| Product Summary | | Label: RCA RECORDS/SBME | | UPC: 00886973271520 | | Release Date: 3/10/2009 | | Buy.com Sku: 210733692 | | Item#: M4KXY6 | | Buy.com Sales Rank: 25050 | Format:  CD |
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| Song Listing |  |
Disc 1
| | Song Title | Sample | | 1. My Life Would Suck Without You ~ Kelly Clarkson |  | | 2. I Do Not Hook Up ~ Kelly Clarkson | | | 3. Cry ~ Kelly Clarkson | | | 4. Don't Let Me Stop You ~ Kelly Clarkson | | | 5. All I Ever Wanted ~ Kelly Clarkson | | | 6. Already Gone ~ Kelly Clarkson | | | 7. If I Can't Have You ~ Kelly Clarkson | | | 8. Save You ~ Kelly Clarkson | | | 9. Whyyouwannabringmedown ~ Kelly Clarkson | | | 10. Long Shot ~ Kelly Clarkson | | | 11. Impossible ~ Kelly Clarkson | | | 12. Ready ~ Kelly Clarkson | | | 13. I Want You ~ Kelly Clarkson | | | 14. If No One Will Listen ~ Kelly Clarkson | |
| | "I just want to be able to look back at this album and be proud, and to think, 'Man, that was awesome!'" With her fourth album, All I Ever Wanted, Kelly Clarkson demonstrates her eagerness to continue branching out, and to push her music in new and unexpected directions. Though she has sold over twenty million records around the world; landed eight singles in the Top Ten; and won Grammys, MTV Video Music Awards, American Music Awards, and even been nominated for a CMA Award, she maintains that she's far more interested in challenging herself than in repeating herself.
| | Album Notes and Credits |
Notes & Personnel Info |  | Personnel: Kelly Clarkson (vocals); Max Martin (guitar, synthesizer); Dameon Aranda (guitar, background vocals); Michael Biancaniello, Alain Johannes, Phil X., Brian Ray (guitar); Ryan Tedder (electric guitar, strings, piano, programming); Jonathan Yudkin (strings); John Jarvis (piano); Howard Benson, Kim Bullard, Louis Biancaniello (keyboards, programming); Jamie Muhoberac (keyboards); Eddie Fisher , Josh Freese, Paul Leim, Aaron Sterling (drums). | | Audio Mixer: Serban Ghenea. | | Recording information: 4014 Mixing Studios, Los Angeles, CA; Ante Up Studios, Cleveland, OH; Bay 7 Studios, Valley Village, CA; Blackbird Studios, Nashville, TN; Chalice Recording Studios, Los Angeles, CA; Chicago Recording Company, Chicago IL; Conway Recording Studios, Los Angeles, CA; Dr. Luke's; Henson Recording Studios, Hollywood, CA; Homesite 13, Novato, CA; Hong Kong International Airport, Hong Kong Park; Mansfield Studios, Los Angeles, CA; Ocean Way Recording, Nashville, TN; Sparky Dark, Calabasas, CA; Starstruck, Nashville, TN; Sunset Sound Studios, Hollywood, CA. | | Author: Emily Dickinson. | | Photographer: Mike Ruiz. | | Arranger: Ryan Tedder. | | In 2009, seven years after she won the first season of AMERICAN IDOL, Kelly Clarkson's musical career was still going strong. After the darker sound of MY DECEMBER, ALL I EVER WANTED is something of a return to form for Clarkson, harking back to the spirited, sprightly rock of her debut. With its punky energy, confessional lyrics, and sassy attitude, lead single "My Life Would Suck Without You" recalls the sound and feel of signature Clarkson hits like "Since U Been Gone." The album brims with catchy hooks, thanks to Clarkson's high-profile songwriting collaborators, including Katy Perry and OneRepublic's Ryan Tedder. This is well- crafted, radio-ready pop, and if the album has a weakness, it's that it does feel a bit calculated. Clarkson fans shouldn't mind, however. This contemporary singer's skills deserve to be as well-packaged as ALL I EVER WANTED; whether she's flirting with bass-driven grooves or anthemic hard rock, Clarkson makes the song her own with expressive vocal chops and commanding style. | | Thankfully, All I Ever Wanted is not Kelly Clarkson's atonement for insisting on releasing the dark, gothic rock record My December against the wishes of label boss Clive Davis in 2007 -- well, at least not entirely. All I Ever Wanted doesn't completely abandon the tougher rock edges of My December, but it does ditch the brooding in favor of angry spunk, all the better to prove that the girl who sang "Since U Been Gone" is back. And she is -- quite self-consciously on "My Life Would Suck Without You," the first track and first single on All I Ever Wanted, a song designed by Max Martin to be an explicit sequel to his "Since U Been Gone." It's effective, if a bit clinical, running contrary to Clarkson's greatest gift: her genuineness. My December might not have quite worked, but its messiness seemed an authentic reflection of a girl next door sorting through the aftermath of turning into an unexpected star and much of All I Ever Wanted is the opposite, attempting to run the most likeable pop star of the new millennium through the mill. Fortunately, it's possible to dampen Clarkson's spirit -- nobody could survive four Ryan Tedder collaborations without being brought down into his simpering murk -- but not to break it. She can break through Martin's machinations on "My Life" and comes pretty close to breathing some life into Tedder's cold R&B approximations, but those chilly sheets of synths don't suit her. Kelly is at her best when she's belting out a big chorus backed by loud guitars, or even singing a piece of pure pop like "I Want You," as effervescent a tune as she's ever sung. About half of All I Ever Wanted is as good as this and some of it even touches on Clarkson's hard rock infatuation and improves it, particularly on the bubblegum punk "Whyyawannabringmedown" -- complete with Kelly affecting a hysterical Johnny Rotten snarl -- the arena rocker "Don't Let Me Stop You," and "All I Ever Wanted," which turns the disco bass of Spoon's "I Turn My Camera On" upside down. Tellingly, Kelly takes two Katy Perry-written numbers (both produced by Howard Benson)-- "I Do Not Hook Up," co-written by new American Idol judge Kara DioGuardi, and "Long Shot," co-written by Glen Ballard -- and goes a long way in illustrating why she's a better pop star. Kelly sounds impassioned and invested in these numbers, selling every one of the skyscraper hooks, but better still she sounds relatable, pulling listeners into a song instead of keeping them at a distance. This is a rare talent and while it's not perfect, largely due to those dreary Tedder tunes, much of All I Ever Wanted does justice to Clarkson's considerable skills. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine |
Producer: Sam Watters; Greg Ogan; Howard Benson; Kelly Clarkson; Louis Biancaniello; Max Martin; Ryan Tedder |
Engineer: Sam Watters; Craig Durrance; Davey Rieley; Emily Wright; Derek Bason; Hatsukazu Inagaki; Joe Zook; Louis Biancaniello; Mike Plotnikoff; Ryan Tedder; John Hanes |
| | Compilation Appearances |
| | Associated Artists and Works |
| | Technical Info | | Release Date : 03/10/2009 | | Original Release Date : 2009 | | Catalog ID : 732715 | | Label : RCA Records (USA) | | Number of Discs : 1 | | Studio/Live : Studio | | Mono/Stereo : Stereo | | SPAR Code : n/a | | UPC : 00886973271520 |
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| | Professional Reviews | | Rolling Stone (p.74)
- 3 stars out of 5 -- "'I Do Not Hook Up' is another spitfire mix of melody and crashing guitars -- one of the most raucous odes to chastity in recent memory. Next comes 'Cry,' a big waltz-time ballad whose tune holds a hint of Nashville-pop twang."Entertainment Weekly (p.58)
- "The introspection Clarkson favored so heavily on DECEMBER is still there; now, though, she has perspective....There are feisty independent woman anthems and soaring, impeccably constructed power ballads." -- Grade: B Blender (Magazine)
- 4 stars out of 5 -- "Top-of-the-line mechanics return for a high-octane mix that bounces between disco, emo and punk....In almost every setting, Clarkson is still her brassy, blues-weaned self..." |
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| | Bio | | | Kelly Clarkson After the tremendous success of 2004's Breakaway, which sold 6 million in the U.S. and 11 million worldwide on the strength of such #1 hits as "Since U Been Gone," the title track, "Behind These Hazel Eyes," "Because of You" and "Walk Away," Kelly Clarkson earned the right to make the kind of album she wanted to make for her third RCA Records effort, My December. "The biggest difference is how intimate it is," she says of the album, co-produced by David Kahne [Bangles, Sublime, McCartney, the Strokes] and touring band members Jimmy Messer and Jason Halbert. Kelly either wrote or co-wrote every song on the album, just as she has on such hits as "Because of You," Behind these Hazel Eyes," "Walk Away" and "Miss Independent." Legendary L.A. punk bassist Mike Watt, who has played with Iggy and the Stooges as well as his own band the Minuteman, guests on three songs. "Regardless of whether it's a happy or sad song, the album's very in-your-face," she says of the full throttle rock & roll aggression on songs like the first single, "Never Again," and "Hole." "There was no filter...just four very different individuals who joined together to come up with a really cool record. There's a little bit of something for everyone on this album." My December unfolds like a diary of the last two years in the life of Kelly Clarkson, which saw her take home a pair of 2006 Grammy Awards at L.A.'s Staples Center and perform a show-stopping version of "Because of You"; nab four American Music Awards, three MTV Video Music Awards, a People's Choice Award and a staggering 11 Billboard Music Awards. But all that acclaim took its toll on her personal relationships, captured on the dance-floor funk-soul of "One Minute," which she describes as "about the craziness of everything," the Edge-styled guitars in the blues-rocking "Hole," the betrayal of "Judas" and the playful No Doubt-inspired rhythmic pulse of "How I Feel." Songs like "Sober," "Be Still," "Maybe" and "Irvine" are vocal showcases that reflect her singer-songwriter roots. "The record is about me, why I make the decisions I do," she says. "Most of my songs are about what's happening in my life. For me, it's like free therapy. Whether it's me growing, or helping someone else get through similar circumstances."
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