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Jewel - Perfectly Clear
Album Review By: Brianna
Nightingale, CSO Staff Journalist
7/16/08
 Some
people I have run into seem to know Jewel’s history while
quite a few others do not have a clue. I will admit that I
was one of the clueless ones, and had no idea what kind of
struggles she had been through in her lifetime until
recently, when I began listening to her newest album. I find
it very interesting, though, and easier to respect her for
who she is today.
When Jewel was 15 years old, she moved out on
her own. By that time, though, she had already been through
a lot, including her parents’ divorce and living the first
several years of her life with no plumbing or heat. When
Jewel moved into her own place, she lived in a one room
cabin, worked several jobs and had to ride a horse 12 miles
to her aunt’s house and then hitchhike the rest of the way
to work every day.
Around this same time, Jewel decided she
wanted to go to college. She applied at a fine arts school
in Michigan, was accepted and received a partial
scholarship. To pay the rest of her tuition, she did her
first solo show (she was used to performing in a duet with
her father) at the local high school and earned $11,000 that
night, which was raised by her hometown, Homer, Alaska.
When spring break rolled around, everyone
went back home except Jewel, who couldn’t afford such a
trip. She did gigs from Michigan to California, even wound
up in Mexico for a while before she had to hop on a train
once again to get back for classes. While she was touring,
she wrote a song. This song, which she wrote about the
people and places she came across during this time, became a
well known tune quite a few years ago. The song is called
“Who Will Save Your Soul.”
Since she was 16 years old and quite mature
for her age, Jewel has been creating songs that would help
her with her first country album. She wrote or co-wrote
every song on Perfectly Clear, which she recently
released. The first song on the album, “Stronger Woman,” has
been all over the radio for weeks. It’s a great theme song
for her, and that’s even more evident to me now that I know
what she has been through in life. “I Do,” has a very catchy
melody and incredible motivational lyrics.
“Loved By You” starts out showing the range
in Jewel’s voice. She did mention that her father taught her
to be unique, and this certainly has a unique Jewel sound to
it. Some other cuts from this album that stand out are
“Thump, Thump” and “Perfectly Clear,” which caught my
attention and drew me in right away because of the piano.
“Rosey and Mick,” along with “Two Become One”
are two more mid tempo songs on the album, also very catchy.
I think Jewel did a great job on her initial
country CD, which she co-produced with fellow Nashville Star
judge, John Rich. Her unique sound carries over into this
album just like the others, but these songs are certainly
interesting enough to catch more than just my attention.
Related
Links:
Official Website
MySpace
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