Kelly Clarkson – Mr Know It All
Kelly Clarkson initially came on the scene as the first ever winner of American Idol back in 2002, but let’s not hold that against her. Since her victory she’s done more than enough to earn her place in the pop pantheon and now sits on the verge of releasing her fifth album, ‘Stronger’ due out in October.
‘Mr Know It All’ is the first glimpse of this new record and finds Kelly putting the boot into the guy described in the title. Basically, this dude sucks. The song highlights his myriad flaws in a manner that should be welcomed by anyone who has ever been wronged by a man (or woman). “I’m trying to hone in on my inner Tina Turner,” she told Rolling Stone. “I wish I could hone in on her freaking legs – that would be even better.”
Despite her reputation as a ‘big’ singer in the Carey or Dion mould, ‘Mr Know It All’ steers clear of the vocal histrionics that often blight these types of songs and the track is all the more effective for it. Just because you can sing a million notes in 35 seconds doesn’t necessarily mean you should.
Kelly has worked with a range of collaborators for the forthcoming album, including Howard Benson, Eric Hutchinson, Toby Gad and super-producer Darkchild, the man behind the Gaga/Beyoncé mega-hit ‘Telephone’. “This album was influenced by Prince, Tina Turner, Sheryl Crow, Radiohead and there’s a little bit of a country vibe/influence on a couple of songs,” Kelly says. That’s quite a roll call. Let’s hope ‘Stronger’ lives up to its name.
