The Woman In Me

This is Shania's first album to sell millions, and it deserved to. Shania's singing is first-rate on this album, and the chemistry she shares with hubby/producer Mutt Lange translates into great music. She guides even the slightly weakest tracks (of which there are very few of) into something you can't help but sing along to.

What makes this such an amazing album is that the big hits that helped Shania gain such a huge audience haven't lost any of their touch over the years. They sound just as good today as they did in 1995. That alone is something to be proud of. The fact that she co-wrote most of the songs here and allowed her personality to shine through is also something to be proud of.

I highly recommend this album. This is the album that gave us the Shania we all know and love. I first became a fan of Shania thanks to this album and I have never stopped being a fan of hers since.

"The Woman In Me" is still the watershed country (yes, country) album of the 1990s and still Shania's best album to date. The hit songs are pure, unadulterated fun. Nothing more, nothing less. There a pair of weak tracks but they are completely overshadowed by the horde of chart-toppers.

"Any Man of Mine" is a perfect example of how to write crowd-pleasing, danceable, and catchy country songs without making them novelty tunes (e.g., "Achy Breaky Heart") or crossover fluff. Its harmonics, hooks, and staccato drums STILL make people move after nearly a decade but it maintains an authentic, even flagrant, country style.

The ballads are touching, the light-hearted tunes (especially "No One Needs to Know") actually lighten the heart, and the [fast] songs really kick. And "God Bless the Child" is a haunting autobiographical coda.

The reason TWIM remains Shania's best is that it picks one style per song and sticks with it. Much of her later efforts try to graft incongruent genres into single songs ("Honey I'm Home" has pop verses and country choruses, for example) to schizophrenic effect. It makes it easier to re-mix for each market but hurts the music.

If you must own a Shania CD, make it this one.

An artist always broadens their horizons. Shania clearly is an artist who stays in her roots but also knows how to be mainstream which is clearly her choice.I don't think Shania is another BRITNEY SPEARS nor the BRITNEY SPEARS of country because she does not use her sex appeal to sell her music.She clearly is sexy and knows when to be sexy but she is not always wearing something or showing the attitude of being a sexual artist nor uses sexuality to sell her music and really no country artist especially females do not use their bodies to sell their music.Shania just knows how to work the ropes and I think people don't understand that.She makes wise decisions in her career beginning with 'THE WOMAN IN ME'. This cd is what introduced the world to SHANIA TWAIN.It isn't like 'COME ON OVER' or 'UP!'. Its a country, home-feel kind of cd but has the typical attitude of Shania which is seen in her other records as well.I can't say though that the album 'SHANIA TWAIN' is a typical Shania record since it isn't her own work except for Track5 on the album.'The Woman In Me' is a wonderful cd and offered various singles such as: ANY MAN OF MINE, WHOSE BED HAVE YOUR BOOTS BEEN UNDER, IF YOU'RE NOT IN IT FOR LOVE( I'M OUTTA HERE), THE WOMAN IN ME( NEEDS THE MAN IN YOU). Its a very instrumental and fun cd with good songs some rock-ish and others country-ish and it mixes well.I personally believe her other cds should not be trashed simply because you don't hear much of a country sound, what counts is that she knows how to make a good cd and she knows how to make herself heard even if CMT and other TELEVISION NETWORKS do not air her music often.ITS THE FANS THAT COUNT! CUZ WE LOVE SHANIA!!!! AND THIS ALBUM ROCKS!!!!!