Taylor Swift - “Should’ve Said No”

I am so over Taylor Swift- Her live performances ruined it for me

But..but..but…the stupendous eye makeup!!!!!

This is by far one of the weakest tracks on the record and a shocking end to her freshman series of singles. That’s all I can say about “Should’ve Said No” as the choice for what I assume is final single from this album.

I love Taylor, and I like this song alright, so obviously I disagree with your rating. However, I certainly see where you’re coming from, and I greatly respect your opinion. But there’s one thing I really don’t get. You say, “‘Should’ve Said No’ has me doubting that making music for middle schoolers is something that Taylor will ever outgrow.” As you yourself mentioned earlier in the review, this isn’t a new song. Yes, it’s newly-released as a single, but it was written and recorded at the same time as all of the other singles from this album. Expecting a progression over the course of singles from one album doesn’t make sense. It think it would be wise to reserve judgement until you’ve heard some of her new material. If you still feel the same way, so be it, but at least then she’s had a real chance to have grown.

C and Chris: I noted in the review that these songs were recorded at (roughly) the same time, so I’m not expecting them to show maturation. My point is that this song suggests that Swift only knows how to sing a song one way, and that way is not going to work for mature material. Of course, she could surprise me with some material on her next album (which will show maturation or lack thereof).

I think the whole reason her album clicked is that it isn’t “mature’ — it sounds like a 16-year-old (as she was at the time) singing about what it feels like to be 16, whereas most artists her age tend to sing about things they don’t understand yet and sound out of their depth. I just have the feeling that she’s going to know exactly how to transition artistically into adulthood. She’s a very smart cookie.

The maturation of singles from the same album argument threw me at first, as well, but I think she missed an opportunity to ease the transition into her second album here.

Matt mentioned that all the songs were recorded at the same time, but she did re-release the album late last year with a few new songs on it. The significance of that is that she could have included a song that was slightly more mature and showed vocal improvement as well. I’m not familiar with her album or the new material, but I’m assuming that at least one of the new songs could have achieved one or both of those goals. A better vocal could have silenced critics on that front and they could have gauged the response of the track to steer the direction of her next album and decided whether or not her fan base would go for a more mature Taylor Swift.

If they did go for it, then the first single from her next album could show a little more maturity and they wouldn’t have to worry about it tanking because the anticipation would be high for new material, otherwise, they’d know to release something more inline with what she has been doing.

Who knows what the future holds, but it seems like she could have done much more with this release.

Just a side note: As she mentions here, the “new” songs on the ‘Deluxe Edition’ were written when she was 15:

http://tinyurl.com/4omneh

I dunno, maintaining an “immature” flow to me doesn’t make sense. I’m not saying something had to stand in stark contrast to her old material to show maturity and just because she was younger, it doesn’t mean any of her material couldn’t be more mature. Ashley Monroe wasn’t much older than Taylor when she wrote her songs and they show more depth.

Even though Taylor did write the songs when she was younger, it didn’t mean she recorded them at the same time as or original album. She had probably worked with a vocal coach quite a bit since the original release and could have released something a bit stronger vocally. I’m not arguing that this single is horrible, I just think they missed an opportunity to show progression.

I can’t believe the girl even got a record deal?? Why can’t people see how bad she sings live? I think her fans are brainwashed or something– it is like a cult like miley cyrus or britney spears back in the day. Britney could never sing either- and miley is no carrie underwood vocally either. But for whatever reason- the teens love her- they dress like her, scream for her– it is sickening. People like leanne rimes and martina- carrie underwood, etc- are like Steak, and taylor is like a 99cent hamburger…all fluff, no substance. SHe has no range or power in her voice– no substance. Her live performances are atrocious– I was at Stagecoach fest recently too, and she was so bad that people left to get beer and wait for the real artists to come on. but her teenybopper fans loved her anyway– ignoring her bad singing as if it was great. Then Carrie Underwood came on the next night– and she roared through the desert with so much power and clarity— she made taylor look like someone in a middle school play trying to cover Phantom of the opera and failing miserably. She also wore a skimpy pink negligee and acted like she was 40 instead of 18.

