I am a huge Lady Gaga fan. Ever since I heard "Poker Face" on the radio, I've been hooked on her music, and enthralled with her persona. My husband and I watched her HBO special the other night and were completely blown away with the incredible, theatrical entertainment value. I'd love to see her live in concert some day.
The newly released song, "Edge of Glory" from Gaga's most recent album, Born this Way, however, feels uninspired. It sounds like another run of the mill 1980s ballad. The album's other songs each out with clever lyrics accompanied by interesting music. This one falls extremely short of that. I was disappointed. The song is reminiscent of it's album's cover. Born this Way was probably the most anticipated album in decades and the cover-art was a huge let-down - her body photo-shopped into a motorcycle? During a Monster Ball tour performance in Poland, Lady Gaga herself touted that she'd deliver "the greatest album of this decade." The album as a whole falls short of her goal.
It seems like in no time after Gaga burst onto the pop charts in 2008 with her first releases, she became the biggest superstar in the world overnight and hasn't slowed down. She has given us a tremendous amount of great music in a very short time. My fear is that Gaga is on the fast track to major burn out, and that her producers, record label, and whoever else (herself?) are now pushing her to churn out songs faster than she has time to reflect on them, or judge herself the quality her fans have come to expect. Unfortunately, with someone as big on the music scene as Lady Gaga, producers know they can get a way with a lot before fans start calling "bullshit!" Let me be clear, I don't think the album is bullshit at all, and I still think Gaga is an amazing artist, performer, and advocate for a lot of things that are important to me. She's great! After loving all the songs on her previous albums, I had the lofty expectation of feeling the same way about this one. Perhaps I just set myself up for a little disappointment.
Now, the album's title track, on the other hand will be one of the greatest songs of all time, and is definitely one of my favorites. "Born this Way" is in my head daily, and is one of very few songs currently playing on the radio that speaks directly to me, and from which I can draw strength.
Luckily, Lady Gaga has so much other good music that we can just forget "Edge of Glory" ever happened. If you are interested in hearing the song, here is Gaga's official music video:
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