Sheryl Crow
100 Miles From Memphis
Posted 8/23

Campus Correspondent CD Review By Marion Olea,
North Central College

Better known for her country and pop-rock inspired albums, Sheryl Crow leaves that all behind and replaces it for more of a Memphis-inspired soul album in 100 Miles From Memphis (A&M). The album is less gritty and more cheery – a complete 180 from what fans and critics have grown accustomed to from Crow. Her newfound peaceful nature, however, may not have translated as well onto her music as did her angst did in previous albums.
Crow opens with “Our Love is Fading.” The song’s a fun track, but her vocals sound strained and is too pop-inspired to effectively channel her change in musical genres. Also, unfortunately for Crow, her collaboration with Keith Richards can’t salvage “Eye to Eye.” The reggae beat is nice, but straight out of left field and doesn’t fit in at all with the sound she’s attempting to create on 100 Miles. Similarly, “Sign Your Name,” which features Justin Timberlake, is deserving of a skip.

“Say What You Want” is an interesting political piece and change of pace. The song’s not controversial by any means, but solid nonetheless. “Stop” and “Sideways” are hands down the strongest songs off the album. “Stop” is achingly beautiful with great lyrical and instrumental work, while “Sideways” is equally amazing and features a fantastic duet with Citizen Cope. Crow’s vocals truly shine on both. The singer also pleasantly surprises with a Jackson 5 cover of “I Want You Back.” While nothing can compare to the original, Crow’s vocal pitch is uncanny to Michael Jackson’s and functions as a nice tribute.