No doubt, I am a Taylor Swift connoisseur. I sincerely love Taylor Swift and the music that she makes. Recently, Swift released a re-record of one of her best albums. The songs on Speak Now feel like they are switching from different genres with the vibes the background instrumentals give off. I have chosen the songs that I personally believe are the best on this album to review.
“Back to December (Taylor’s Version)” – I have a lot of favorite songs from the album, but this song has to be in my top three. It brought feelings of sorrow and regret from the point of view of someone who has given up a relationship and regretted it. However, for me, hearing this song brings me a lot of happiness and excitement. I will listen to this song once and it’ll be playing in my head for weeks. The way she wrote the lyrics makes me want to cry, laugh, and get up and dance. This is one of those songs I’ll never get over.
“Haunted (Taylor’s Version)” – I really do love this song because of how its chorus and beat make you want to get up and sing along. This song, like most, is repetitive, but it still never gets old. This song differs from most in this album because her instrumental choices are unexpected. It leans more towards almost a soft rock vibe with the use of guitar and drums.
“Speak Now (Taylor’s Version)” – This song is what it’s all about. At the beginning of this song, Swift sings daintily over an acoustic guitar giving off a sweet melody. When the beat starts to pick up and the guitar starts to sound more vibrant, she starts the chorus. The lyrics of the chorus have to be in my top three of any of this album. I like how her voice gets lighter and the guitar slows down near the end of the song when she sings, “Horrified looks from everyone in the room, but I’m only looking at you.” I feel it gives character to the song.
“Sparks Fly (Taylor’s Version)” – This is one of my favorite songs on the album. I feel this song has an interesting flow that all comes together. Swift breaks into a country accent at some points in the song, and I found it to add a lot of character, knowing that her older albums leaned more toward the genre of country music.
“Long Live (Taylor’s Version)” – For the first minute of this song, Swift sings dimly but passionately. Then the chorus starts. She has her instrumentals in the background picking up with her. When it gets to the main lyrics, she has a country-esque tone to her voice. Listening to this song makes me think of a teenage rom-com movie, given the fact that her music mostly resonates with teenage girls.
“Enchanted (Taylor’s Version)” – Throughout this song, many listeners are given a fairy-like impression. This song is super high-energy with great background vocals. My favorite lyrics have to be, “Please don’t be in love with someone else!” and “Please don’t have somebody waiting on you.” It may sound a little cringe, but I do kind of relate to them. This song, in my opinion, is very catchy and hard to get out of your head.
“The Story of Us (Taylor’s Version)” – This song is great because of how she ties in the characteristics of a book. She does this at the beginning of the song when she sings, “I don’t even know what page you’re on.” What is adored by many fans is how she references song titles in different songs. Taylor does that in this song when she sings, “And people would say they’re the lucky ones.” “The Lucky One” is the title of a song from Swift’s Red Album. Overall, this song gives Swifties much joy because of how it evokes a rock style of music.
“Mine (Taylor’s Version)” – Like most of Swift’s songs on her older albums, she leans more towards a country music style. This song gives off country all throughout. I do not mind country, so this is completely fine with me. I enjoy how she changes up the beat through the chorus. I also like how she doesn’t switch the music genre for this song. It was considered almost country back then, and she kept it that way instead of re-recording it in more of a pop style like most of her recent albums.
“Better Than Revenge (Taylor’s Version)” – This song is a great one, but Swifties didn’t take the lyric change of one of the most iconic lines well. The original lyric was “She’s better known for the things that she does on a mattress,” but in her version, she changes it to “He was a moth to a flame, she was holding the matches.” When listening to this song, I feel the energy. It is one of those songs that will make you want to strut down the halls. My favorite part of the whole song has to be right when you press play: “Now go stand in the corner and ‘think’ about what you did.” This almost sounds as if she is talking over the phone, which adds a cool essence.
“Ours (Taylor’s Version)” – In the very first seconds, I got a different feel from this song than most of the songs I listened to on this album. It sounds whimsical, and the acoustic guitar instrumental adds a lot. I love how she uses her guitar for most of these songs. This song is kind of like a basic teenage love song. I personally do not favor this, but it is still a good song. I like how it is calm but still up-beat.
Overall, this entire album, from start to finish, is amazing. It is a hit with Swifties as well. I enjoyed pretty much everything, and I listen to the songs all the time. It is spectacular listening to the original Speak Now album and then listening to Taylor’s Version and hearing her vocals get better. You can really hear how her voice matured. I feel like I grew up with her and I love how she kept the essence of the songs from the past. This album is just wonderful and I give it a 10/10.
