“1989 (Taylor’s Version)” was released in Oct 2023. It has been nine years since the original release of Swift’s album “1989” back in 2014. Along with many other fans, I was excited to hear these re-recorded songs and listen to the five never before released vault tracks.
“To be perfectly honest, this is my most FAVORITE re-record I’ve ever done because the 5 From The Vault tracks are so insane,” Swift said in an Instagram post.
Vault tracks are songs that Swift wrote but were not chosen to be recorded for each album. Every time Swift re-records a new album and creates her “Taylor’s Version,” she includes vault tracks, making each “Taylor’s Version” release so special.
The five vault tracks on “1989 (Taylor’s Version),” are “Slut!,” “Say Don’t Go,” “Now That We Don’t Talk,” “Suburban Legends” and “Is It Over Now?”
My favorite vault song is undoubtedly “Now That We Don’t Talk.” The song has a catchy chorus that has me hooked and I’ve been continuously playing it since the album was released. My favorite line of the song is “I cannot be your friend, so I pay the price of what I lost. Now that we don’t talk.” I think the line is so relatable to anyone who has felt freedom in the decision to cut off a toxic person in their life and choose peace.
Another vault song I enjoy is “Is It Over Now?” I will admit the three other vault songs aren’t my favorites and don’t jump out at me as being some of Swift’s best work.
My favorite song back when I was 13 when the album “1989” was originally released was “All You Had To Do Is Stay” and “I Know Places” was a close second. These two songs are still my favorites from the album.
“All You Had To Do Was Stay” is my favorite because I tend to prefer the more upbeat and fast paced songs from 1989. In contrast, I enjoy listening to “I Know Places” because it highlights Swift’s vocal range. The song is about two people finding a place to hide and it feels very tense. I like how this song has a sense of urgency and anger, it in contrast to “All You Had To Do Was Stay” it is not upbeat or similar to the rest of the tracks on “1989 (Taylor’s Version).”
I note that “I know Places” on “1989 (Taylor’s Version) has a more piercing sound compared to “I know Places” on the original “1989.” I think this could be because after nine years Swift has more experience trying different genres and challenging the range of her voice. Before the chorus in the line “They are the hunters, we are the foxes and we run.” Swift screams this line and it feels much more powerful in comparison to the “1989” original version of the song.
Most of the songs from “1989” were rumored to have been about Harry Styles. Styles and Swift dated from late 2012 to early 2013, and “1989” was released in 2014, a year after their breakup. It is fun to analyze each song, not just the obvious choice “Style,” but others and see if their lyrics could prove this theory true that the breakup songs on both “1989” and “1989 (Taylor’s Version) are about Harry Styles.
Swift re-recorded and released her albums “Red” and “Fearless” back in 2021. In July 2023, “Speak Now (Taylor’s Version)” was released. Her decision to re-record the six albums “Red,” “Speak Now,” “1989,” “Fearless,” “Reputation” and her debut album “Taylor Swift” is because in 2018 Scooter Braun bought Swift’s former label.
In taking over the label, Braun gained access to Swift’s master tracks. Swift decided to re-record her albums so she can own the rights to her music, allowing her to control how the albums are used and monetized.
I applaud Swift for gaining back the well-deserved control of her music and allowing fans to continue to experience the magic of each album rerecorded with a new sound.
“1989 (Taylor’s Version)” allows fans of Swift to go back in time and enjoy “1989” nine years later with Swift’s more mature voice. I highly recommend listening to the album and pay special attention the stars of the album: “Now That We Don’t Talk” and “Is It Over Now?”
This story was written by Avery Darrow. She can be reached at a[email protected].
