Natalie Imbruglia, Torn - A Classical Musician’s First Listen and Reaction
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 6 ก.ย. 2024
- #virginrock #natalieimbruglia #torn
Casual; but beautiful. I like the voice as it fits the mood of the story and tells everything about it.
Here’s the link to the original song:
• Natalie Imbruglia - To...
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Amy Shafer, LRSM, FRSM, RYC, is a classical harpist, pianist, and music teacher, Director of Piano Studies and Assistant Director of Harp Studies for The Harp School, Inc., holds multiple degrees in harp and piano performance and teaching, and is active as a solo and collaborative performer. With nearly two decades of teaching experience, she teaches privately, presents masterclasses and coaching sessions, and has performed and taught in Europe and USA.
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Credits: Music written and performed by Natalie Imbruglia
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I have had a crush on Natalie Imbruglia for decades.
For whatever reason, this one always kicks off a massive 90s nostalgia wave for me. What wouldn't I give to go back and do it again.
Same!! This came out my senior year in high school and brings such great memories.
The lyrics and feel of this song was exactly the feeling of the mid-late 90s. I loved it since I heard it the first time when I was 19. It came out when I was chasing a seemingly unattainable girl and then as we kissed for the first time, this song was playing in the background. So I'll never forget it. Nostalgia through music can be INSANELY powerful in your brain.
I have always loved this song. It's my guilty pleasure
This is just a great pop song, pure simple. Nothing complicated or fancy, Just a great melody and hookey chorus. This brings me back to my senior year in high school and just great memories.
Unlike perhaps some of the commenters here, I really like this song, despite my usual vibe being blues/hard rock. I find the bass line really fun to play, and yeah I think the poppy, upbeat style actually makes an interesting counterpoint to the darker lyrics. The out-of-kilter-ness helps rather than hinders.
And the original is darker with some different chords, so there things fit together better
@@davidhills3100 exactly.
Yes, I prefer it to the Ednaswap version, which I find to be too dark, and not usually what I'm looking for
Agree.
Nice pop song. I remember being magnetized by Natalie's eyes in the video. Worth paying a visit. Oh the 90s..
Me too !.
Yes. Probably the real reason why this song was so successful during MTV's golden age and the era of music videos.
Do you know her song "Want" ?!? Eye candy.
Great choice. Its wonderful pop and Natalie's vocal is spot on.
Yes, the guitar in the end sounds so good
the guitar at the end upgrade the song to another level
Reminds me of James' "She's a Star". I wonder which came first.
I can't hear this song without thinking/seeing David Armand's interpretive dance of this song...so funny.
That and the one with him and Natalie herself!
She had a large house on a private island on the River Thames near Windsor (UK) which this song probably paid for.
"Natalie Imbruglia's breakthrough hit "Torn" was actually a cover, but she still earned a fortune.
The original songwriters of "Torn," Anne Preven and Scott Cutler, receive about $150,000 annually in royalties."
good buisness for a song that didnt hit the first time
@@iForeverImmature The band Ednaswap, who wrote it didn't bother to record it at first and actually gave it away to a danish producer, but played their version in concerts. The first recording of the song was a danish artist with a danish lyric that was a hit, but only in Denmark. Ednaswap recorded it a few years later. Took 4 years after that for Imbruglia to record her version.
@@martinslvsten428 ty for that info, very interesting 👍
Unbelievable, truly
you can consider Natalie is one of the luckiest one hit wonder, the amount of money she made from this one track is most one hit wonder can't make today.
The slide guitar at the end was a staple of 90s alt rock and is also used in country music, so there's that connection. It's use here reminds me just a bit of the guitar "solo" in Toad the Wet Sprocket's "Walk On the Ocean".
Great pop song.
Back in my day, we had these things called " music videos " . This video was very well done.
So true about the difference between what the music is telling us and what the lyrics are about. As you could read, i'm not an english speaker, and sometimes i have to put a real effort to understand what the lyrics are about. Long story short, when i first listened to this song, for me it was just a happy pop song until i watched the videoclip and then i read the lyrics. Amy, you made an interesting analisys as always.
One of my all time favourite tracks. Not that I really listen to the lyrics. It just sounds great (to me). 🙂
The lyrics, composition and rendition do elevate it to a somewhat higher plane than most run of the mill pop songs, and you really do feel for her and her angst over a love interest drastically misjudged and the ensuing torment and shame. This is very much an experience that many if not most of us go through at some point in life and it really can tear you apart, emotionally. But its breezy and light tone prevent it from reaching the pathos and depth that is often typical of composers and performers like Carole King, Tori Amos or Adele.
