Just picked this up and have been playing it non-stop the last couple of days. Released as an exclusive through Walgreens (you can pick it up in most of the stores or from walgreens.com) as part of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, this thing really deserves a more widespread release, imo. I think this is going to be my favorite release of 2006 by far.

It's very spiritual and 'new age' in sound, probably closer to Loreena McKennitt or Enya than her normal 'pop' releases. The only other album of hers that comes close is 1994's "GAIA".

I don't know if there are many ONJ fans on here but I can't speak highly enough of this CD.

jtfolden said:

Walgreens...Jesus! Is it cheap? Maybe I'll check it out.

VinnyM27 said:

$9.99 at my local store w/ a dollar of that going towards breast cancer research apparently. I assume it's the same at all of them. Walgreens is an odd place, isn't it? Of course, her release from last year was also put out during breast cancer awareness month and it was with an exclusive deal through Hallmark stores in the states. So it must have worked out well for her doing it that way and avoiding a normal record company/channels. I note the record label on the cover is listed as "ONJ Productions,Inc."

jtfolden said:

Yeah, that's an odd recording career she has had in the past two years. I'll look for it. Yeah, Walgreens is like the ugly cousin of the hotter CVS!

thats a great nitch she is forming for herself...other artist should take heed.

Agreed, this is a really nice development for Olivia. She's gone through a couple of years of questionable vocals and song choice, but this one is solid all the way through. And as others have suggested, the message behind it all counts just as much as the music itself. Fortunately, the music stands on its own as one of her most solid records in years. Unfortunately, I don't think that means this wonderful CD will come to as wide an audience as it should. Those who do make the trip down to Walgreens to buy this disk should pass it around and let others hear it, encouraging people to pick it up themselves. Otherwise, it makes a nice gift...

Nice to have something both artistically good and with 'moral' merit out there these days!

jlshannon said:

Yeah, I think that's quite true. I just couldn't get excited over "Indigo" because the song choices were occasionally odd and a lot of material on "Stronger Than Before" sounded sort of 'cookie-cutter' - not bad but not a lot to leave a mark.



I think Olivia, for as long as I can remember, has tried to use a lot of her time in the spotlight for worthy causes - wether it's the environment or health and wellness issues. I can remember when she fought with her label to use recycled paper on one of her releases. Which is one of the reasons I've always supported her via buying her records. It's nice to know there's a real, involved person there and when she puts out a great album like this then it's all the better.