featuring the piano Rhodes and softer keyoboard arrangements
• "Scarlet's Walk" (2002) 7/10
Conceived as a "road trip" from the West Coast to the East Coast of her alter-ego, Scarlet, the record was partly inspired by the stories told by Tori's Cherokee mother and grandfather and partly by the crisis of identity in contemporary America. "Scarlet's Walk" - containing 18 new tracks populated by a cast of sometimes desperate, fascinating characters - is a voyage of self-discovery but also an insight in the contradictions and obscure sides that hide behind the "American dream". Once again the audience split up, considering it nor her masterpiece and best work ever or a disappointing, not entirely inspired collection. The sound is refined and a little bit more "catchy" than before, but Tori also experiments with jazz and funky rhyhtms (Wednesday, Don't Make Me Come To Vegas). The cd is really rich in symbolism, allegory and formally perfect, sometimes recalling past albums like "Little Earthquakes" or the sonic choices of "Strange Little Girls". "Scarlet's Walk" shows a little lack of inspiration here and there, but also features some of her best songs ever (Carbon, A Sorta Fairytale, Gold Dust, Taxi Ride, I Can't See New York, Wednesday, Scarlet's Walk, Your Cloud, Pancake)
• Tales of a Librarian (2003) 8/10
The long awaited "best of" contains 20 re-mastered songs recalling the most meaningful and beautiful moments of her career from about 1992 to 2002. Two b-sides ("Mary" and "Sweet Dreams") were entirely re-recordered and all songs modified in the sound or in some other effects (background vocals, additional instruments, arrangements, etc.) and there are two previously unreleased tracks ("Angels" and the lovely "Snow Cherries From France"). The sound is much improved and clearer in old hits such Silent All These Years, Mr Zebra, Cornflake Girl, God, Me And A Gun, Precious Things, the Arman van Helden remix of Professional Widow, Bliss and "hidden treasures" such as Baker Baker, Tear In Your Hand, Playboy Mommy. Lot of songs (especially from "Boys For Pele") were left behind, some re-arrangements may sound a little strange to old EWF:-), some keep loving old versions better and regretting lots of more meaningful but still left behind songs. The special edition of the cd includes a dvd with photos, live songs and a soundcheck performance
• Welcome to Sunny Florida (2004) 8.5/10
An exclusive BOX SET including a DVD with the last live performance of the "Scarlet's Walk" Tour which ended on September, 2003 in Florida, plus a bonus CD featuring the "Scarlet's hidden treasures", five of her best unreleased songs ever.
Although the dvd may be slightly disappointing sometimes (Tori was really, really tired after her successful one-year tour with the band), her live performace contains lots of beautiful songs, impro and rarities, too.
The CD was really successful among Ears With Feet. It contains five new songs: the amazing Ruby Through The Looking-Glass and Apollo's Frock (her unique piano and vocal style recalls the past atmosphere of "Under the Pink" and "Boys for Pele", with a new maturity and awareness), plus the lullaby-like Indian Summer (a second, more tender chapter about female masturbation after Icicle of 1994), the solemn Seaside (inspired by her daughter Natashya and by contemporary war issues), and the exotic, 007-like Bug a Martini.
• The Beekeeper (2005) 8.5/10
19 new songs about Genesis, the Tree of Knowledge, Life, Death (symbolized by the figure of the Beekeeper), and betrayal (maybe the main theme of the album) with a softer, refined sound including vintage keyboards, gospel choirs and the Hammond organ along with her Bosendorfer. Again Ears With Feet had very different opinions about the album: some of them didn't like the more serene and relaxed atmosphere of the happier 43-year-old mother and wife too much, regretting the former "cornflake girl" with her shocking confessions about unrequited love, youth traumas, sex and religion; others have appreciated her new maturity along with metaphorical, inspired and straightforward lyrics, givin' birth to charming songs with sensual, tender vocals and many sonic twists. To the "So Sure" staff, this cd is highly recommended!:-) Just listen to the solemn Parasol, Original Sinsuality and Mother Revolution, The Beekeeper (devoted to her mother when she was sick), the sexy Sweet the Sting, the beautiful Power of Orange Knickers (with Irish songwriter Damien Rice) and Toast (a touching goodbye to her deceased brother, Michael), the eccentric, funny Hoochie Woman and Witness, the loving Goodbye to Pisces and Martha's Foolish Ginger, the largely praised Barons of Suburbia and the bitter-sweet Jamaica Inn.[Modificato da +Raffa+ 03/03/2006 22.16]