The Wednesday Canon: BRITNEY

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

The most-requested canon ever - with Brit riding high in the Now Polls it seems a good time to overview her curious career. You get SIX picks so choose wisely.




[Poll #735177]

Comments

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

One of the reasons I put off doing the Britney canon, even though people kept asking for it, is that there's *so much* agreement on the high points of BS' single career.

Unusually for a modern pop star, her B-Sides are often amazing. The 2-CD "Unreleased Britney" rarities comp I got off bit-torrent is more than a match for any of her actual albums.

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

And if you take out the Big Three it's more than a match for her hits album too.

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

I think it's because there's a definite divide among Britney's 'people', or maybe between Britney and her people - the divide between "let's do a DFA remix" and "this DFA remix will sell 0x copies", though that's a bad example because the no-DFA faction were right.

Anyway what it means is that there's several more flavours of bubblegum going on below whatever one (Max, Neps) she's pushing at the time.

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

Not only her b-sides but her album tracks - the non-singles off her last two albums were mind-bendingly weird and amazing, even more than the singles.

Haha I didn't tick ANY of the big three!

[braisedbywolves.livejournal.com]

I'm curious as to what zenith's comment about class war means, I've missed this aspect to her work!

[zenith.livejournal.com]

Was there an earlier celebrity whose critics revealed their fear and loathing of "white trash" to such an extent?

[catsgomiaow.livejournal.com]

miss_newham is right - she hasn't done as many good songs as I thought she had!

ALSO THERE'S THIS

[dubdobdee.livejournal.com]

Re: ALSO THERE'S THIS

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

And hot on its heels this (http://gofugyourself.typepad.com/go_fug_yourself/2006/03/letter_of_fug_p.html), aka the best piece of writing I have read in this or any year.

theory of ticky

[zenith.livejournal.com]

'I Love Rock N Roll' = deliberate act of conceptual provocation, causing those who would once have sneered at Joan Jett to add her to their "do not debase by covering!" canon and thus reveal their own ridiculousness.

Re: theory of ticky

[dubdobdee.livejournal.com]

"those who would once have sneered at Joan Jett" = surely such people do not exist!

yr pal joan jett's actual girlfriend

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

WOT NO STEPS

There had BETTER be a Steps canon next week mr_tigger!

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

TBH I might to another canon TODAY since the PWC is delayed again.

[katstevens.livejournal.com]

Why have ppl ticked Lucky? The comedy video is NOT ENUF to save the song.

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

I found it quite moving when it came out!

[carsmilesteve.livejournal.com]

sixth out of six though. the spoken word bits are just classic though.

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

It is very moving! She's so lucky, she's a star, but she CRY CRY CRIES in her LONELY HEART :(

Cross-ref this (http://gofugyourself.typepad.com/go_fug_yourself/2006/02/letter_of_fug_p.html)

A DEFENCE OF THE TRACKS I TICKED INSTEAD OF THE BIG THREE

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

'Born To Make You Happy' - er I assume you have all read Tim's "Britney and Co-Dependence" article yes? I don't know where the FT archives are kept to link to it :(
'Stronger' - together with 'Overprotected' the pinnacle of the Maxproduction, 'Baby' and 'Oops' were but prototypes for these two. For ages I thought she was singing "I'm not your property, I swing both ways"
'I'm A Slave 4 U' - this basically ensured that pop and r&b would feed off each other and raise each other to increasingly awesome heights for a few years
'Overprotected' - this is where the patented Britney "maaaaeeeeeyyyy" comes from! Also the way she sings "do about my destiny" is beyond lovely
'Boys' - "kitty-kitty! kitty-kitty!" Brit and Pharrell's interaction is superb
'Everytime' - the most heartbreaking brilliant ballad EVAH, and her best video to boot. She wrote it for Justin, you know :(

Re: A DEFENCE OF THE TRACKS I TICKED INSTEAD OF THE BIG THREE

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

I think both the big Neptunes ones are rubbish tbh and was delighted when she shifted tack for the 4th album.

BRITNEY ALBUM TRAX WHICH ARE BETTER THAN THE BIG THREE

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

Cinderella (inc amazing portentous spoken word section about how she "won't - return - to THEE!")
Before The Goodbye (BT done this for her, a spacey metaphysical ballad turns into a PUMPING HOUSE TRACK)
What It's Like To Be Me (only recorded Justin/Britney duet! er he does beatboxing and I think backing vox)
Bombastic Love (scary stalker love more like)
Anticipating (the sweetest disco strings in all existence)
Brave New Girl (Britney raps about losing her virginity and her pink little baby tee, before a host of Daft Punk robots take over; also note the amazing title)
Outrageous (R Kelly leches over Britney moaning about her sex drive and her shopping spree)
(I Got That) Boom Boom (BRITNEY SPEARS AND THE YING YANG TWINS Y'ALL)

Re: BRITNEY ALBUM TRAX WHICH ARE BETTER THAN THE BIG THREE

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Anticipating is fine, but the Braxe mix is awesome.

[anthonyeaston.livejournal.com]

Could I get a zip of that album by any chance tom?
and i love lucky

born to make us happy

[blue-russian.livejournal.com]

yet I can't remember 'crazy' or 'stronger' although i'm sure i liked them. but the title line of 'don't let me be the last to know' is totally stuck in my head.

if you'd told me i'd ever be unable to remember how these songs went, i'd have denied it.

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

I seem to remember her having so many good singles that aren't on this list. Obv, I don't but still, they seem like a disappointing selection.

Is it worth getting her third album? I vaguely want it for no very good reason, although 'Stronger' is clearly bloody brilliant. (err, if that's on there, I lost track at some point)

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

It is totally worth getting the third album (but 'Stronger' is actually on the second)

[juror8.livejournal.com]

What are everyone's favourite faux-Britney tunes then? LeAnn Rimes' "Can't Fight The Moonlight" and Gareth Gates' "Anyone of Us (Stupid Mistake)" spring immediately to mind.

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

"Anyone Of Us" is great, but A1's "Same Old Brand New You" is titanic.

Does post-Max Britney get imitated as much? Did anyone try and rip off "Toxic"?

[awesomewells.livejournal.com]

What is the third one of the Big Three?

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

At the time I wrote "Big Three", "Oops..." was stick neck and neck with the Big Two. It is the SDP of Britneypop.