Innocent Eyes

[shavonfan]

First of all, much thanks to Leona (ocelot) for helping me discover this great artist! Wow, is she ever good! Very deserving of all the success that she is so far enjoying! Right now all I have is "Innocent Eyes", and am waiting for the arrival of "Mistaken Identity", which I ordered on Amazon.com. I like all of the songs on the album, but my only ever-so-slight criticism of it is that the first half is much stronger than the second half. That's understandable though, when you consider that there are fourteen songs on the album, and there is absolutely no way every song can be as good as the first five on this album! The album is very well produced, the music is great, and Delta's voice is both beautiful and expresses a lot of heart. The lyrics are strong, and emotional, and able to make a connection with the listener in the way that differentiates average music from great music. Her story is being poured out in her songs, and we can relate. I appreciate the music of this very talented artist, and seek more of her! Hey, Leona, as I said.....the music a person shares reveals a lot about the person sharing it, in my opinion. This says a lot about you!

[ocelot]

Thanks Mark. I know what you mean about The first half of Innocent Eyes being better than the second half. That's what I love about both Delta and Lara the way they put honesty, emotion and musical intregity into their music.

[shavonfan]

Well, having said that about the first half of the album being stronger than the second, I do want to make clear that I like the album very much. And the songs on the second half, while weaker in musical style than the first half of the album, are still very good songs. The album is enjoyable. I really like the "personality" of the artist. One thing of note; I love piano, and many of the songs include a strong dose of piano parts. That makes for a very good listening experience for me!

[ocelot]

Here is a track-by-track that Delta did for the album.

BORN TO TRY
“Doing everything that I believe in”

There were lots of changes happening in my life when I wrote Born To Try. I had just got the Neighbours job and I was moving to Melbourne. Before I left, I had two days songwriting with Audius, who came to my place. We wrote three songs before Born To Try and we thought, “Do we write one more or go for a swim?” Fortunately, we wrote another song. I knew it was something special when we wrote it. It was a song I simply loved singing. Lyrically, it sums me up. I might not have been born to win, I wasn’t born to lose, I was born to give life a good shot. Audius is such a special person. I hope we work together again.


INNOCENT EYES
“I got lost in fantasies”

I wrote this with Vince Pizzinga, who I’ve been working with for a long time. He’s such a talented and beautiful human being. I brought this to him and said, “I want to do something a bit quirkier.” The lyrics are autobiographical. I was rehearsing to do a performance of Born To Try and I looked up to see my mum crying. I said, “Mum, what’s wrong?” She said: “I’m just so proud of you.” Then I was performing in front of thousands of people and I looked out to see that mum was still there. She’s always there for me. This is a song for my family.


NOT ME, NOT I
“I won’t cry, no, not me, not I”

This is one of my favorite songs on the album. An autobiographical track, I wrote it after a relationship breakup, my first heartbreak. I had a piano piece and I took it to songwriter Kara DioGuardi. I was pretty upset and Kara said, “You’ve got to write a song about it.” It’s a song I love to sing because it’s got such a dynamic, real highs and lows. When I sing it, it makes me feel much better!”


THROW IT AWAY
“You wouldn’t know what love is if it hit you like a rock”

I drove my record company crazy because I kept writing new songs and adding them to the album – they thought it would never be finished! Then my A&R guy Michael came to me with this song. I said, “If I’m not allowed to put more songs on the album then you’re not either!” But this is such a great song. Gary Barlow and Eliot Kennedy had written for me with Cathy Dennis, who was a pop star in the ’80s. Now she’s a big songwriter – she co-wrote Kylie’s Can’t Get You Out Of My Head. I don’t mind recording someone else’s song, especially when it’s written for me and as long as it’s good and it suits me and my album. People hear Throw It Away and say, “That’s a Delta song”, which is cool.


LOST WITHOUT YOU
“I know I can be a little stubborn sometimes”

My second single! When I heard this, I just fell in love with it. It’s not dark, but it’s got a moodier feel to it. It was written by Matthew Gerrard and Bridget Benenate. Matthew has worked with Nick Carter and BB Mak, and he also produced the track. A lot of artists wanted to record this song, so I was lucky to get it. I love the video. I made it in the UK. Someone asked if the opening line, “I know I can be a little stubborn sometimes”, could be applied to me. “Maybe it can, but no more than anyone else” she laughs.


PREDICTABLE
“I want you to know I know your game”

I can’t wait to do this song live. The other tracks might be “nice Delta”, but this one is a bit tougher, with more of an edge. This is another song I wrote with Kara, who came to Australia to work with me. John Fields produced it. He’s great. He’s very quirky and he’s worked with a lot of rock bands, so he knew how to create something edgier.


BUTTERFLY
“Sometimes you just want to spread your wings and fly”

I went to work with the True North team at their place in Manchester. True North is a writing and production team featuring Gary Barlow (who used to be in Take That), Eliot Kennedy and Tim Woodcock. They’re all amazing people, really inspirational. To be able to work with them was a real privilege. Butterfly was the first song we did together. It was such a beautiful song – I couldn’t wait to record it.


IN MY OWN TIME
“So much is happening to me”

This is the song that got me out of my writer’s block! I’d been busy learning all my Neighbours scripts and I hadn’t been able to write a song in nearly three months. This is a song about everything that was happening to me. It started with the line: “My head is spinning around and it’s making me dizzy.” There was so much going on, but the song is about me realizing that you can’t force things – they will happen in their own time.


MY BIG MISTAKE
“Amazing fairytale that had come true”

This is another song I did with the True North team. The album really picks up with this song because it’s so up-tempo. All the instruments are recorded live on the album, which is great. True North got an orchestra in, which makes this track come to life. Lyrically, it’s not really about me. That’s one of the good things about co-writing – you can let go of your own thing and take something else and make it your own. That makes it really fun and interesting.


THIS IS NOT ME
“Do I stand alone?”

This was one of the first songs I wrote for the album. It came at a time when I was struggling to find my direction. It’s a song about taking a step back, having a look around, and sticking to your guns. It’s a really significant song to me.


RUNNING AWAY
“Running away from predictable, Miss Reliable, so methodical/Be individual, an original”

I can’t wait to do this live with a band. We had so much fun recording this track. This is the song on the album where you get the hairbrush and sing in front of the mirror – well, that’s what I do, anyway! It’s a bit of a lighter lyric, but it’s about growing up and not putting any limitations on yourself.


A YEAR AGO TODAY
“You went away, a year ago today”

This is a very special track to me. It’s dedicated to my Aunty Sandra, who was such a wonderful influence in my life. It’s also about a very close friend’s mum’s passing. I wrote this with Paul Wiltshire and Mark Holden, who’s been a big help to me.


LONGER
“If only we had just a minute longer”

You know those times when you see someone but only briefly? It could turn out differently – if only you had just a minute longer! I love the lyrics and when I hear it, I can visualise all those moments when I thought if only I had a little longer. This is another song I’m really looking forward to performing live.


WILL YOU FALL FOR ME?
“My head’s full of thoughts”

This is a song I’ve performed live a lot. I would play this before doing Born To Try. I wrote it after meeting someone. It’s not me demanding, “Love me back!” I’m just wondering: “Will you fall for me the way I’ve fallen for you?” We also tried it with a full band, but I think it works better done very simply, which is why I produced it this way.

[shavonfan]

It is very interesting to get "the scoop" on these songs directly from the artist. It will definately enhance my listening experience of it. Thanks, Leona!