Rating:
Genre:
Country
Release Date: 11/04/1997
Run Time: 60:26
Shania Twain's second record,
The Woman in Me, became a blockbuster, appealing as much to a
pop audience as it did to the
country audience. Part of the reason for its success was how producer
Robert John "Mutt" Lange -- best-known for his work with
Def Leppard,
the Cars, and
AC/DC -- steered
Twain toward the big choruses and instrumentation that always was a signature of his speciality, AOR radio.
Come on Over, the sequel to
The Woman in Me, continues that approach, breaking from
contemporary country conventions in a number of ways. Not only does the music lean toward
rock, but its 16 songs and, as the cover proudly claims, "Hour of Music," break from the
country tradition of cheap, short albums of ten songs that last about a half-hour. Furthermore, all 16 songs and
Lange-
Twain originals and
Shania's sleek, sexy photos suggest a New York fashion model, not a honky tonker. And there isn't any
honky tonk here, which is just as well, since the fiddles are processed to sound like synthesizers and talk boxes never sound good on down-home, gritty rave-ups. No,
Shania sticks to what she does best, which is countrified mainstream
pop. Purists will complain that there's little
country here, and there really isn't. However, what is here is professionally crafted
country-pop -- even the filler (which there is, unfortunately, too much of) sounds good -- which is delivered with conviction, if not style, by
Shania, and that is enough to make it a thoroughly successful follow-up to the most successful
country album by a female in history.
~Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
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