Chris, there’s a good reason for that. They are all the same person. I did a search and she’s assumed 13 different names while posting here and it always seems to revolve around Carrie. I’ll delete a couple of them since they pretty much say the same thing.

Hey all,
I went to Taylor Swifts concert a couple months ago (yes, i am a fan) and I was expecting her to sound like she does on her live television performances. I was shocked by her vocals. They were so great! Also, I have been to a Carrie Underwood (and keith urban) concert and was amazed by how lame it was. Carrie sounded great, but her stage presence was lacking. After Taylor’s concert, I not only realized how smart she is, but also how great she can entertain an audience.

Ya, her performance last night was great! Who else can sound that good soaking wet?! I wish she woul’ve made her next single “The Outside”. I like that song more than “Should’ve said no”. Also, I wanted to say that I have heard 3 of the new songs on her second album and they are great.

But, I do have to say, she OBVIOUSLY switched mic’s in the middle of the song at the ACM awards!
Other than that, her performance was great!

Oscar V. said: “Taylor’s performance of this song at the ACM awards was AMAZING!!! She certainly silenced all of those naysayers who’ve badmouthed her song writing and/or performance abilities. ”

She did? Not from what I’ve been reading. That performance has been almost universally panned. It is arguably the worst performance ever on any ACM or CMA program.

This is a cheating song, but it certainly skews far closer to the high school demographic than a “Homewrecker Blues” or even “Forgive.”

Unfortunately for her, trend artists that seek out the appeal of teenagers tend to have a shorter shelf life than her hoodie.

This site always tries to undervalue her my saying middle schoolers and teenyboppers. One point i would like to make is her fans are more in high school and in their twenties. She doesn’t have t he same fan base as Miley Cyrus. Also all the time people try to degrade these people by their youth. If it was on an educational value for high school and college students they have higher levels. So when u say her fans are all teenyboppers think if in ur life u have accomplish what they already have at their young age. So lay off her fans when writing articles about Taylor Swift.

Finally listened to this one and actually kind of dug it… who da thunk it? I don’t think it’s Grammy worthy or anything but it’s the first one since “Tim McGraw” that I actually found myself enjoying.

I don’t know how it’ll register after a few more listens, but I thought the tone was consistent, and that the arrangement had a lot of originality. I’m still not sold on her as a singer, but if she keeps her head on her shoulders, and gets a few more words in her vocabulary, she’ll be a top tier writer… eventually.

With the album still riding high on the charts and her ever-expanding popularity, it will be interesting to see if the CMA voters treat her with the same adoration as the Academy of Country Music despite her limited vocals and borderline lyrical talent.

Mark, I’m having a hard time recognizing the question in what you wrote.

Out of curiosity, do you have any stats proving what Taylor Swift’s listening demographic is? And why exactly can’t they be called teenyboppers? Who does that term apply to?

You still haven’t asked a question, and, as Brady said, you’ve only offered your opinion (and someone else’s definition of teenybopper, a term that I never used in the review). The question that you seem to be implying is “why doesn’t this review share my perception of Taylor’s fan base?” and my answer is “because you didn’t write it.”

That like i were to say i doubt Willie Nelson will ever stuff singing songs for people that are too old to hear. Yes there are people of different ages but since i don’t like him his music is for old people that can’t hear. (I don’t have a problem with Willie Nelson he was just an example)

