So we skip ahead to 98 and it’s another self titled debut, this time from Tiffany Darwish the “flame haired shopping mall songstress” as I’m Sure Smash Hits called her at the time.
98 Tiffany (S/T).... Streaming on Spotify
Tiffany - Tiffany Spotify Album
Tiffany - Tiffany, iTunes Album USA
Tiffany - Tiffany, iTunes Album UK
This is a slightly odd one to wrap my head around. When producer George Tobin took a 12 year old Tiffany under his wing I'm sure he was not 100% sure of what sort of artist he had taken on.
Tiffany gained her stripes writing and performing country music. There is no doubt she has a decent voice but Tobin saw things a different way and seems to have shoe-horned her talents into a bland procession of bublegum pop. There are standout tracks "I Think We're Alone Now" is a real ear-worm and "Could've Been" is a nice MOR pop ballad (the less said about her cover of the Beatles "I Saw HIM standing there" the better) but at least half the album is forgettable 80s synth laden .... nothing.
This knocked Michael Jackson's "Bad" off the number one spot in the US!! and reached a respectable number 5 in the UK.....why? I'm sure the fact that Tiffany was a warm and likeable teenager, performing across the the US in shopping malls (Tobin's genius masterstroke) and almost every track was radio friendly had a lot to do with it. Her voice, as good as it is, genuinely feels like she would be better suited to country (or perhaps the more soulful direction she took later in her career).
I have to admit, it's the first time I've listened to the whole album. It is a perfect example of the sort of music my 16 year old self and my friends liked to be "snippy" about... We would sit around on Saturday Mornings, watching Going Live (international readers...a kids "magazine" and entertainment show, traditional activity for a lazy weekend morning) and gently make fun. Truth be told it's fine, no better or worse than plenty other 80s pop, but it's surprising to think quite how may copies this sold...I can't imagine there are many who return to this often, even if they were big fans at the time.
I certainly all grew out of my "snippy" phase.... there are plenty artists where I had that reaction that I now have a lot of time for - I think it's a peculiar aspect of being a teenage boy. I was certainly never cool enough to REALLY worry about what other's thought of my music taste, but there were certain artists that crossed a line.
Any Tiffany memories? Any bands or artists you were a bit unkind about as a teenager where you have backtracked (or even where a recent listen would suggest you were right all along!!!!)
More later (hopefully number 99 will arrive and I can get back in order)
Tiffany - Tiffany, iTunes Album USA
Tiffany - Tiffany, iTunes Album UK
This is a slightly odd one to wrap my head around. When producer George Tobin took a 12 year old Tiffany under his wing I'm sure he was not 100% sure of what sort of artist he had taken on.
Tiffany gained her stripes writing and performing country music. There is no doubt she has a decent voice but Tobin saw things a different way and seems to have shoe-horned her talents into a bland procession of bublegum pop. There are standout tracks "I Think We're Alone Now" is a real ear-worm and "Could've Been" is a nice MOR pop ballad (the less said about her cover of the Beatles "I Saw HIM standing there" the better) but at least half the album is forgettable 80s synth laden .... nothing.
This knocked Michael Jackson's "Bad" off the number one spot in the US!! and reached a respectable number 5 in the UK.....why? I'm sure the fact that Tiffany was a warm and likeable teenager, performing across the the US in shopping malls (Tobin's genius masterstroke) and almost every track was radio friendly had a lot to do with it. Her voice, as good as it is, genuinely feels like she would be better suited to country (or perhaps the more soulful direction she took later in her career).
I have to admit, it's the first time I've listened to the whole album. It is a perfect example of the sort of music my 16 year old self and my friends liked to be "snippy" about... We would sit around on Saturday Mornings, watching Going Live (international readers...a kids "magazine" and entertainment show, traditional activity for a lazy weekend morning) and gently make fun. Truth be told it's fine, no better or worse than plenty other 80s pop, but it's surprising to think quite how may copies this sold...I can't imagine there are many who return to this often, even if they were big fans at the time.
I certainly all grew out of my "snippy" phase.... there are plenty artists where I had that reaction that I now have a lot of time for - I think it's a peculiar aspect of being a teenage boy. I was certainly never cool enough to REALLY worry about what other's thought of my music taste, but there were certain artists that crossed a line.
Any Tiffany memories? Any bands or artists you were a bit unkind about as a teenager where you have backtracked (or even where a recent listen would suggest you were right all along!!!!)
More later (hopefully number 99 will arrive and I can get back in order)
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