Tori Amos has been around since most of us started listening to music. In 1988, she released the album Y Can’t Tori Read, a hard-rock album that didn’t receive much, if any, critical acclaim. So she embarked out on her own, releasing her debut solo album Little Earthquakes in 1992 — and the rest is history. It’s no wonder, then, that she just released a greatest-hits collection, Tales of a Librarian. The only thing to wonder is why it took her so long.
Amos has always flirted interestingly with mainstream media outlets. Yes, she’s that one girl who had that one song that got some radio airplay, then faded into memory. Fortunately, this says more about the state of mainstream radio over the past decade than it does about Tori’s music, which remains amazing. Her talent is only magnified when one has her greatest hits in front of him or her.
Tales of a Librarian combines tracks from all of Tori’s solo albums, from Little Earthquakes to 1998’s From the Choirgirl Hotel, and throws in four new tracks to boot. Plus, there’s a DVD tossed into the mix.
If you’ve never listened to Tori Amos before, this album is an excellent place to start. Amos leads the pack when it comes to piano-driven, female-sung music, and Tales exemplifies this. While other female solo artists like Ani DiFranco change their sounds perceptively with each new album, Amos has remained fairly true to form throughout her long career.
Some may think this would make Amos’ music boring, but nothing could be further from the truth. Don’t care for the piano? Concentrate on her amazing vocals (she has one of the widest vocal ranges you’ll ever hear). Not into vocals? Listen for her lyrics, which are filled with literary, mythological and political allusions.
Tori’s lyrics are a sticking place for many incoming fans. They range from the humorous (“Hello Mr. Zebra / Can I have your sweater”) to the desperate (“Why do we crucify ourselves / Every day I crucify myself / Nothing I can do is good enough for you”) to the political (“From Jordan to Chicago / Another child is born / Trusting that we’ll get it / Right this time”).
Amos is also one of the few artists left today who concentrates on the piano as her instrument of choice. With so much mainstream emphasis on guitar and full-band sounds, it’s refreshing to hear an artist hearken back to the days when a piano and a voice were enough.
Of course, when one thinks of pianos and pop music, the Beatles often spring to mind. Tori’s music holds tones of the Fab Four, in fact, most easily visible in the track “Mr. Zebra,” which brings to mind White Album-era Beatles.
A few tracks on Tales of a Librarian are recorded from live shows, where any hardcore Tori fan will tell you the artist really shines. She imports a tremendous amount of sensuality and emotion into her piano playing, and it’s difficult, if not impossible, to watch her perform without just staring at her, your mouth wide open.
The accompanying DVD would seem a great opportunity to introduce new fans to this aspect of Amos’ artistry, but, sadly, it doesn’t take advantage of that. The video cuts are taken from sound checks, where Amos isn’t really at her most inspired. While still interesting to watch if you’ve never seen her live, the clips don’t come close to showing her passion for music.
Even though the DVD is somewhat disappointing, the CD itself is worth checking out, whether you’re a longtime fan or a newcomer. Older fans will recognize slight changes in some of the classic tracks — for example, there is an added vocal part on “Cornflake Girl.” Of course, there’s also the matter of the four new tracks.
All four tracks shine and manage to fit perfectly into the canon of Amos’ work. The subject matter seems more political than in previous songs, showing Amos perhaps moving in a slightly different direction.
“Sweet Dreams,” for example, features the lyric “Land, Land of Liberty, we’re run by a constipated man,” which is about as overtly political as Amos gets. In “Mary,” she takes a slightly different turn, focusing on the Biblical character of Mary Magdalene and her misrepresentation in contemporary Christianity: “God I want to get you out of here / You can ride in a pink Mustang / When I think of what we’ve done to you.”
In the end, Tales of a Librarian should be taken as a prototype for what a greatest hits collection should be. It has all the classics (“Cornflake Girl,” “Crucify”) and enough new material to whet fans’ appetites for an entire disc of it. The DVD is a bit disappointing, but that just means you’ll have to venture out to a Tori show and see for yourself what all the fuss is about.
Tales is a great place for new fans to start, and a great place for seasoned fans to continue to fan the flame.
Grade: A
