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Ani DiFranco - Imperfectly Audio CD

A fair review of the Ani DiFranco "Imperfectly" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Ani DiFranco reviews here, or go back to the Ani DiFranco tabs.

Ani DiFranco Band: Ani DiFranco
Title: Imperfectly
Rating:
Release Date: 1994-07-26
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: What If No One's Watching 2: Fixing Her Hair 3: In or Out 4: Every State Line 5: Circle of Light 6: If It Isn't Her 7: Good, Bad, Ugly 8: I'm No Heroine 9: Coming Up 10: Make Them Apologize 11: Waiting Song 12: Served Faithfully 13: Imperfectly

Her best early album
)

Ani's third record is nearly full of fine Ani songs offering the compassionate, cutting wit that keeps me coming back to her music:

"They made sure I wasn't smuggling someone in from Mexico, someone willing to settle for America 'cause there's nowhere else to go. (Actually ***1/2, but Amazon doesn't allow half stars. "

"I'm not on the rag, but I'm not on the run. "

"I sing what I wish I could say. "

"It's Mr. DiFranco to you. "

"He caresses every bottle like it's the first one he's had, saying 'It ain't love, but it ain't bad. '"

That last comes from a song in which she cuts some slack to a run-down, drunken ex-con who keeps making unwelcome passes at her, a bit of impressively thick-skinned magnanimity from a principled feminist who forgives because, "You've gotta understand the grandness of the man behind the petty crimes, and let 'em off easy sometimes. "

Unfortunately the album's marred by "Fixing Her Hair," which like many bad Ani songs has all the makings of a fine essay but no good musical ideas. But she more than makes up for that with my all-time favorite song of hers: the original studio version of "Every State Line," in which Ani sets aside her acoustic guitar, usually her sole accompaniment on this album, and traces her travels as a woman alone with no money through often hostile country in an a cappella tour de force. (Living in Clip has a completely different and also excellent version of this song that I don't like quite as well. ) This is Ani DiFranco's best album before Not a Pretty Girl, and it's a fine place to start getting into her early work.

Song by song:

1 What if No One's Watching ***
2 Fixing Her Hair *
3 In or Out ***
4 Every State Line *****
5 Circle of Light ***
6 If It Isn't Her ***
7 Good, Bad, Ugly ***
8 I'm No Heroine ***
9 Coming Up ***
10 Make Them Apologize **
11 The Waiting Song ***
12 Served Faithfully ***
13 Imperfectly **.


Great Album
I was bored about halfway through the first time I heard it but now it's one of my favorites. Imperfectly is a great Ani album, but, like many of her albums, it takes a few listens to fully appreciate it. Probably only worth the $15 for an Ani fan willing to put in the time and truly appreciate the artistry of this album. .


One of her best
This CD is a showcase of how amazing her music can really be. I am the owner of around eleven Ani DiFranco CDs, and Imperfectly remains my favorite. Every song on Imperfectly is great. As usual, the guitar is beautiful and the lyrics are thought provoking and well written. .


"the mainstream is so polluted with lies"
Of course that description of Ani is utterly false, but when did these people ever let something like the truth get in the way of anything?

This man-hating beacon of lesbian angst view of Ani is a myth created by the horrible listening skills of the people who are intimidated by Ani. This is another of Ani's excellent earlier albums that earned her the reputation (at least in the eyes of anyone dismissive of those who think for themselves) of being just an angry, scary lesbian with a big mouth. . . or by any strong, intelligent woman. Listen to her lyrics. In the instances where Ani does indeed dislike men, they are the men we should all dislike. Those who will do anything as long as significant financial gain will come from it. . . and/or the men who use bodyparts and emotions as weapons. A society that dislikes these types of men is on the right track. It's unfortunate that the USA is largely governed (both politically and "morally") by these types of people, and they are actually respected for it.

I think we have all known the woman in Fixing Her Hair. Every State Line (in this, its original incarnation) has the musical feel of some sort of southern national anthem, even though its lyrical content is anything but. If It Isn't Her is the perfect lyrical capture of new love (or at least new feelings) when the world seems to blur around all but. . . her (or him).

This album will certainly touch you in some way if you've ever let yourself really feel.


.


More hard-hitting, soul-searching melodies

This is another hard-hitting, melodic, but deeply honest set of songs you can't live without. Once you've got NOT A PRETTY GIRL, it's time to get IMPERFECTLY.

It's got some political, like "Make Them Apologize" which pulls no punches and "In or Out", which could basically be the official bisexual anthem. It's got the occasional existential crisis when the opening track asks, "What if no one's watching? What if when we're dead, we are just dead?"

And for anybody who thinks of Ani as being mainly a political singer, songs like SERVED FAITHFULLY remind us that she can write a deeply personal love song like nobody's business. In fact, when she writes one, it's MORE romantic than average, because it lacks corny platitudes.

As usual, her voice is fantastic and her guitar is slamming.

Don't miss the title track, IMPERFECTLY, which declares, "We don't look like the cover of a magazine, but that's all right. ".


You can see a complete list of all Ani DiFranco discography, or go back to the Ani DiFranco tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.

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