Taylor Swift
left her longtime home of
Big Machine
in 2018, setting up shop at
Republic Records
. Usually, such changes in label are only of interest to trainspotters, but once
Swift
departed
, the label was acquired by a group owned by
Scooter Braun
, a nemesis of
Taylor
's. The singer attempted to regain rights to her original recordings to no avail, leaving her with one option: she could re-record her records, thereby undercutting the value of her catalog in terms of syncs, placements, and licensing.
carried through on the promise in April 2021, releasing
Fearless (Taylor's Version)
, a brand-new version of her 2008 breakthrough.
recorded all 19 songs from the 2009 Platinum Edition of
Fearless
, adding a new version of "Today Was a Fairytale" from the
Valentine's Day
soundtrack, then six additional songs ("From The Vault") -- songs that were written around the time of
but not released. These tracks are of greatest interest, as they certainly have a younger, dewy-eyed perspective but were recorded with
Aaron Dessner
and
Jack Antonoff
, the producers of
's mature work. The blend of youth and experience is appealing, and it can also be heard in the newer renditions of the
material.
largely re-creates the arrangements and feel of the original 2008 album, yet her voice and phrasing has aged, giving the music a hint of bittersweet gravity. That said, it's only a hint;
serves the purpose of offering new versions that could be substituted for the originals for licensing purposes. It's to
's credit that the album is an absorbing (if long) listen anyway. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine