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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Pure - with added Bonus CD, 31 Dec 2004
I reviewed the original issue of this album in March and gave it four stars then. Hayley is undoubtedly a great talent in the making and sings sweetly, clearly and without noticeable vibrato, but the voice is an acquired taste - on some of the songs, particularly the traditional Maori and slow classical ones, she sounds like a choirboy. On the more modern songs and arrangements, such as Never Say Goodbye (which is Ravel's ubiquitous Pavane) and Who Painted The Moon Black, the voice lowers in tone, is more mellow and easy to listen to, without losing its clarity and individuality.There is nothing remotely uptempo or aggressive on the album; the arrangements by Sarah Class and George Martin are mostly ethereal and unobtrusive - the familiar Wuthering Heights is as close to swinging as things get. Many people will be more than slightly aggrieved that, having supported this new talent by buying the original CD, it has now been re-released with a "bonus" CD containing six more songs (five of which were recorded at the same time as the original and could easily have been fitted onto it) plus a remix and a video of Pokarekare Are. Three of the new songs are seasonal, Mary Did You Know? falling into the category of modern carol; it and the following Bridal Ballad, from the movie of The Merchant of Venice, are easy on the ear, as, of course, are the two traditional carols at the end, but the middle stretch (My Heart And I / Across the Universe Of Time) I felt warbled on a bit too much, and it's a case of "spot the difference" on Pokarekare Are, apart from the removal of the backing chorus. All in all this keeps its four stars, but can only be recommended to anyone who is coming to it for the first time and doesn't have the original.
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