And you also still have not answered my question of why its necessary to say middle schoolers. More of an attack on her fans then to her song. Saying that she will never outgrow singing for middle schoolers when clearly many of her fans are not in middle school. Another question i would like to add is if you had been cheated on and you were singing the song you would sing it loud because she angry she not calm she is showing emotions. Though you say cheating is a more mature subject there is cheating in High school and the fact of the matter is she is still in High school. It would be fake if she sang the song like she was in her thirties. She in High School so she should sound like the song is from a high school. It most likely the first time she was cheated on. You Said is endemic in U.S. suburban high schools (at least not cheating of the country variety. This yet again another thing that you dont understand. In High School and college there is a lot of cheating i would say more so then if you are older because they think they will get away with it. You also seem to undermine the level of high schoolers, yet Taylor’s performance still sounds like a hair-flipping come-on to a high school crush . They can fell relationship on different levels. You Don’t have to be extremely old for that. A fact is if you take and Sat or an IQ tested I would laugh at how many high schoolers would score beacoup more than you.

“A fact is if you take and Sat or an IQ tested I would laugh at how many high schoolers would score beacoup more than you.”

If you’re going to insult someone’s level of intelligence, always make sure your spelling and grammar are airtight.

Why all the hoopla over such an insigificant subject matter? In reality, the biggest portion of Taylor Swift’s fans are in middle school, high school - or maybe recently graduated. Especially the most vocal ones like we are seeing every time Ms. Swift is mentioned here at the 9513. So I don’t get why it’s such a big deal to simply point out the facts of the demographics.

I also don’t think that whatever demographics are true would take anything away from her talent, if I really thought she had a boatload of it or something. Fact of the matter is, she had one album that sold well and produced some radio hits … If she can survive the sophomore jinx, then she might merit intelligent discussion.

Until then, I’d say this is a closed case …

Chris N there was just some French in there.

Splum, there have been several teenage girls who have broken into country music over the years — Tanya Tucker, LeAnn Rimes, Lila McCann, Jessica Andrews just to name a few — all of whom were far more talented than Taylor and none of whom ever burdened us with the kind of juvenile claptrap that she has.

Maddi must be 12 and Splum tone deaf? The only difference between Taylor and Tanya Tucker, LeAnn Rimes, Lila McCann and Jessica Andrews is that all of those ladies could actually sing.

By the way, what ever happened to Jessica Andrews??

Mike Parker: “It worries me that she won’t try to hone her craft or improve her vocals and still continue to trade mediocrity for mega-stardom.”

I can’t remember any other artist that garnered so many comments about the need for improved vocals. That alone speaks volumes. Taylor has a new CD coming out in the fall. It won’t be any better than the first one but it will still sell 2 to 3 million copies. If she’s lucky, she’ll have one more million-selling CD after that, and that will probably be the last we hear of her. Once her target audience outgrows her, we probably won’t hear much from her again.

Casey said, “Her vocals aren’t excellent live, but these days, whose are?”

Um, let’s see - Martina McBride, Trisha Yearwood, Reba McEntire, Dolly Parton, and Loretta Lynn just to name a few.

“Everything is always so worked over on albums anyway.”

And that’s precisely the problem. Shouldn’t we be demanding more from entertainers than this? If they can’t perform live and sing without the use of an auto-tuner, they have no business being on stage, IMO.

Razor, I totally agree. We should demand more, but it seems that this thread is totally bashing Taylor. That’s cool, I don’t necessarily like her… hated her actually, but this song isn’t bad. However, the greater issue is that the public is being fed crap from record producers and it spreads not only to country, but across the board in all genres.

Razor, you say “Um, let’s see - Martina McBride, Trisha Yearwood, Reba McEntire, Dolly Parton, and Loretta Lynn just to name a few.”

You name all of these older ladies that have perfected their craft, and more importantly their voice. You can’t compare a teenage girl to ladies in their forties, fifties and sixties. It’s not fair to Taylor, or even the legends you compare her to.

Casey said, “You name all of these older ladies that have perfected their craft, and more importantly their voice. You can’t compare a teenage girl to ladies in their forties, fifties and sixties. It’s not fair to Taylor, or even the legends you compare her to.”

