Jonathan Antoine releases his latest album – By Request – The Diane Warren Songbook Vol. 1
“‘Til you’re standing in my shoes
I don’t wanna hear nothing from you”
It’s more than 10 years now since tenor Jonathan Antoine broke through by reaching the final of Britain’s Got Talent as part of Jonathan and Charlotte. Since then (as a solo artist), he’s treaded the line of classical and crossover over a series of records, the latest of which is By Request – The Diane Warren Songbook Vol. 1, a collaborative effort that saw the legendary songwriter select choice cuts from her extensive back catalogue to sit alongside his favourite picks.
It’s quite impressive that for so well-known a songwriter as Warren, nearly half of the tracks here were new to me, such is the prolific nature of her output – Michael Bolton’s When I’m Back On My Feet Again anyone? Indeed, the two extracts from her imperial era – ‘Regresa A Mí’ (Toni Braxton via Il Divo) and ‘Voglio Averti In Eternità’ (Aerosmith with a similar treatment) – actually come off as less inspired choices if only for that overfamiliarity.
Stepping into the worlds of Lady Gaga and Beyoncé is undoubtedly a fresher move but what really works is the restraint with which both performance and arrangement are essayed – Gregg Field’s production expertise really coming to the fore here. Dialling back the bombast on ‘Til It Happens To You’ and ‘I Was Here’ heightens the considerable emotion of both tracks, the switch into the first person on the final chorus of the former is a real hairs on end moment.
In the same vein, original track ‘I Feel You’ benefits from the novelty whilst simultaneously evoking everything to love about Warren’s songwriting, a timeless elegance that means you can imagine it fitting into her songbook in any era (although, can you imagine Céline Dion soaring through those choruses? A duet version for the re-release please!). Io Sì (Seen) (first sung by Laura Pausini) is another highlight in this smoothly accomplished collection.
