Celine Dion Albums (23)
'Taking Chances'
Release Date 10/29/2007
Tracks 15
Label Columbia Europe
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
In 2003, Celine Dion began a long-term engagement with Caesars Palace, performing a show based on her 2002 album, A New Day Has Come, at the Las Vegas casino five nights a week. The Vegas show was such a success that the powers that be wound up extending its run, eventually closing the production at the end of 2007, over a year later than originally planned. During these long five years, Dion trickled out some new releases -- there was a new collection called One Heart that hit the stores the day the whole Sin City affair started, as well as a few French-language albums, a document of the live show, and a soundtrack to Anne Geddes baby photographs -- but she never did a full-fledged, big-screen sequel to A New Day Has Come. She was saving that for when the Vegas extravaganza wrapped up, and as soon as it was ready to close, Dion was ready with Taking Chances, her first "official" pop album in five years. Never one for subtlety, Celine Dion hammers home that her post-Vegas years are going to be different with the very title of Taking Chances, but she doesn't stop there. Not only is this the time for her to take chances, she's also full of surprises and there's a new day dawning. She sings that "just when you thought you got me figured out," she'll do something unexpected because she's a "chameleon" -- basically, any rebirth cliché that comes to mind pops up somewhere on Taking Chances, as Celine never lets listeners forget that she is beginning the next grand chapter of her career. In the pre-release push for the album, it was suggested that Dion was, well, taking chances with her music, and her enlisting of Evanescence's Ben Moody to produce and write a couple of tracks, while hiring Linda Perry to write another couple, suggested that this would indeed be a different kind of Celine album. And it is, at least a little bit. Over its long, long 16 tracks, Celine indulges in some glossy electronic beats on "Shadow of Love," flirts with hard rock on the Aldo Nova-written "Can't Fight the Feelin'" (the great Canadian AOR rocker writes three other tunes here, including "A Song for You," which borrows a title from Leon Russell but nothing else), tries to shimmy like Shakira on "Eyes on Me," and even tries to belt out the blues on "That's Just the Woman in Me," written by former Soft Boy Kimberley Rew. Added to this are the understated but no less significant efforts to hitch her wagon to the numerous American Idols who imitate her style. Celine attempts to snatch Heart's "Alone" from Carrie Underwood and cribs from Kelly Clarkson's operatic rock, two blatant thieveries that, when combined with the quartet of explicit changeups, gives Taking Chances a vaguely desperate vibe, as if Celine needs to prove that she still reigns supreme among all divas. Although Dion can pull off these moves with strenuous skill, all the effort is for naught because these slight changes in sound wind up serving an album that doesn't feel that different than the same old Celine Dion. The album may not be as big and spangly as A New Day Has Come -- whose glittery surfaces and exaggerated arrangements were ideal for the Vegas chapter of Dion's career -- but it does play as a refurbished version of her 1996 blockbuster, Falling into You, overhauled for a new millennium. It lacks both the epic Jim Steinman songs and the Diane Warren ballads, yet their imprint remains, as their over the top formula is given a brushed aluminum finish -- a sleek, chilly, tasteful sound that fits the mood of the late 2000s. And if Taking Chances is anything, it's an album of its time: it offers extravagance in the guise of self-help, which can be alluring in doses -- especially those bizarre blues-rockers -- but it's just too much of a very expensive yet not particularly tasteful thing. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
As she's prone to do every four years or so, Celine Dion released a French-language album called D'Elles in 2007, her first since 2003's stripped-down, folky 1 Fille & 4 Types. Sonically, D'Elles couldn't be more different than 1 Fille -- from its soaring majestic ballads to its chilly disco sheen, it's extremely European, with none of the homey trappings of the 2003 record -- but it does share one significant trait: it is also a concept album. This time, Dion has hired a bevy of female lyricists from France and Quebec to give this a common thread of songs about women, thereby making this lyrically and musically more cohesive than the glitzy, scattershot 2002 extravaganza A New Day Has Come, while being considerably less sentimentally gloppy than 2004's Miracle: A Celebration of New Life. In a way, this is Dion's most ambitious project in a long time, if not ever -- really, the only rival is that musically adventurous 1 Fille, and if D'Elles is a bit too careful musically, it nevertheless is unified as an album and shows some serious artistic ambition, two things her post-stardom English albums are often missing, and always to their detriment. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
'Miracle: A Celebration of New Life'
Release Date 10/11/2004
Tracks 13
Label Columbia
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Miracle is billed as a collaboration between Celine Dion and Anne Geddes, a photographer who specializes in photos of babies, so it shouldn't be a surprise that the subtitle of the album is "A Celebration of New Life." After all, all of Geddes' work celebrates new life, and Dion has been very outspoken in how motherhood has changed her life, so it's only natural that their collaboration is about newborns. Since Geddes is strictly a photographer, "collaboration" may be a misleading title, but Miracle isn't strictly just a music album. Instead, it's a book accompanied with an album, with the images inspired by the songs and vice versa; in the special edition of the album, there's even a DVD of the making of the project, extending it into another realm of multimedia. As a piece of music, it's the quietest record Dion has recorded in a while, an unabashed adult contemporary album that keeps its gentle mood from start to finish, as if it were a prolonged lullaby. Dion tempers her vocal histrionics considerably -- she still soars to the high notes, but there are no pyrotechnics, no showboating here -- which serves this collection of standards and new songs quite well. The worst you can say about the record is that there are no surprises, but the audience for this record doesn't want surprises; they want comfort, whether it arrives in polished music or artsy photos of newborns, and Miracle provides both, which makes it appealing for those expectant or new mothers in Dion's audience. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
