Review: LeAnn Rimes “Re-Imagined”
Think back to when you were eleven years old. What were you doing? LeAnn Rimes was signing her first record deal with Curb Records and embarking on a career that
Completely Country
Think back to when you were eleven years old. What were you doing?

LeAnn Rimes was signing her first record deal with Curb Records and embarking on a career that has so far spanned two decades, eleven album releases, over 37 million album sales worldwide to date and not to mention the award nominations and wins.

If you think back to the 90’s/00’s and consider songs that would be on the soundtrack of those years, LeAnn Rimes’ music would be high on those lists. Some of my favourite LeAnn songs were recorded when she was just a teen, and most of those were about love and heartbreak yet at the time she was still so young and probably hadn’t lived through what she was singing about, but her deliverance of the lyrics was always convincing.

“One Way Ticket” is a song that I’ve always loved, however the lyrics never seemed to fit the original melody for me and is something I thought would benefit from having a more subtle, mellow arrangement. Fast forward to 2017, and that’s exactly what I heard when LeAnn performed a more stripped back version during her UK tour. It felt as though LeAnn connected with the lyrics on a more personal level, because since it’s releasing it back in 1996, LeAnn has experienced love, loss, heartbreak and life in general. From that night, I hoped it would be released in some capacity and thankfully it has been along with other hits in the form of “Re-Imagined”.

“How Do I Live” was a huge hit and is one of the first songs I remember hearing during my childhood. There are certain songs that shouldn’t be touched or tweaked in anyway, because if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

I have always had that attitude about this song but having said that it feels as though over the last few years LeAnn has made a lot of changes both personally and professionally that changed the way she performs, how she interprets music and delivers a lyric which is very evident in the new version.

I felt the original was about someone who was so in love with another person that their whole being is about them, they love the other so much that they can’t imagine life without them but the “Reimagined” version is more of a love letter. It’s stripped back, still vulnerable but has a warm, content feel and is a new and improved version that I never knew I wanted in life.

“Can’t Fight the Moonlight” originated from the movie “Coyote Ugly”, where LeAnn provided the vocals for Piper Perabo’s character Violet Sanford. This version is the first of two live tracks on the EP and has more of a bluesy vibe and is more up-tempo. It’s a good filler in between the ballads but for me, it’s the only one on the EP that I feel doesn’t work quite as well as a recording as it does at a show with the crowd atmosphere.

“Blue” was the track that made people make the comparison between LeAnn and the late, great Patsy Cline. The second of two live tracks, it keeps much of what made the original recording so special but of course over the years LeAnn’s voice has gotten stronger and more mature making it quite a nostalgic revisit to what kickstarted her career.

LeAnn Rimes and Stevie Nicks is a duet I never thought would work. Their voices and musical style feel worlds apart, and when I saw the duet was “Borrowed”, I didn’t know what to expect but everything came together and worked. “Spitfire” is one of LeAnn’s most personal albums, with “Borrowed” being a brutally honest song from a tough period in her personal life and Stevie’s vocal harmony adds an at times sombre feel to a very vulnerable song.

If you are a fan of LeAnn Rimes or are a radio listener, you will have heard these songs in their original form and what has stood out with the “Re-Imagined” EP is that they are a group of timeless tracks that were great the first time round, but for me I was a kid during that time and as much as I loved the songs I didn’t connect emotionally because I couldn’t but now as a twenty something, they take on a whole different meaning and that’s something I adore about music.

Over the last few years, LeAnn has produced some of her best and most authentic work. When the new version of “One Way Ticket” was released, I thought it was because of fans requesting it after hearing it at the live shows, never did I think this project would follow but it was a very pleasant surprise and it makes me excited to hear what’s next.

Track Listing;

How Do I Live

One Way Ticket

Can’t Fight the Moonlight

Blue

You can learn more about LeAnn Rimes by visiting her official website or by following her on her social media pages;

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