I got to disagree with most of the comments before: I loved that song from day on I heard it for the first time and still do. No sync between lyric and music? I don't see a problem in it: ABBA made it all the time.
It's one of ABBA's secrets for success
@@fernandodeleon7466 Ahahahahahahahahah !!!.
Wow, you're exactly right! Good observation.
I don't even notice music and lyrics being out of sync. Only shows that different people perceive the "feel" of music very different. To me that song had some kind of at least "mellow" and "sad but beautiful" quality right from the first listen. Sure it's not a super-dark and depressing ballad, but to me it's not a "happy good time" song either.
And Blondie
You got the name right! "im-BROO-lee-yah"
Yes! The "g" is silent.
Many songs voiced by women in the 90s have this stuck and conflicted style- voicing the growing contradictions of perceived feminine roles. Another powerful element of these were the accompanying music videos. Might be interesting for you to view the video for this song, the many Alanis Morissette videos and others, so you can see this component of their work.
The nostalgia turned up to 11 with this one! Lyrically it hit the mark at the time. Natalie's portrayal in the music video sums it all up. It's like a drama unfolding with her hot and cold love interest, then when the guitar solo kicks in she just decides she may as well just randomly dance. Loved it! I may have had a tiny crush on her ever since!! 😂
She sang that song for an amnesty international concert and the guy that does the pantomime, and she comes in and matches the act while singing. Fun is the embracing of the honor of learning the moves. Kudos
Given the history and production on this version I have to assume the dissonance between the tone of the music and the lyrics is intentional, a "pop crafted piece" for sure but I think they nailed it with this one. After all, and like you said, the music says what the lyrics don't.
YES I LOVE THIS TOO!!! hahaha
This is one of those songs I've absorbed by osmosis from a thousand car radios, but never listened to closely. It's very well produced. Lyrically it sounds like a sort of safety valve, putting feelings into words and singing them out loud as a way of diffusing and defusing them. A kind of middle class white girl's blues.
You do have to be a little dead inside to not feel for her even a little, while another part of you is thinking "Welcome to the real world, where things don't always go as hoped for!".
A beautiful voice from a beautiful person.
Such a typical mid-to-late 90's thing to have a drum sample in the intro and real drums being added later in the song! 😄
And interesting to hear Phil Thornally having co-written this song, as he had been one of the bass players in The Cure during the period Simon Gallup had left them temporarily, and _their_ style is rather different! 😅
Then again, Thornally had also been considered as a replacement for Johnny Hates Jazz' lead singer, so I probably shouldn't be _too_ surprised 😄
Mind-blowing that this had been Australia's internationally most successful song for a very long time! Even though it's actually very well played, sung and produced! I still much prefer her sister Laura's edgier, quirkier style, though 😊
Ednaswap’s "original" wasn’t technically the first releasw of the song. They recorded it first, but before they got around to releasing it, a Danish translation called "Brændt" ("Burned") was released by Lis Sørensen.
True, but Lis Sørensen does not usually get credit cause she is not well-known internationally. She's real famous in Denmark though.
This song is originally by a indie/Grunge band called Ednaswap
But Natalie`s version always be best. New versions sucks absolutely in crapp
@@brandingdesign6593 the original by Ednaswap is my favorite version
One thing I hated about Imbruglia is that she said she wrote the song in one interview
@@brandingdesign6593Natalie's version in pure pop. No emotion, no soul. The original, written by Anne Preven, from a very personal experience, is performed with an emotional intensity that lets you feel the hurt and confusion Anne is conveying with her lyrics. No contest!
@@brandingdesign6593 What "New versions"?
This song captures the sound of 90s pop music. There must have been a dozen, maybe two dozen young singer-songwriters who sounded very much like this. And why not? It's an appealing sound. Many of them played at Lillith Fair, the traveling show of female musicians. A few of them had sufficient depth and talent to continue to be vital musical forces beyond the 1990s. Tori Amos and Jewel come to mind. Indigo Girls stepped into this movement, but they were really pursuing a different vision with more folk and rock influences. Songs like "Torn" will live as long as they play background music at Starbucks.
I'm reminded of the Cardigans, Dolores O'Riordan and Leigh Nash. For a while this breezy, girlish, effervescent vocal style was very popular. I can just hear the music execs saying "Find me someone who sounds just like her!"
