Re-discovering Joanne

[Moo 2,082]

Welcome. This is my retrospective look and rediscovering  of Joanne.

Hey Girls,  I'll admit it- until last night, I was over Joanne. Don't get me wrong, I loved it when it was released, playing it non-stop for almost a year. Though since then, I'd come to think of her as more of a career-move album, out of place in her discography. The ASIB Soundtrack only reinforced that, with tracks like Always Remember Us This Way, Music To My Eyes, Shallow, Maybe Its Time and I'll Never Love Again appearing to do what Joanne was trying to, only better. 

That changed last night after watching the Radio 1 interview from PI's release day. As I watched, all the nostalgia came flooding back, all the hype we had back then. Even being a little disappointed by PI on first listen , everyone was still on edge. 

Gaga and Joe laugh over listening to the tracks, and from the way they're talking, it all sounded so good.  It got me thinking- what a shame it is that in reality, the album fell flat. Boring and disconnected mid-tempo tracks, and try-hard "gaga songs" in the first half. So I listened to it again this morning, the whole way through. No interruption.

And WHEW, what an ALBUM. Diamond Heart (), my favourite on release day, still absolutely knocks. It sets the scene perfectly, is honest, raw and you can feel the energy. Top 10 Gaga song for sure. The title track , another classic, my favourite of the three ballads, really special. The album version is beautify and her voice on the single release soars. John Wayne, another classic. It works, and somehow doesn't feel out of place. In a way, it proves the authenticity of this being Gaga's 'personal album about her life', as it proves she knew that could mean anything, not just slower piano tracks like MR. Dancin' in Circles is much the same, and I still really wish this had been a single. It still goes off to this day, and is a great groove track. Then of course, Perfect Illusion.  This bitch. Nothing will compare to first hearing those opening synths. Truly and incredible song. The lyrics may be a choice, especially around the chorus, but the instrumental is untouchable, and absolutely goes OFF, more than any Gaga song from recent years. 

Million Reasons too is, in retrospect, a beautiful ballad. Perhaps not up there with the likes of Joanne, Always Remember Us This Way or Speechless, and I think it might be why I went off the album for a bit. It felt like its main focal point was something she'd already done better elsewhere. Though on returning to her, she is nonetheless a beautiful song, and deserves its place Gaga's song with the best recurrent stats.  Sinner's Prayer and Come to Mama too were better than I remembered. Sinner's being like Diggin' my Grave but solo and upgraded, and Come to Mama a great call to arms (or perhaps the opposite). Hey Girl is fun too, a nice way to wind down the album before its dramatic closure with Angel Down. Again, this was another song, like MR and JW, that I'd written off as a bit try-hard. But listening back, its touching, heartfelt, and you can tell it comes from a real place, unlike I'd first thought.

The only track I still don't particularly like is A-Yo. A-Yo is the only song that feels like it was written to be 'the hit' or 'the cowboy song', not because Gags genuinely had something today. (Also it sounds too much like SIO and I hate that song ). That said, it doesn't ruin the album for me, and in retrospect, I would place Joanne as Gaga's second best album. Tied with The Fame Monster and one place below Born This Way. Taking some time away from it really did help my enjoyment, and I encourage other liddos who'd forgotten her to do the same. 

So there it is. Thanks for reading my lil-essay on rediscovering Joanne, which it turns out, is a truly great album. If any of you have similar stories of re-discovering Joanne, please share them below! 

[joannesrats 26]

I feel this. Every so often I'll get tired of a Gaga album and not listen to it for a long time, but then I listen to it in full again and I really appreciate it and fall in love with it all over again. 

[Widows Kiss 7,818]

I don't listen to the album as much but I love Diamond Heart, PI, MR, Sinner's Prayer, Angel Down, Grigio Girls and both Joanne version. 

[Ryusei 61,238]

Awesome that  you re-discovered this gem but what about the deluxe tracks?  

[PlastiscGuy 21,805]

Just now, Ryusei said:

Awesome that  you re-discovered this gem but what about the deluxe tracks?  

Just Another Day was just too powerful  sis knew ha wig would evaporate 

[MiddleZone 292]

It's a mixed bag, both in terms of genres and in terms of whether I actually like the tracks. It's still the album that turned me into a diehard Gaga stan tho <3 DH, A-YO and PI are far and away the best three IMO.

[Phoebe Buffay 12,525]

still her worst album 

[Rio 5,088]

ARTPOP is shook she's not your #1 😳😜

[rumours 45,521]

2 minutes ago, Phoebe Buffay said:

still her worst album 

Not when The Fame, Born This Way, And ARTPOP exist. 

[Phoebe Buffay 12,525]

1 minute ago, Rumours1977 said:

Not when The Fame, Born This Way, And ARTPOP exist. 

would rumours1977 lie? 

[rumours 45,521]

1 minute ago, Phoebe Buffay said:

would rumours1977 lie?

Well, all I know is Joanne has a diamond heart while ARTPOP is too busy snorting cocaine and eating its one salad for today. 

[Moo 2,082]

16 minutes ago, Ryusei said:

Awesome that  you re-discovered this gem but what about the deluxe tracks?  

Grigio Girls is my favourite track and JAD is cute. 

I cut them out because the OP was already way too long 

[IAmNotHere1997 25,824]

I need to revisit it in full, it's been a while

[martiniglistens 1,050]

YESSS PREACH SIS. I wish everyone appreciated this album in this way. You captured my thoughts on it perfectly 

[super ultra 878]

I had a very similar experience with BTW a few weeks ago. I feel like I've finally grown up to the album and understand better its message, theme and see it in a different perspective. It's weird because when it came out, I was already a fan but as a teen, I never really felt connected to (for example) Judas, GH, MTN, etc. I just enjoyed them because I'd never experienced some of the things what Gaga wrote about. And now, as adulthood is knocking at my door, I'll probably will go through more of her "topics" and re-discover her albums. It's crazy how mature she was as a pop star back in those days.