Taylor Swift: Speak Now (Taylor's Version) (3LP, orchid marbled vinyl) [REPUBLIC]

Why you'll love it

Speak Now (Taylor's Version) debuted at No. 1, with six never-before-heard "From the Vault" songs including duets with Fall Out Boy and Hayley Williams of Paramore.

This edition

• Orchid marbled vinyl
• 3LP set, 22 tracks
• Six From the Vault songs

About the album

Taylor Swift was only in her early 20s when the original Speak Now came out in 2010, so one might think she'd have a hard time dredging up all those raw, youthful Big Emotions in the studio nearly 15 years on when it came time to re-record a "Taylor's Version" of Album No. 3. But no, the wounds still sound convincingly raw, the giddier moments authentically giddy and, yes, the Big Emotions every bit as big as they were all those years ago.

The remade Speak Now, in fact, gains a bit more impact where it counts here and there from production, by Swift and her frequent present-day collaborators Jack Antonoff and Aaron Dessner, that's a little rougher around the edges than the glossy original. It's hard to improve on a winsome gem like, say, "Mine," but Swift might have done it.

"Taylor's Version" of Speak Now is spread across three jam-packed discs, adding a generous helping of "From the Vault" tracks, including "Electric Touch," a punk-ish pop ditty recorded with Fall Out Boy, and a duet with Hayley Williams of Paramore entitled "Castles Crumbling." At 22 tracks and 105 minutes, this package can hardly be accused of skimping on content.

Also at Kops: more Taylor Swift on vinyl · browse Pop

Tracklist

Listen

On Republic, first out in 2023.