@@kovie9162 It's better than autotuned sameyness. It's popularity probably owes a bit to Jagged Little Pill too, many of the same sentiments but without some of the rawness making for a more comfortable pop-song.
One day I'd love to see Amy do a reaction to a movie, especially one with a great musical score. I've been watching reactions to one of my favorite films lately, the original Blade Runner (final cut), with the late Vangelis' award winning score, and was struck at how a masterful movie was made even more amazing by a masterful musical score. Would a musician look at it as almost a...spoken opera? Probably not, lol, but...
I know...I'm nuts...
Ignore this comment, lovely Amy, ha ha.
There are so many great ones though, Star Wars, the Godfather, anything by Hitchcock, etc.
@@kovie9162 Yes! Even some video games are worth listening to. I love the soundtrack for the original Rome Total War.
Same, and especially musicals. Jesus Christ Superstar, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, Chicago, even Doctor Horrible Singalong Blog. Though it might be hard with YT copyright filters.
Imbruglia's version sounds like it was most influenced by Norwegian Trine Rein's version. Ednaswap was the first to perform the song and Danish Lis Sørensen was the first to record it in Danish.
Trine Rein version always sounds the weakest one to me, not because she's a bad singer but her voice is too confident and positive, it sound nothing like what "torn" feels like.
I can't wait to watch this later, Torn, and possibly this whole album, is a pop MASTERPIECE.
Another similar song is I Am Like A Bird by Nelly Furtado
Even though this is one of the classic radio songs that's always bring played, it's still one of my guilty pleasures.
I believe Imbruglia is pronounced with the g silent: Imbroolia
I looked it up and yes, that's how it's pronounced. She might be Aussie-Brit but that's an Italian name (her father is Sicilian) and that's how it's pronounced in Italian, like the silent "g" in "lasagna" or "bologna". People often mispronounce Italian words and names but once you know the relatively few basic rules, it's one of the easiest languages to pronounce correctly.
@@kovie9162 Yes, I even hear television chefs pronounce "tagliatelli" with a hard 'g' rather than 'talliatelli' as it should be.
@@thomassharmer7127 Almost, the "gli" has a sound of its own (/ʎʎ/ for those who can read phonetic symbols), but making it a silent g is a decent approximation, and certainly better than a hard G 😄
@@DanieleCanavesio Thanks. Yes, I know it's more a '*lly' sound with the tongue flattened against the roof of the mouth, but didn't know the phonetic symbol.
The Italian sound "gl" doesn't exist in English, so you can say it as you like: it's wrong anyway😉
I think part of the reason for the instrumentation choices was the musical milieu in which the song was released. So many songs at the time incorporated acoustic guitar and this laid back vibe. It was just before digital recording/production came along and changed the sound of popular music forever. I guess country music is still somewhat of a holdover for acoustic guitar, but at the time that this song was released, it was an excellent rendition of a completely typical style in pop/rock music.
Great analysis! Maybe the mismatch between and tone and the subject was a result of creating by committee-- a lyricist confessed their struggle, songwriters placed it into a melody and chord structure, then a producer worked with a team of studio musicians to build a marketable soundscape for it. But on the other hand, if we credit it with intentional genius, maybe it lies in the lyric "that's what's going on", where the entire confession lies as the answer to a conversational inquiry ("What's going on?") that is removed from the actual give-and-take of the trauma itself.
We play this in my cover band. It follows a very 90s pop formula - rhythmic acoustic guitar figure throughout, overdriven electric guitar arpeggios in the prechorus and chorus, slide guitar solo. It's amazing how many songs from the era used this exact orchestration.
Still a nice indie song to sing along and enjoy it. The video was also great, pushed the popularity even more, I think.
It’s the grand dichotomy expressed musically🎶🎶🎶
For your own amusement I would suggest seeing David Armand interpretive dance to this at the Amnesty International 2006 Secret Policeman’s Ball. It is a little difficult to find as this version was taken down from TH-cam (there are other versions still up but they do not have the magic element) but it is still available elsewhere, and trust me, well worth the effort to find.
From The Telegraph in UK, 26 July 2024:
Sir Liam Fox has revealed that he helped convince Natalie Imbruglia to release her biggest hit song.
The former [UK] defence secretary was “very good friends” with the Australian pop star and said he had a hand in her choosing to release Torn as a single in 1997 during a phone-in on the LBC radio station.
