Tina Arena
Besides being blessed with the best pop-star name this side of Courtney Love, Tina Arena possesses some valuable vocal assets: the pitch-perfect clarity of Celine Dion and the girlish sensuality of early Olivia Newton-John. Already A-list in her native Australia, where she got her start as a child TV star (Tina Arena is her real name), Arena is courting U.S. success with the single "Chains." Wrapped in the glow of love, she turns in a muscular vocal on this rhythmic power ballad, effortlessly stretching her octave-leaping soprano. This is the type of number that the repeat button on CD players is made for. The samba flavor of "Sorrento Moon (I Remember)" and "Message," and the jug-band strum of "Standing Up" expand Arena's scope and suggest she's no one-note diva.
If only producer David Tyson hadn't made Don't Ask so immaculate. The slick pop trappings of "Heaven Help My Heart" and "That's the Way a Woman Feels" are so processed and up-to-the-second slick that they're bound to sound like ancient artifacts by this time next year. Will fans still love Arena tomorrow? For now, don't ask. Just listen. (Epic)
Your Reaction
