Shania Twain's eponymous debut album is a bland set of contemporary country that demonstrates her considerable vocal abilities but none of the spark that informs her breakthrough, The Woman in Me. Part of the problem is that none of the songs are well-constructed and each leans toward soft rock instead of country or country-rock. By and large, the songs lack strong melodies, so they have to rely on Twain's vocal skills, and although she is impressive, she is too showy to make any of these mediocre songs stick. It's a promising debut, largely because it showcases her fine vocal skills, but it isn't engaging enough to be truly interesting outside of a historical context.

SHANIA TWAIN

(Mercury 514422)

April 20/1993
Produced by Harold Shedd & Norro Wilson

Steve Gibson, Reggie Young, Billy Joe Walker - el.guitar
Chris Leuzinger - ac.guitar
Allen Frank Estes, Mark Casstevens, John Willis - rh.guitar
Sonny Garrish - steel
Mike Brigdandello, Glenn Worf - bass
Larrie Londin, Paul Leim - drums
David Briggs, Gary Prim, Costo Davis - keyboards
Jelly Roll Johnson - harmonica
Terry McMillan - harmonica/percussion
Vocals:
Anthony Martin, Ronny Scaife, John Wesley Ryles, Cindy Walker, Dennis Wilson, Curtis Young
Recorded at Music Mill Studio, Nashville

1.
WHAT MADE YOU SAY THAT
(Tony Haselden - Stan Munsey)
« © '88 Millhouse Music, BMI »

Maybe tinight I'm gonna tell him how I feel maybe I'll leave well enough alone
Maybe just maybe he'll want to be my baby what if he's got plans of his own
I'm waitin' for the perfect moment looking for the perfect phrase
The one I finally choose is simply I love you
As the words came out I heard a voice inside me say
What made you say that was it the moonlight was it the starlight in your eyes
What made you say that have you been listenin' to your heart
It's too late now you don't want to I won't let you take it back
Cause I know love's what made you say that

I look up to see his reaction and a smile slowly spread across his face
He said what took you so long that's what I've been waiting on
I thought you'd take forever and a day
What made you say that...
[ guitar ]
What made you say that...
**********
2.
YOU LAY A WHOLE LOT OF LOVE ON ME
(Forest Borders - Hank Beach)
« © '79 Kentucky Forrest Publishing, BMI »

I can feel your body tagging gently on my mind
Stirring up a feeling I thought I'd never find
Ever since I met you babe I've been living in a dream
You lay a whole lot of love on me a whole lot of love on me

I get warm all over when you get close to me
Then I start to tremble from my head down to my feet
I become your piece of clay to do with what you please
You lay a whole lot of love on me a whole lot of love on me

You lay a whole lot of love on me a love I thought could never be
Let the whole world fall apart you're all I'll ever need
You lay a whole lot of love on me a whole lot of love on me
You lay a whole lot of love on me a whole lot of love on me
**********
3.
DANCE WITH THE ONE THAT BROUGHT YOU
(Gretchen Peters - Sam Hogin)
« © '90 WB Music, ASCAP »

Well he shines like a penny in a little kid's hand when he's out on a Saturday night
He's a real go-getter and the best two-stepper you'll see
But when I'm sittin' alone at a table for two cause he's already out on the floor
I think about somethin' that my mama used to say to me
You got to dance with the one that brought you stay with the one that wants you
The one who's gonna love you when all of the others go home
Don't let the green grass fool ya don't let the moon get too ya
Dance with the one that brought you and you can't go wrong

He's got his old best buddies and his new best friends
And the girls all give him the eye
He's a good time Charlie and the life of the party tonight
But when I think about another well I don't think twice
Cause there'll never be another like him
I know he really loves me and I think maybe mama was right
You got to dance with the one...
You got to dance with the one that brought you and you can't go wrong
**********
4.
STILL UNDER THE WEATHER
(L.E. White - Michael White - Skip Ewing)
« © '87 Acuff-Rose Music, BMI / Milene Music, ASCAP »

My first lesson in losing a love was you
Learning to live with your memory was lesson No 2
And I can't lie baby I still cry sometimes
But I've come a long way towards gettin' you out of my mind
I'm still under the weather but I'm over the storm
I still miss the shelter of your loving arms
But what I thought would kill me has just made me strong
I'm still under the weather but I'm over the storm

Sometimes your memory still gets the best of me
But that lonely ache in my heart ain't as bad as it used to be
And sometimes the way that I'm feelin' inside doesn't show
But I know I'll get over you I've just got a long way to go
I'm still under the weather...
I'm still under the weather but I'm over the storm
**********
5.
GOD AIN'T GONNA GETCHA FOR THAT
(Kent M. Robbins - Eileen Twain)
« © '93 Irving Music, BMI »