Sir Liam also addressed rumours put to him by a caller that he had dated the singer.
The former Cabinet minister said: “Well, I would say that if you need to know that, you probably require a level of therapy.
“Yes, we were very good friends; yes, I did help her pick Torn out as a single and yes, I was on the credits of the album.”
The Guardian reported in 2008 that the artist thanked Sir Liam on her album Left of the Middle.
It doesn't have ABBA vibes, but definitely the ABBA formula : joyfull music, dramatic lyrics 😊
Yeap, only that ABBA could fill a full LP with hits! ORIGINAL, not covered!
@@cosmincasuta486 For sure !
The instrumental portion of the music in this song, for the most part, is the fairly bland cracker you use to scoop into a very nice soup or dip. It’s not the star of the show, but rather a vehicle that brings the lyrics and vocals to you. It adds some context and texture, but doesn’t stand out or draw attention from the actual dish.
I think the producers and studio musicians who put it all together did a great job of knowing that role and creating a nice vibe of the song without doing anything particularly flashy or noticeable. Great textures, great rhythm, great balance across the audio spectrum, but no superstars stealing focus. 👍🏻
I really love the guitar outro solo, simple but effective - always reminds me of old school Steve Hackett (Genesis).
The second frase of the solo makes me think of George Harrison's style of bending
Are used to not like country music until somebody described it to me as drama, now I don’t judge his music and judge it on how well the drama is :-)
She tells a story in the same way they do in Country music.
I believe this song was therapeutic in the way you describe it and that is why it was so popular🤷♂️🤷♂️🤷♂️
Take this song put it with Closing Time by Semisonic, Iris by the Goo Goo dolls, a bit of Oasis and Blur and that's pretty much the nineties bottled 😂
if you listen to Ednaswap's grunge like original, you'll see how different the music and lyrics fit, and how much more bitter it sounds. But it sounds more vulnerable as well, which is great.
Still shocked that James didn't sue over the guitar at the end.
The sadness is in the vocal harmonies of the chorus
I think this song is a good pick also, since I think it was very popular pop song at 90s. I think some more poppy songs can be listened here and there and not only heavier. Since she's coming from almost totally classical background, the song choices can vary a bit more to give a general sense what was going on in different eras in pop/rock world.
Would love to hear your take on Sade’s Is It a Crime
Plenty of songs fall into this mould of either accidental or sometimes deliberate dissonance between the melody of a song and the lyrical content. Some of them are good or great songs despite it and some are amazing precisely because of it.
One fave is SOS by ABBA. For a cover more consonant with the lyrics, check out Portishead.
The Smiths Girlfriend In A Coma is a great example
"Torn" is a late 90s radio-friendly pop song. As far as pop songs go this is pretty good. There were way worse pop songs on the radio then and not much better now. Her song "Smoke" is a good song too.
"Not much better now"? Current pop music is *so* f×cking bad. It lacks *everything.*
If you see the video that went with the song it does seem to make more sense🎶🎶🎶
Well outside the genres I usually listen to, but I have always really liked this particular version of this song.
Alt-country was/is a thing. Maybe check out some Wilco?
Another great video
If you like this quotes, you can very easily imagine and remember this :
" You have to believe in yourself because if you don’t have fire, nobody else is going to believe in you ", Natalie Imbruglia.
" You have to find tools whether it's meditation, whether it's writing down negative thoughts and creating positive ones like whatever you need to focus to recognize, you are just spiraling and we do it all the time ", she said.
謝謝你。
If any of you get a chance, go check out Anne Preven’s original version of Torn performed on Howard Stern, live. Well worth a listen. She also talks personally, about how she felt about her song being used in a much different way than it was originally intended. As much as Natalie’s version and her own music certainly have their own merit, it just hits differently coming from Anne’s heart and soul.
For a song with intentional mismatch between music and lyrics listen to Excitable Boy by Warren Zevon
Nearly every Smiths song has contrary lyrics and music... Girlfriend In A Coma for example
Ednaswap's original version is definitely worth a listen. The words and chords are essentially the same, but the overall tone is so much different. This version seems happy and upbeat, whereas the original felt much darker and real for what the lyrics are saying.
Natalie actually said once in an interview that she had co written this song ! Whoops!
Yes I recall that. What a bullshitter she was
I don't know if it's still on TH-cam, check out the live version on "The Secret Policeman's Second Ball". The mime artist steals it!
