Suzanne Vega Album: “Solitude Standing”

There are those who want fireworks, Kiss-style with their music. There are those who want depth and musical sophistication--and get into some cerebral art-rock like Pink Floyd, where excellence and excess aren't that far apart.

....And then there's just good music. Like Suzanne Vega. English majors everywhere probably drool over this album, since it's striking that strange but serene balance between elegant simplicity and artistic depth. No one else could tackle growing pains, domestic abuse, the inadequacy of words, the cheapness of exterior beauty, and countless other subjects with such an honest, unassuming style. Encounters with other devotees of this woman have proved interesting--usually female, usually of a slight hippie persuasion (not that this is bad!). However, I took a chance on this album and I promptly became a believer; it's hard not to. There's something about her music that is genuinely timeless, however much people might try to lump her into the Lilith Fair crowd. People will still be spinning "Luka" long after trends have come and gone. She's a true artist in the best sense of the word, and people of her honesty and depth are too rare in the music business.

Suzanne Vega never eclipsed this album and "Luka" (with "Tom's Diner" coming close second). If anyone tells you eighties were all about silly hairdos and empty, meaningless bubble-gum tunes, remind them of Suzanne Vega. Of course, you will need to buy this album to play it for them.

When you listen to the entire album, you will be surprised to find other very strong and captivating songs that you must have overlooked when "Luka" was topping the charts. "Gypsy" is one example - melodically accomplished, sensitive and pure.

I've been listening to this album since the 80's, and Vega's unique voice and gripping lyrics still capture me and draw me into her world.

"Solitude Standing" is near and dear to me because of songs like "Luka", "Gypsy", and "Tom's Diner". Each song that she sings really tells a story about pain, love, love lost, and neglect.

Suzanne Vega keeps inspiring the musicians around her as well as her listeners.

Suzanne Vega has been able to transcend categorization throughout her stellar career. In this early recording (1987), she treads the fine line between commericalism ("Luka", "Tom's Diner"), pop ("Solitude Standing", "In the Eye"), and pure musical genius ("Gypsy"). The sound is clean, mature, and haunting. The production of the recording is artful - Solitude Standing really should be listened to in its entirety to appreciate the segues between the varying moods. This is one of the finest recordings in the last twenty years - a must for your collection.

It's been more than fifteen years since Vega released Solitude Standing , an album full of folk-pop melodies which among else included " Luka " , an instant classic which made her world-wide famous . It was not only the sensitive subject she chose to sing about ( the abusement of little childern by their parents ) but also the way she did it : she created an imaginery character , a child named Luka whose bruises from everyday trouble at home were hard to hide , ( "...Yes i think i'm ok / walked into the door again " ) sang in first person and scored one of the few social-concerned top 10 hits of our time .

Besides " Luka " though , there are many more tunes and virtues in this album to cherish . " I'd like to meet you in a timeless spaceless place " sings Vega on " Language " and this is exactly how listening to this record feels like . There's an indefinite beautiness of coffee-shop aromas , autumn leafs floating in the air and inner melancholy in these songs . The perfomances are full of maturity and politeness , the lyrics are mesmeric and meticulous while her tender vocals are as affecting as always . All eleven tracks create an entity of their own and a certain atmosphere in which a very important role play the carefull keybords which colour the songs .

An always charismatic singer and songwritter , Vega has never cared enough for fame to release stuff which didn't express her as an artist and only aimed at selling lots of copies ... Solitude Standing is simply not an exception .