OK, then to be fair, let’s compare her to Tanya Tucker, LeAnn Rimes, Jessica Andrews, Brenda Lee, and Lila McCann, all of whom were younger than Taylor when they got started, and all of whom could outsing her by far.

I don’t know how anyone over the age of 12 can even listen to her stuff.

You can’t really judge someone’s performance live without going to their concert. Carrie Underwood sounds good on TV, but her concert was so bad. She showed no emotion, and brought no excitement to the audience. Taylor was such a great entertainer and singer. I watch the award shows, and she never sounds as good as she is in person. These two clips were the closest I could find to capturing her live voice accurately, but still do not show her full potential. Her voice definitely improved in the last 2 years to match and pass the voice on the CD.
And judging by her performance at the ACM’s…I don’t think she treats this song like an an “ode to puppy love”

http://youtube.com/watch?v=xaLFlrfKYNg
http://youtube.com/watch?v=hRFdYzCGmlU

Rolyat, I’m not a huge LeAnn fan, but that performance was infinitely superior to anything I’ve ever heard Taylor do. Do you really think Taylor would even attempt to do a song that required her to yodel?

I am a Taylor Swift fan, so i’m a little offended by this. Maybe it’s bcuz i am in middle school that i like her (and i hate to break it to you, but middle and high school kids do cheat…a lot). Other artists (rascal flats…) sound like crap live too, keep in mind besides having to be a country artist she also has school to keep up with. She was around 16 when she recorded this song so she’s not gonna sound like a 40 year old singing. This wasn’t an “ode to puppy love,” or sound like one. This is one of my favorite songs on her CD. And by the way, if it’s too loud, you’re too old. :P

“The reality is, what does it matter? Everyone is strong in different areas. Not that I would want to listen to someone who can’t sing, but Taylor can. He vocals don’t bother me very much, and I certainly enjoy this song.”

It matters because Taylor can’t sing but the others I mentioned can. Yes, everyone is strong in different areas. Singing is not Taylor’s strong area. It matters because she is taking up valuable space on radio playlists that could be going to more deserving artists who CAN sing.

Tom: I notice that your list of things that Taylor does well did not include singing or writing.

Thanks Stormy, I don’t know how I forgot that. Add Song writing to the list too.

Because I said she isn’t the best singer out there doesn’t mean her voice is bad. She just isn’t at the top yet. She is definately up there though. Unless you have heard her in her tour bus singing acoustically LIVE, then you cannot say she has a bad voice. I was able to experience this and it was wonderful!

At first i didn’t like the song but when i saw the perfermance on the ACM’s it got me hooked.

I’m pretty much going with everyone else on this one. It’s done. What does defending your opinion on a blog matter? That being said, I must add one last comment.

Bottom line is that I like Taylor Swift. She is a song writer, which is much unlike a lot of artists out there. She is going after what she wants and providing her audience with what they want… which is apparently unlike all of the people mentioned above, considering the fact that most haven’t had a top selling album in around about a decade (if longer).

If you like Taylor Swift, keep buying her albums. Keep requesting her music. That is how her album went three times multi-platinum (remind me when the last time the other “phenomenal” artists produced those results…) and how it spawned 4 top ten singles (and sure to be another with Should’ve Said No).

Someone’s opinions on a random blog can’t change that.

My personal satisfaction comes from the fact that Taylor isn’t slowing down, and the people still want her. I’d be willing to bet that the people that voice their dislike of Taylor will have something to talk about for years to come.

Taylor Swift rocks and if you can’t see that-why waste your time talking about her like that? She has fans who absolutely love her and she gives so much to them. Agreeing with Kayla, GET A LIFE and stop bashing Taylor.

Someone “should’ve said no” to this terrible review of the song before it was published on here. I can only assume that much of the bitterness towards Tayor which I’m reading on here is due to either jealousy over her success or a refusal to embrace the “hottest thing in our format right now”, as was said about Taylor on the recent episode of Nashville Star. Truth be told, Taylor has written one of the era-defining albums in country music and has brought a whole new generation of fans into the fold. I’m sorry if that means your favorite artists are getting a little bit less airplay these days, but there was no way to avoid that in view of all of the awesome songs which are on her album, including “Should’ve Said No”.

