September 18th, 2012
Let’s Talk About P!nk
Sometimes it feels like we’re taking crazy pills and no one else knows what is what. P!nk is a talent. Alecia Beth Moore’s one of the most successful pop stars putting out records right now and she was born and raised in the Philly area. But too often dumb-dumbs like Xtina, Brit and Mariah (bless her heart, but maybe dem babies made her a little crazy) get the pop spotlight. The 33-year-old was born in Abington, grew up in Doylestown, and went to Central Bucks High School West. She was booking clubs in Philadelphia proper when she was a teenager and got signed by L.A. Reid (in a short-lived R&B girl group, Choice) before she was 18. Her new record’s out today and it’s THE BOMB.COM. 1 million hits.
“There You Go” was her first solo single, back in 2000. Can’t Take Me Home was, by far, her most tough-girl-R&B-urban chick record, and she’ll admit, wasn’t really her. But it spawned a couple other great singles: “Most Girls” and “You Make Me Sick.” My God, they’re such of-the-moment time capsules, but don’t you think she did it better than most? And she can always sing. Even when she’s wearing baggy cargo pants and a bikini top, she looks fierce and pretty regularly conveys the message of, basically, “I can do anything I want by myself and I don’t need you.” Better than her then-contemporary Britney Spears’ “Oops, did I do that? Sorry, I’m just so innocent and girly.”
2001’s Missundaztood (that spelling, why?) took things in the direction that seemed more natural to her – party pop. She met Linda Perry and even employed Scott Storch but “Get The Party Started” signaled the arrival of a new P!nk. An all-time favorite came next, “Don’t Let Me Get Me.” Then another couple classics: “Just Like A Pill” and the emo-but-awesome “Family Portrait.” Many, many times have I sang, with attitude, about how I called for the nurse “but she’s bein’ a little BITCH.”
When her next few records came out, it felt like she slowed down a little. Combined, Can’t Take Me Home and Missundaztood sold almost 10 million copies in the U.S. and the U.K. 2003’s Try This was, in theory, her clearest flop. It gave us “Trouble,” which is great, but singles “God Ss a DJ” and “Last to Know” weren’t big hits. 2006’s I’m Not Dead and 2008’s Funhouse were returns to form for her; they both sold over a million copies in the U.S. (Funhouse almost two), and she padded her Greatest Hits catalogue healthily. They were her last before the today-released The Truth About Love. She gave us Greatest Hits… So Far!!! in 2010, which had two megahits slipped in: “Raise Your Glass” (55 million views) and “Fuckin’ Perfect.”
Well, The Truth About Love is one of her most exciting efforts yet. She’s a sophisticated songwriter, even though she relies pretty heavily on a few tropes: wordplay, fighty feistiness, feminism, romance and broken-hearted catharsis are definitely present on this one. But the first few songs we’re getting as singles are absolutely stellar: “Blow Me (One Last Kiss)” and “Try.” The collaborations she pulled off on this one are great. She got the Nate Ruess (from Fun or whatever) on “Just Give Me A Reason,” Lily Allen on outstanding “True Love,” and Eminem on the shockingly good “Here Comes The Weekend.” Buy it. Listen to it (it’s on Spotify). Bump it in the club. Blast it in your car. It’ll take us into 2013 with a smirk and another four more years of Barack Obama.