Hey you sittin' in the corner can't ya hear the jukebox playin'
Everybody's up doing the twostep and you're not even tappin' your toe
Won't you let a lady buy you a cold brew
Loosen you up a little more than you dare to
Maybe take a ride in my Cadillac God ain't gonna getcha for that
God ain't gonna getcha for that he's much too busy with the guys in the black hats
There's nothin' wrong with a man and a woman flirtin' with a honky tonk moon
God ain't gonna pay no attention if we're just making use of his invention
Come on baby don't hold back God ain't gonna getcha for that

I can tell you're the quiet type are you new in town or just a little bit shy
Didn't you ever catch me lookin' I've been eyeing you all night
Won't you let a lady buy you a cold brew
Loosen you up a little more than you dare to
Maybe take a ride in my Cadillac God ain't gonna getcha for that
God ain't gonna getcha for that...
God ain't gonna getcha for that...
No God ain't gonna getcha for that God ain't gonna getcha for that
**********
6.
GOT A HOLD ON ME
(Rachel Newman)
« © '91 Bash Music, ASCAP »

You got a hold on me you're standing over me sometimes I hardly breathe at all
I need a little room I need a lot of moon I got to find it soon or I'll fall
Into the emptiness into the dark abyss too deep to climb the walls
Sometimes I want to flee but that could never be you got a hold on me
You got a hold on me and I'm dancing to your song
You got a hold on me and it's my heart you're holding on

You got the sweetest smile you got a certain style and I can never get enough
Of the way you move and the way we groove when it's feeling right to the touch
Then you turned around and you stomp me down and you want to call it love
You know it makes me bleed but I could never leave you got a hold on me
You got a hold on me...
You got a hold on me...
**********
7.
THERE GOES THE NEIGHBORHOOD
(Billy Graham - Tommy Dodson - Alan Leney)
« © '87 Bill Graham Music, BMI »

The house next door just came up for sale
She's going home to mama she says he can go to hell
The couple down the block is splittin' up I hear
And they're the third ones on our street this year
It's just another day in anytown USA
Somebody's hurt somebody's blue and somebody moves away
What little they do to make it work don't seem to do much good
When love moves out there goes the neighborhood

First they take off their wedding bands they call it quits and call the moving vans
He takes his and she takes hers and what's left over is left on the curb
It's just another day...
It's just another day...
When love moves out there goes the neighborhood
**********
8.
FORGET ME
(Stephony Smith)
« © '93 Songs Of PolyGram, BMI »

Don't go around talkin' to your friends about me
Bury the past just let it rest in peace
Leave well enough alone treat me like someone you've never known
Forget me like you forgot to go home at night
Forget me like you forgot to hold me tight
Well now you're sorry now you cry
But don't you wipe those tears till your mem'ries run dry
Please forget me

Don't let the lonely days remind you of anything
Oh baby try to erase the fact we had everything
No you can't come back this time so let me slip right out of your mind
Forget me like you forgot to go home at night...

Cause I forgot to forgive and forget so just pretend we never met
Forget me like you forgot to go home at night...
Baby please forget me forget me
**********
9.
WHEN HE LEAVES YOU
(Kent M. Robbins - Mike Reid)
« © '89 Irving Music, BMI / Almo Music, ASCAP »

I come here as a friend though I don't really know you
I know you're in love with him and he's made your world brand new
I know you think he loves you and he may believe it too
Pour some coffee and I'll tell you what you'll soon be going through
When he leaves you it's gonna more than break your heart
When he leaves you it's gonna tear your world apart
And you're gonna cry a million teardrops one for every shattered dream
When he leaves you and comes back home to me

I've known him all these years honey this time's not the first time
I've paid for loving him with tears and when it's over he'll be mine
I can see that I've upset you guess I'm a fool to try and help
When it comes to hearts and heartache you got to find out for yourself
When he leaves you...
When he leaves you and comes back home to me
**********
10.
CRIME OF THE CENTURY
(Richard Fagan - Ralph Murphy)
« © '92 Colgems Music, ASCAP »

I was into bein' out on my own I could take love or leave it alone
That's how you get when you're hurt to the bone one too many times
I had this heart of mine locked away I kept my guard up night and day
I had enough of the games they play out there on the line
It was the crime of the century you played Robin Hood and rescued me
Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves ain't got nothin' on you
You came on like Jesse James you stole my heart like you were robbin' trains
I'm gonna lock you up for life with me it was the crime of the century

You stacked the deck you didn't gamble at all
You knew exactly how the cards would fall
You bet your heart but as I recall I didn't even stand a chance
I bet you had an ace up your sleeve and here I thought that you were so naive
You took my hand and made me believe in love and real romance
It was the crime of the century...

And if I live to be a hundred and one
Honey don'tcha think that it would be fun to do all over again
It was the crime of the century...
I'm gonna lock up and throw away the key it was the crime of the century
Well it was love in the third degree it was the crime of the century
**********

petrv@yahoo.com
Shania Twain Discography