September 4, 200915 yr LOVE that cover! Stunning pic. This sounds like it is going to be f***ing incredible. :dance:
September 4, 200915 yr PJ Review. The whole idea of 'Happy' is 'bugger this I'm off'. The song begins with Leona singing that "someone once told me that you have to choose what you win or lose - you can't win everything". The advice, Leona explains, was not to take chances. Then Leona goes "but I can't stand by the side and watch this life pass me by, so unhappy but safe as could be". And then it all goes off (this will be the bit during the X Factor performance when the lights go on) and Leona blasts out "so what if it hurts me? So what if I break down? So what if this world just throws me off the edge, my feet run out of ground?" It is a proper goosebumps moment. She continues: "I've gotta find my place, I wanna hear my sound, don't care about all the pain in front of me, cos I'm just trying to be..." And then there's a split second pause as if she's trying to think of the right word, because 'happy' is too obvious, but at the same time it's all she wants, and it's all anyone really wants, so that's what she says. That's all very well love but that shirt's not going to iron itself. It starts off a bit (not very much like) 'Nothing Compares 2U'. It goes quiet LOUD quiet LOUD quiet LOUD quiet LOUD. This song is going to be responsible for the end of rather a few relationships. Hopefully there will be some sort of stand-by-your-man, let's-try-and-work-it-out song before Christmas to even things out, eh viewers??? It's amazing. Not just 'Popjustice' amazing but proper 'amazing' amazing. You can tell it comes from the same place as 'Bleeding Love' but it is not the same song and it doesn't sound like all Ryan Tedder's other big songs (ie the chorus isn't just "HAPPY HAPPY HAP-HAPPY HAPPY WHOA HAPPY-HAPPY"). There is a very very very minor hint of 'Battlefield' just before the second chorus but you'd have to be the ultimate tosspot to even think about arguing that it detracts from the song in any way at all. Imagine if 'Bleeding Love''s dad sat it down one day and said 'the thing is, 'Bleeding Love', before I met your mummy I was very much in love with another lady and we actually had a little baby together so - hey! - great news, 'Bleeding Love', you've got an older slightly more mature sister called 'Happy'", and then 'Bleeding Love' looks at 'Happy' and goes, "well, we look nothing alike but I suppose we're sort of similar", and dad says, "you've both got my eyes". And then they all go to the zoo together. That is what this song is like. iTunes thinks the promo CD is one of these, but it is not. http://www.popjustice.com/images/stories/j/leonaitunes.jpg Good vocal perfmance. 'It's a yes from us.' It is very empowered in a 'what happened when girl power grew up, forgot itself then remembered itself' sort of way and it's got a great "lights on full, massive choir appears on either side of stage" X Factor moment near the end. The press release is typically understated: "After winning the hearts and minds of the public in 2006 by winning the X Factor, Leona has gone on to conquer the world". In short: the Leona Lewis single is above average. A brilliant way to open the second album campaign and a proper world class piece of pop tuneage which doesn't have quite all the indecipherable mysterious magic of 'Bleeding Love' but still boasts more than 97% of other pop tunes. World exclusive first full proper play on Radio One this Sunday.
September 4, 200915 yr Adore those lyrics! I'm beyond excited to hear it. Glad it's not typical Tedder too. :D
September 4, 200915 yr I really can't wait to hear this. I have a feeling it could be the pop song of the year.
September 4, 200915 yr I really hope it's going to be huge. Grammy noms! And Leona will be eligible for "Song of the Year", as she's co-written it! :D
September 4, 200915 yr I think I am going to love this song. It already sounds like it will have a lot of meaning for me and many others. Obviously I'm not going to worship it until I hear it but the things that are appearing in connection to it please me more than just the title 'Happy'. I envisioned something awful when I saw that :lol: I can see the UK going Leona crazy again especially if she performs it on The X Factor.
September 4, 200915 yr Already posted. Yeah but yours had an 'x' instead on an image earlier so I posted it again. ^_^
September 4, 200915 yr Bigger version of the promotional picture: http://www.leonalewismusic.co.uk/gallery/new_image_medium.jpg
September 4, 200915 yr Bigger version of the promotional picture: http://www.leonalewismusic.co.uk/gallery/new_image_medium.jpg The pictures is STUNNING! I think it is the best Leona picture!
September 4, 200915 yr Digital Spy review: Weeeeell... it's called 'Happy' and it's a ballad. It was produced by Ryan Tedder - yes, he of 'Bleeding Love' and 'Battlefield' renown - and written by Tedder, E. Kidd Bogart and Leona herself. It clocks in at four minutes and two seconds. The piano-led verses are subdued and almost mournful, but the moment the chorus hits is - and this is a word that doesn't apply to many ballads - explosive. "So what if it hurts me? So what if I break down?" Leona sings. "So what if this world just throws me off the edge, my feet run out of ground?" Her response? So the hell what! "I don't care about all the pain in front of me, I'm just trying to be happy," she sings on the final line of the chorus. The song's message is essentially Seize The Day, Take A Chance In Life, Don't Be Afraid Of Moving On and Leona delivers it beautifully. In fact, her vocal run from 2.39 to 2.44 could be the most incredible five seconds of singing we've heard all year. So, as you'll have guessed by now, we're very impressed with 'Happy'. It's a really strong lead single that sounds like a number one, and a typically muscular production from Tedder, but above all it's a powerful and moving song. Next time some inconsiderate sod keeps stepping on your feet on the bus and doesn't apologise when you shoot him a look, this is what you'll play to cheer yourself up. It premieres this Sunday at 7pm on Radio 1. http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/blog/thesound/ :w00t:
September 4, 200915 yr Imagine if 'Bleeding Love''s dad sat it down one day and said 'the thing is, 'Bleeding Love', before I met your mummy I was very much in love with another lady and we actually had a little baby together so - hey! - great news, 'Bleeding Love', you've got an older slightly more mature sister called 'Happy'", and then 'Bleeding Love' looks at 'Happy' and goes, "well, we look nothing alike but I suppose we're sort of similar", and dad says, "you've both got my eyes". And then they all go to the zoo together. That is what this song is like. LMAO. Best. review. ever. I actually need to hear this. Slightly life and death.
September 5, 200915 yr Leona's Happy Return First Robbie and now LEONA LEWIS's comeback single Happy. And I'm pleased to tell you it's not just a carbon copy of her calling-card ballad action. There are distorted drums, groaning keyboards and hernia-inducing levels of emotion about a broken relationship. It's welcome evidence that Leona can take her place alongside the planet's premier divas - and this stunning shot for the single's cover cements it. The subject matter of Happy is actually not very happy, but the vocal pyrotechnics on display more than make up for that. In the chorus she pleads: "I can't stand by your side and watch this life pass me by/I't care about all the pain in front of me/I just wanna be happy." Actually, it could be an ode to standing in the queue at Lidl. It's a tear-jerker all right and apparently put together on the hoof. The Hackney lass said: "The vocal was totally spontaneous. I sang it as soon as we finished writing. Sometimes it's better not to over-think things." It's a truly impressive return and is out on November 9. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showb...mp;ATTR=Bizarre
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