'A New Day: Live in Las Vegas'
Release Date 6/14/2004
Tracks 16
Label Columbia
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What The Critics Say
After two studio records, an intensive media campaign for a large automobile company, a new perfume fragrance, and a successful tour and residency in Las Vegas, one would reason that Celine Dion is long overdue for yet another sabbatical after a rather intensive 18-month span. However, this is not to be the case. This live document of the Las Vegas show drives home the point that Celine is one of the most potent entertainers in adult contemporary music. A smattering of her greatest hits ("My Heart Will Go On," "Because You Loved Me," "It's All Coming Back to Me Now") is mixed with vocal standards (a rather enchanting rendition of Etta James' brilliant "At Last," "What a Wonderful World," "I've Got the World On a String"), bringing a balanced, well-conceived program that highlights the dynamics and versatility in Dion's voice. She's equally as comfortable in high-tempo numbers chock-full of her signature vocal acrobatics as she is in quiet, contemplative moments. It's an ideal souvenir for those who have experienced the magic with their own ears and eyes. And while it's not the most definitive document of Dion's career, it certainly is a stirring testament to her accomplishments as the standard to whom most vocalists aspire. ~ Rob Theakston, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Somewhere in the past year, Celine Dion thought it a good idea to strip down from the anthemic pomposity of her last few works, which were rife with ballads custom-made for the adult contemporary charts. Perhaps it was the lukewarm reception to her last record that spawned this realization, but whatever the reason may be, 1 Fille & 4 Types is a record that many Dion fans were hoping would arrive one day. Her vocals are back at top of their game: gone are the majority of the near-patented diva hysterics and howls and arriving in their place is a voice that values dynamics over acrobatics. The band is stripped down (comparatively) to its bare essentials, taking Dion into relatively unfamiliar territories such as country-pop and folk, and she proves herself more than up to the task of delivering top-notch performances every time. This stripped-down, back-to-basics attitude is only further reinforced within the album's packaging: Dion in several fashionably rugged poses that could have come straight from an Abercrombie & Fitch catalog complete with photos of a rugged life "on the road," including a hysterical shot of her with the band all lying on a bed together with her hair up in a towel and the air conditioner apparently not working during the summertime. It's completely premeditated and no diva in her right mind would stand for such living conditions, but this only reinforces how far away Dion wants to distance herself from her image this time around. The pop songs are on par with some of Diane Warren's finest gifts to diva Dion, and are equally as infectious as they are hummable. To some, it may be a stumbling block that the album is sung entirely in French, but look beyond that and find a no-frills Dion getting back to pop basics and performing at a level unheard in a while. Yes, it's in French, but hopefully the record will merit enough attention to warrant an English version sometime in the near future. ~ Rob Theakston, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Five years separated Celine Dion's 2002 comeback, A New Day Has Come, and its predecessor, Let's Talk About Love. One year later -- nearly to the day -- Celine Dion released One Heart, touted upon its release as an audio souvenir of her three-year engagement at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas, which also began on March 25, 2003. One Heart recalls several of Dion's diva peers, including borrowing Britney Spears mastermind Max Martin for three songs. If Spears' stuttering, stop-start dance-pop seems too young for Dion on "Love Is All We Need," there's the unapologetically Barbra Streisand-esque "Have You Ever Been in Love." If that seems stodgy, aim straight at the mainstream with sunny, catchy title track. Then, there's the tongue-in-cheek, neo-house cover with "I Drove All Night" and "Naked," reminiscent of Jennifer Love Hewitt's "Bare Naked," down to the acoustic guitar arrangements. One Heart favors a smooth Vegas-showstopper gloss to radio-ready sheen, with the title track and "Naked" standing out. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Like politicians, pop superstars staging a comeback need to be on message, devising a story line and sticking to it from conception to completion. Celine Dion's message is a simple one -- one that would be evident to anybody paying the slightest bit of attention. After a ballyhooed semi-retirement following 1999's semi-collection All the Way -- a retirement where she gave birth and tended to her manager/husband's recovery from cancer -- it was time to begin a new chapter in her life, something made explicit in the title of the comeback, A New Day Has Come. Of course, the new day is the new chapter of Celine's life -- she's still a caring, loving wife and mother, but she's ready to return to music with a vigor, including a three-year stint as the main attraction at Caesars in Las Vegas. Life -- or at least opportunists -- has a way of interfering with even the best-laid plans, and the week A New Day Has Come hit the stores, it was revealed that Dion's husband was the center of a dubious civil lawsuit claiming he raped a woman in Las Vegas in the late '90s, but the delivery of the message was so strong, so well-conceived, that this barely made a dent in the media blitz (no mention of it in a USA Today cover story the day of release, for instance). No matter your musical taste, you have to admire that feat, and to a certain extent you have to admire the construction of this album, as well, since it's about as perfect as it could be. That doesn't mean it's a perfect album, but it does exactly what it should do -- it doesn't deviate from Dion's mainstream audience, yet it dips its toe into modern music, particularly dance, while subtly addressing her status as a working mom (which somehow translates as she's a survivor), while keeping hip ("Nature Boy" at the end was surely included because of its prominence in Baz Luhrmann's pandering swill, Moulin Rouge). It's savvily sequenced, too, with the radio remix of the title track arriving before the original version! It's so carefully assembled that even stumbles like the bizarre "Rain, Tax (It's Inevitable)" wash away without much effort, which is a testament to how well-made this record is. There's really nothing to fault it on, actually -- it's more ambitious than it needs to be, covers more stylistic territory than any other Dion record, while never abandoning the middle-of-the-road; it's a balancing act that nobody since Barbra Streisand has been able to pull off. If there's any problem with the record, it's that the songs just aren't that particularly memorable, even after several spins. The mood shifts effortlessly, it never seems to stay in one place, but it never catches hold, either. Surely, some of these songs will define themselves through repeated plays on the radio, but oddly the lack of memorable songs doesn't hurt A New Day Has Come much at all, since the fact that it succeeds without real songs makes it all the more impressive. That's what staying on message is all about -- delivering the surface and the overall theme without delivering in the details -- and, in 2002, Celine Dion does that better than any of her peers. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
'Au Au Coeur Du Stade'
Release Date 8/23/1999
Tracks 10
Label Columbia
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Celine Dion's Au Coeur Du Stade is her third French-language live import album, and it was released at the height of her "titanic" superstardom. Previous to this album, she had enjoyed unparalleled success with her theme from Titanic, "My Heart Will Go On" (which is included as the album's closer), as well as with her blockbuster albums Falling Into You and Let's Talk About Love and their respective hit singles. However, only two English-language songs appear on this album, the aforementioned "My Heart Will Go On" and "Let's Talk About Love" -- the rest of the album, including the live banter, is all in French. Judging from the audience reactions, "Je Sais Pas" and "Ziggy" must have been very well-known songs. It's quite telling to hear a mass of people sing along to "Ziggy," which is virtually unknown to American audiences. This album ultimately serves to showcase a different Celine Dion than the one American audiences have come to know. Her previous live album, Live A Paris, was more of a rock-leaning outing; this one balances adult-oriented fare ("S'il Suffisait d'Aimer," "Pour Que Tu M'aimes Encore") with straight-ahead rock/pop songs ("Terre," "Dans un Autre Monde," "J'irai Ou Tu Iras"). Track nine, the "Medley Acoustique," is not really a medley, but five different songs, each of which could have stood alone as its own track, especially "Ziggy," which clocks in at almost four minutes. Most of the songs on this album are live versions of tunes originally on her S'il Suffisait d'Aimer album, which was released in the U.S. This is, as is usually the case with her live albums, a satisfying effort, and a must for fans and collectors of this singer's music. ~ Jose F. Promis, All Music Guide
'These Are Special Times'
Release Date 9/1/1998
Tracks 16
Label 550 Music/Epic
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
In the wake of her Titanic success, Celine Dion produced two new albums for the holiday season of 1998. One was a new French album, and the other was These Are Special Times, her first Christmas album. These Are Special Times is an especially successful holiday album since Dion wisely balances popular carols ("The Christmas Song," "Blue Christmas," "Feliz Navidad") with new songs ("Don't Save It All for Christmas," the R. Kelly duet "I'm Your Angel"), hymns ("Ave Maria," "Adeste Fidelis"), and Christmas songs with a distinct religious theme ("O Holy Night," the Andrea Bocelli duet "The Prayer"). At times, the production is too slick, at other times Dion's vocals are a little mannered, but overall, These Are Special Times is very effective, because the songs are good and she's committed to the material. Any fan of Dion, or of '90s adult contemporary pop in general, should find this very enjoyable. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Celine Dion's A l'Olympia was recorded live at the legendary Parisian venue shortly after she scored her first U.S. chart-topper with "The Power of Love," which is included here. Therefore, the material on this disc consists mostly of early English-language hits ("Where Does My Heart Beat Now" and "Love Can Move Mountains"), and selections from her first U.S. French-language release, Dion Chante Plamondon, including the rousing "Des Mots qui Sonnent," "Le Blues du Businessman," and "Ziggy." There are two tracks on this collection which are unique to this album, those being the beautiful "Elle" and her version of the Bagdad Café theme, "Calling You." Also included is her take on the Jacques Brel song "Quand on n'a que l'Amour" and a medley (titled "Medley Starmania") of Luc Plamondon songs. The material sounds great live, her voice as always a technical marvel, but with three live import CDs already on the market, and with some songs repeated, this album is destined for collectors. However, the album's allure is the fact that it was recorded before she became a massive superstar (in the U.S. anyway) in the mid-to-late 1990s. The liner notes and all segues are in French. ~ Jose F. Promis, All Music Guide
