Taylor Dayne - Satisfied (CD)

All Music Guide

There's no denying that Taylor Dayne sounds older on Satisfied, her first album in a decade that maturity is especially apparent as her music remains tied to her late'80s heyday, as it's almost all big, bright productions that sound more 1988 than 2008. As it turns out, that evident maturity winds up benefiting Dayne tremendously: by not chasing trends, she sounds as if she's deepening emotionally but, more to the point, she no longer oversings. There is a warm, rounded, tonal quality to her voice, a quality that is especially welcome as she often could sound too harsh and brassy on her '80s hits. Here, she's settled down and so have the songs; they're undeniably retro dancepop and that retro element gives them a smooth, easy feel. And Satisfied is produced as a pop album there is no song longer than 4:33 and most are under four minutes which helps keep things moving and also means that missteps, like the ungainly reggae of "She Don't Love You," don't stick around too long. While Da...yne does a nice job with covers of "Under the Bridge" and "Fool to Cry," the real noteworthy numbers here are her fine original "Beautiful," a ballad called "Kissing You" cowritten by Des'ree, and "My Heart Can't Change," a piece of nearperfect pop cowritten by Gregg Alexander and Rick Nowels. These are the most fully realized tunes here, but most of this is enjoyable and it adds up to a good, worthy comeback from Dayne. - Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide Read more Less