Yep, this is immediately where my mind goes whenever I hear this song.
Hi we would love to see some more Australian artists / Bands please ... love your channel
Agree. I suggest The Church - much more interesting to dig into.
You could listen to some Fleetwood Mac
The Chain or Rhiannon I would suggest. Or some old school Genesis, she really liked the one she heard over a year ago. Or a real pioneering female artist like Kate Bush.
Big Mistake is a good one where her voice goes harder.
speaking about dreamy, she hasn't listened to Dreams by Fleetwood Mac yet?
I really hope Amy will listen to a Fleetwood Mac song!
Yeah I could talk about the dream partner...
I remember every little thing as if it happened only yesterday ! Parking by the lake and there was not another car in sight...
that ending, chords, that slide...it just reminds me of Radio Gaga, I can't help it
Yes, its just a pop song. But it's a geat pop song which stands head and shoulders above most of the mush we are fed these days.
This brings me to another one hit wonder.. checkout “Black Velvet by Alannah Myles. ❤
Her dad’s Sicilian I read somewhere. So I guess she’s half italian
Most if not all lines decrease in tone at the end. I love the surpressed aggression in the singing. It gives energy.
A sort list of great Aussie lady rock songs. Dirty Jeans by Magic Dirt. Jesus by Spiderbait. Ordinary Angels by Frente. I could pick so many more but that’s a good place to start.
In this same era and context of female artists I'd also look at Jewel
Great song. What happened to her?
Wikipedia claims her father has Italian heritage.
A nice wee harmless unoffensive pop song. Nothing too deep, a nice melody and bouncy groove.
Now watch it done by the person who wrote it, Anne Previn, the band was Ednaswap. It isn't bubble gum like this version.
Another song where there's a mismatch between the cheery music and darker lyrics is "I'll Be That Girl" (Barenaked Ladies)
The Smiths almost specialised in depressing vocals and lyrics and happy upbeat music
Maybe it's time to meet 5 beautiful ladies in high heels and dresses playing classic heavy metal? For starters, I recommend the song Break the Wall from their earlier albums. Boasting over 70 hit singles, they won Best New Metal Band at the Metal Hammer Awards in 2018. The girls play heavy, thrash, power and prog metal, they also have some beautiful ballads. Break the wall th-cam.com/video/5Pc0XK0lNmU/w-d-xo.html or Nameless warrior th-cam.com/video/Dl29tiJCbNM/w-d-xo.html
I thought you were talking about Hanabie at first
The drums drive the piece for me.
Imbruglia was pretty so had a hit with the cover. Ironically her other single is better with a psychedelic Beatles vibe
You should react to the version of this recorded by the songwriters, Ednaswap, from their album Wacko Magneto. Very different vibe!
A suggestion for a song to look at....Holy Grail by Jay Z and Justin Timberlake
It would be interesting to see you react to Immortal Technique's "The Fourth Branch".
WELL THAT IS LIFE ISN'T? In her video she looks great and the song is superb, yet I saw current photos of her and boy!!!! She looks so different to that adorable girl I love and liked, she just matured into something unexpected to the individual expectation I suppose and it happens to everybody (even myself), yet the song all the time will be a hit. That is life
Cute tomboy pixie girl grew up to be a bland 50 plus woman
Yeah Natalie's an aussie/italian pop singer. She started as a teenage soap opera star. This was the only half decent song she ever did imo. It's throwaway pop. Recently released a new album I heard.
Please react to fiona apple "never is a promise" thanks!!
I think her father is of Italian descent and immigrated to Australia.
it would be easy to tell you how Imbruglia is pronunced right.. less easy to write it down.. but it may be something like Imbruya even do I accent would sound different... hello from Italy!
I wish you review Carlos Santana Blues for Salvador - Song of the wind - Flame Sky - Europa💗
That's weird: I learned that you like the voice of Alanis Morissette, and I thought, you should listen to Natalie Imbruglia ... And here we are.
Amy definitely needs to hit the Indigo Girls next.
@@michlkwitz Yes, trying them out soon would certainly put Amy closer to fine
Although Natalie Imbruglia´s version is really nice and certainly the most successful one, I still kinda prefer Trine Rein´s cover or the original by Ednaswap.
im-Broo-lee-a
For more mature powerful pop , listen to ABBA ...... Winner takes it all ....... 😎👌
Im(pronounced like the word in ) brew Lee ahh.