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Amazon.com: Katharine McPhee has a cloudless voice and a warm, wide-eyed Alice in Wonderland quality that won her swarms of fans on American Idol's fifth season--if Simon Cowell had a ready antonym for "ghastly," there's little room for doubt about which contestant he would have applied it to. While debates over whether McPhee's considerable grace and talent should have won her the TV competition rage on across the Idol-viewing landscape, one thing's certain: she's made a debut album good enough to render such determinations meaningless. Katharine McPhee is an R&B-leaning pop disc that pulls the urgency and tenderness out of her voice and pins it smack in the center of each song. The slickly produced opener "Love Story" displays a certain swagger, and "Not Ur Girl" and "Open Toes" follow it up with still more spunk and attitude (something some McPhans asked to see more of on AI). If there's a crisp, smartly maneuvered Christina Aguilera-meets-Beyoncé-and-Mariah sensibility at work in those songs, the ballads belong to McPhee alone. "Somewhere over the Rainbow" made her a star on TV; "Ordinary World" and "Better off Alone" have the staying power to make her a star in music. --Tammy La Gorce Customer Reviews: Rating: 
Date: 2008-07-12
Katharine Sings
Katharine has a beautiful voice and she is a beautiful girl. I don't care for the songs that are on the contemporary side. I don't like singing with to much voice fluctuating (or rungs). The slower songs are very good. I hope the next album is less contemporary. I would just get songs I like. Rating:
Date: 2008-07-05
I don't like this feeling anymore
I could see Katharine McPhee falling into the same path Kelly Clarkson fell into. Katharine's debut isn't amazing by any means but you end up liking it a lot simply because her vocals are so strong (much like Kelly's debut). And with each further CD she'll realize who she is musically more and more and come into her own. For her first outing, though, she could've done so much worse.
The first two songs, Love Story and Over It, are pretty much just average pop fare. Nothing special but easily listenable. Open Toes is where the CD actually starts for me. After Open Toes you have only a couple songs that are so-so and quite a few that hold their own.
For the most part the lyrics aren't great. Perfect example, Open Toes. I love that song but the lyrics are so cheesy. Love Story is the same way, its your typical romantic comedy condensed into three minutes. Probably the only two good songs lyrically are Home and Neglected, the latter being the better of the two. Yet another thing she has in common with Kelly Clarkson...anyone see a pattern here?
For all the bad things you can pin on this CD, you have to admit that it's oddly enduring. For no reason--if you're anything like me--you'll feel compelled to listen to it. I figure any CD, or artist, that can do that deserves some type of bonus.
My favorite songs are Over It, Open Toes, Dangerous, Ordinary World, and Neglected. Anyone merely looking for pop music with no desire to be anything it's not, look no further than Katharine McPhee's self-titled debut. Rating: 
Date: 2008-06-15
LOUSY PRODUCTION!
Who produced this album? It sounds like it was recorded in a trash can. Horrible production!!! I like Katharine, but this is a horribly produced album! Rating: 
Date: 2008-05-16
wow!!
I just love this cd...
being french, i did not even know her and never saw her prestations in american idol
i happen to hear from her on the web and this cd is a pleasant surprise...
a wonderful warm voice and pop songs at their best
it's pleaseant to hear a pop album with such talent and high quality songs that stay in your head constantly especially 3 songs of this cd that are my special favorites and that gives me chills everytime i listen to them : over it (the lead single with its haunting chorus), neglected (such a powerful and emotional song) and everwhere i go.
the rest of the cd is very good too
Hope to hear from her very soon with further music.
Rating: 
Date: 2008-03-27
so-so, as you might expect from Idol
The first time I heard Katharine McPhee sing on American Idol, I knew that she had an outstanding talent. Unfortunately, in this album, she sells out to the white-girl hip-hop movement that is creating regurgitated music from samples and high song-writers.
There's simply nothing special on this album. From a talent that could have become the next ultra diva, in the footsteps of Celine, Whitney, and the rest, she really disappointed me.
Of course, I know that Idol is set up to find people who are easily marketed to 9-11 year-olds (it's a fact, look it up in the music business books), it's sad that someone with true potential like this could be reduced to simply a mediocre release. I hope she fires her producer & starts to find her voice. |