Frank,

The album showcases a talented young songwriter with a lot of potential, but era-defining is a bit much, don’t you think? Unless maybe this is the era of mediocre angsty teenagers, this album does not define an era. I can’t imagine looking back five years from now and saying… that Taylor Swift album is the one that started it all… can you? If so, what did it start? Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood do the exact same type of songs that Taylor’s doing. Taylor’s just seem to have a bit less polish than Carrie’s and a bit more bubble than Miranda’s.

She is very, very likeable and seems to have a lot of respect for her peers and for country music. I don’t think any one here is rooting against her, they’re just holding her to a standard of artistry equivalent to the standard of fame she’s acquired.

I thought the singing on Faith Hill’s first album was horrible, and don’t get me started on her cover of “Piece of My Heart,” but she’s become a much better singer with time. Some of her song choices…(throat clearing sound) red umbrella… aren’t perfect, but she has definitely become better with age. So will Taylor. Don’t make the mistake of leaving her nowhere to go but down.

Frank, I have to disagree about the album being “the era defining album in country music.” True, it has brought a new generation of fans, but I doubt that the country audience as a whole would consider this album anything special. I just don’t think that these songs will be around 15-20 years from now, and still being enjoyed by radio listeners. I think that she is a well-marketed, mediocre singer-songwriter, and hope that she is able to enjoy the ride for as long as possible.

Also, for kicks and giggles, check out http://www.nashvilleroast.wordpress.com - a little mean-spirited, but quite entertaining.

So if I polled 1000 people, showed them her performance on Nashville Star from Monday, you believe that I’d get only one person saying “uhh. that sucked?”

Be realistic. I had four people in my living room and 75% of us were staring blankly at the TV while 25% of us turned off the television.

Taylor rocks. Say what you like Mike but all of us Taylor Fans won’t put up with it.

Good point made by my friend Jo who took a look at this review:

(from the review above)– Problem number two is the distorted background vocal, used only once, when Taylor echoes herself on “give back to me,” which makes it an even odder production choice.

“Give back to me”? This guy didn’t even listen well enough to know the correct lyrics of the song, so how can he comment on other aspects of it? grrrrrrrr.

Well said, Jo.

This is a review - not a statisticul study of an artists’ popularity.

Billy Ray Cyrus sold 9 million albums - do you think he is one of the most talented artists in country music history?

Again, I am not trying to put down Taylor….obviously, she is doing something right. I just happen to agree with the reviewer, and she’s just not for me.

Micheal and Mike.

I didn’t compare her to Billy Ray nor his daughter.

The numbers I refered to were ACM performances ONLY. They were there to prove that Taylor’s “Should’ve Said No” was best performance of the night. No other video, of any other singer, of any other song, for the ACMs even comes close.

Its up to 635,589 now in case anyone wanted to know.

Watch the video again. You’ll notice closer to the end of the song she hugs her guitar player and places the microphone behind her back. One of the backup dancers then grabs her mic while the other hands her a fake one. From then on they play a recording that she’d made earlier that day which is why it sounds different from her album.

Can you blame her? Other than risk electric shock going under the waterfall, a real microphone would have picked up the water hitting it. Not to mention that her voice would most likely have cracked while she was under water.

Try singing in a cold shower and you’ll understand.

every one that said bad about taylor swift u guys dont understand life and some of them right but she was only 15-16 when the songs were written and she was 18 when she sang them songs have nothing to do with maturity they are personality so who cares u guys have a stuck up personality like simon that hates every thing. and u cant compare her to most other country singers because they are 10 to 30 years older and so are some of u guys u just dont like the tone of her voice its not bad vocals its called bad ears… or u just like a difrent tone then hers well who cares keep it to yourself.