Falling Into You - Dion, Celine (CD 1996)

For the past 50 years each generation had produced a select few musical artists who are true stars. The music industry is prolific in producing popular artist, ones that for a short time rule the charts and dominate the world, however only once in a while does a true artist appear, one with staying power and continuing popularity. One that manages to catch the attention of the music buying public for more than a fleeting moment.

The 50's had Elvis, even now his followers profess his continued existence, such was the extent that he touched peoples lives. The 60's of course had the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, also still vastly popular today. They captured the imagination of almost the entire world. The 70's, rather than producing one main artist had a host of revolutionaries who produced the unforgettable music that was glam rock. The 80's produced superstars such as Madonna and Michael Jackson, each dominating their respective musical battlefields.

Then we arrive at the 90's. This decades had produced a few big stars. However it was difficult to distinguish true stardom from the fleeting success of 1 hit wonder craze. However I think it would be arguable than no-one has touched the effected the musical tastes of the people 90's as much as Celine Dion. True there have been other big stars (which I will probably review) but there are few with the success, staying power and pure star quality of Ms Dion.

A landmark album in her spectacular career has been Falling Into You, it put her on the world wide stage as one of the most successful singers of all time. Below is a guide to some of the songs on this phenomenally successful album, the album contains a too many songs to write a detailed review of each one, so this has to be limited:

It's All Coming Back To Me Now

A sweeping ballad. A truly moving piece of music, which tells you a sad story of lost love and regret. Celine's voice is powerful and moving, but not so powerful as to appears insensitive. The soothing backing vocal lead to a haunting, powerful and memorable song. You can feel the emotion placed into this song, charging through the lyrics.

Because You Loved Me

The theme song for the movie Up Close & Personal, this is another ballad (what did you really expect?) affirming the love and warmth in the supposed relationship. Although written for the movie, one wonders if the lyrics were also intended for her husband Ren'e. The vocals as expected are excellent and the musical composition accentuates every resonance of it.

Falling Into You

Another love song, however unlike similar songs by other artists you can feel the depth and feeling behind this song. Nice musical composition, this turns out to be a nicely crafted piece of work. Celine's vocals at the forefront, but not overly dominating the music.

I must point out at this point that I do not listen to purely love music, In fact I have an eclectic taste in music ranging from the 'Fugees' and the 'Notorious B.I.G to Madonna and 'REM'. I feel that if you truly love music you will be able to recognise it in differing style, regardless of whether you like that style or not.

Make You Happy

A different type of love song, with a nice piano intro. Containing more of a beat that the previous three, and Celine's vocals are not used in the same style as previously. There is a definite chorus in this song which is sometimes lacking in her songs, not that they do not have small ones... a few word perhaps, but there is rarely a defined chorus like this one.

All By Myself

A cover of a classic love song. Celine acquits herself well, in fact I prefer this version to the original. Her powerful vocals work well with the material and the music is nice too. It is a sad song though, not one to listen to when you are lonely.

(You Make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman

A cover of the Areatha Classic, not as good as the original. However it is slightly more moody than the first. At the fear of being tortologious I must again point out Celine's supreme vocal abilities.

The rest of the album is mainly along the same theme, there are too many highlights to mention (at least without boring you). The are however some more upbeat songs such as River Deep, Mountain High, but it is mostly ballads. This may at first sound a little boring. I assure you however that the music and vocals carry this piece along beautifully. Well worth buying if you are into love songs, or just someone with a good voice. It is not difficult to see why Ms Dion has such a wide fan base, ranging from the young to those young at heart. Celine has continued to amplify her success with follow up album Lets Talk About Love, to go on and sell in excess of 100 million albums, and with a base like this to build on it is not hard to see why she is a true star.