Close Up Vol 1, Love Songs – Suzanne Vega (Shock)

Suzanne Vega had an epiphany. Unlike authors who cannot re-write their own books, recording artists are able to re-record their own songs. That way when the original release is out of print, or the label goes broke or a new format appears to supersede the existing one then the songs can simply be re-invented and re-made in the way that’s now suited to them.

That decided, she has now gone about the task. She’s divided the songs into four groups and she’ll be releasing four albums of the new recordings This is the first to be followed by People and Places, States of Being and finally Songs of Family.

Of course not every artist can do this, and in some cases the original recording will always be the definitive one. I can’t see too many metal bands doing acoustic re-interpretations of their entire catalogue, but in the case of Vega it’s a perfectly apt idea.

Most of the songs she’s re-recorded here are done in a sparse acoustic way and her gorgeous, intimate vocal style is to the fore. It’s not that there isn’t other instruments being played – Marlene On The Wall for example introduces some wonderful musical textures to complement Vega’s dreamy vocal performance (which is actually superior to the original in my opinion). However most of the songs are “stripped back” to their essence and then in some cases rebuilt in a most tasteful way. This album is a lot more interesting than the standard “greatest hits – unplugged” set.

Naturally there’s no Luka or Toms Diner on this album (they are certain to feature later) but they are not missed in this context. She’s never sung better and the production has the vocal so close to the front that it feels like she’s whispering in your ear. It has a chilling and thrilling effect and from the first song, a remarkable re-invention of Small Blue Thing, you get a genuine sense of a very private connection with these songs and the listener.

There’s a couple of startling highlights. Songs In Red And Gray is an amazing song about the meeting between the singer and the daughter of an ex-lover. Another with a similar theme is Some Journey which poses the perennial “what if things had been different” question to another lover for whom a candle still burns.

By re-offering these songs in this way Vega is inviting us to re-consider her and her songs and it’s a worthwhile and rewarding exercise.