Maps of Music
Red (Taylor's Version) (2021)
Where the lyrics of Red (Taylor's Version) take you, and where it was really made.
The 2021 release set a record: 26 of its tracks entered the Billboard Hot 100 in a single week.
View on the mapKey places
Nashville recording room (2021)
Recording site Blackbird Studio — Several re-recorded tracks were recorded at Blackbird in Nashville. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Engineering room in Nashville (2021)
Recording site Prime Recording — Engineering and digital editing for many tracks was done at Prime Recording in Nashville. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Los Angeles vocal session (2021)
Recording site Conway Recording Studios — Sam Holland recorded Swift's vocals for some tracks at Conway Studios in Los Angeles. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
New York recording studio (2021)
Recording site Electric Lady Studios — Some vault tracks were recorded at Electric Lady Studios in New York City. Google Maps · Apple Maps
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Phoebe Bridgers session (2021)
Recording site Sound City Studios — Phoebe Bridgers vocals for Nothing New were recorded at Sound City Studios in Los Angeles. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Studio B session (2021)
Recording site Capitol Studios — Several tracks were recorded in Studio B at Capitol Studios in Los Angeles. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Ed Sheeran vocal session (2021)
Recording site Decoy Studios — Ed Sheeran recorded his vocals for two tracks at Decoy Studios in Suffolk. Google Maps · Apple Maps
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Strings session in Florida (2021)
Recording site Sound House Studios — Strings for the 10 minute version of All Too Well were recorded at Sound House Studios in Lakeland, Florida. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Long Pond studio (2021)
Recording site Long Pond Studio — Several vault tracks were recorded and mixed at Long Pond, a studio given a city-level location here. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Vocal studio in Belfast (2021)
Recording site Kitty Committee Studio — Swift recorded vocals for nearly every track at the Kitty Committee Studio, shown at Belfast city level. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Garage session in Topanga (2021)
Recording site The Garage — The Last Time was recorded at The Garage, placed at Topanga city level. Google Maps · Apple Maps
How to get there: See the map for directions.
Session at Instrument Landing (2021)
Recording site Flyte Tyme Records — Andy Thompson recorded at Instrument Landing for one of the re-recorded tracks, shown at Minneapolis city level. Google Maps · Apple Maps
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Stockholm session (2021)
Recording site Källbacken — Message in a Bottle was recorded in Stockholm, at Kallbacken Studios and House Mouse Studios, shown at city level. Google Maps · Apple Maps
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Album story
Overview
- Second re-recorded album by Taylor Swift, after Fearless (Taylor's Version)
- Re-recording of Red (2012), her fourth studio album
- Released 12 November 2021 through Republic Records
- Includes re-recorded tracks plus nine From the Vault tracks (tracks 22-30)
- Includes the re-recording of the 2012 charity single Ronan as track 21
- Genre-blending album combining pop, country, rock and electronic styles
- All standard edition tracks carry the Taylor's Version label
- CD package has two discs: tracks 1-16 and tracks 17-30
Background
- Swift's Big Machine contract covered her first six studio albums, from Taylor Swift (2006) to Reputation (2017)
- Red was released on 22 October 2012 and moved beyond her country roots into mainstream pop
- In 2019 Scooter Braun and Ithaca Holdings acquired Big Machine, and the masters of her albums were transferred
- Swift began re-recording her first six albums in November 2020
- Red (Taylor's Version) was announced on 18 June 2021, two months after Fearless (Taylor's Version)
- Vault track Better Man was written by Swift and recorded by Little Big Town in 2016
- Vault track Babe was written by Swift and recorded by Sugarland in 2018
- All Too Well (10 Minute Version) restores lyrics Swift wrote in 2011 before trimming the song
Recording
- Most re-recorded tracks keep the arrangements of the originals and were produced by the original producers
- Max Martin, Dann Huff and Nathan Chapman productions were reworked by Swift and Christopher Rowe
- Girl at Home was reworked from an acoustic number into a synth-pop track produced by Elvira Anderfjard
- Guests include Phoebe Bridgers, Chris Stapleton and Ed Sheeran, who sang on two tracks
- Gary Lightbody of Snow Patrol returned on The Last Time
- Vault tracks were produced by Swift, Shellback, Elvira Anderfjard, Espionage, Jack Antonoff and Aaron Dessner
- Critics noted Swift's more mature, deeper and more resonant vocals and a sharper production
Cover
- Cover art was released on 18 June 2021 together with the announcement
- Swift wears red lipstick and a beige peacoat with a burgundy Matti fisherman cap
- She sits in a vintage 1932 Chevrolet Cabriolet convertible against an autumnal background
- Janessa Leoné designed the cap, which sold out quickly on Leoné's website
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Tracklist
Disc 1
| 1 | State of Grace (Taylor’s version) | 4:55 |
| 2 | Red (Taylor’s version) | 3:43 |
| 3 | Treacherous (Taylor’s version) | 4:03 |
| 4 | I Knew You Were Trouble (Taylor’s version) | 3:40 |
| 5 | All Too Well (Taylor’s version) | 5:29 |
| 6 | 22 (Taylor’s version) | 3:51 |
| 7 | I Almost Do (Taylor’s version) | 4:05 |
| 8 | We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together (Taylor’s version) | 3:13 |
| 9 | Stay Stay Stay (Taylor’s version) | 3:26 |
| 10 | The Last Time (Taylor’s version) | 4:59 |
| 11 | Holy Ground (Taylor’s version) | 3:23 |
| 12 | Sad Beautiful Tragic (Taylor’s version) | 4:45 |
| 13 | The Lucky One (Taylor’s version) | 4:00 |
| 14 | Everything Has Changed (Taylor’s version) | 4:05 |
| 15 | Starlight (Taylor’s version) | 3:40 |
| 16 | Begin Again (Taylor’s version) | 3:59 |
Disc 2
| 1 | The Moment I Knew (Taylor’s version) | 4:45 |
| 2 | Come Back… Be Here (Taylor’s version) | 3:43 |
| 3 | Girl at Home (Taylor’s version) | 3:41 |
| 4 | State of Grace (acoustic version) (Taylor’s version) | 5:22 |
| 5 | Ronan (Taylor’s version) | 4:24 |
| 6 | Better Man (Taylor’s version) (from The Vault) | 4:57 |
| 7 | Nothing New (Taylor’s version) (from The Vault) | 4:19 |
| 8 | Babe (Taylor’s version) (from The Vault) | 3:44 |
| 9 | Message in a Bottle (Taylor’s version) (from The Vault) | 3:46 |
| 10 | I Bet You Think About Me (Taylor’s version) (from The Vault) | 4:45 |
| 11 | Forever Winter (Taylor’s version) (from The Vault) | 4:24 |
| 12 | Run (Taylor’s version) (from The Vault) | 4:00 |
| 13 | The Very First Night (Taylor’s version) (from The Vault) | 3:20 |
| 14 | All Too Well (10 minute version) (Taylor’s version) (from The Vault) | 10:13 |
Sources: musicbrainz.org
Artist
Early life
- Born December 13, 1989, in West Reading, Pennsylvania.
- Named after singer-songwriter James Taylor.
- Moved to Nashville area at 14 to pursue a country music career.
- Signed with Big Machine Records in 2005.
Career
- Debut album Taylor Swift (2006) peaked at number five on the US Billboard 200.
- Fearless (2008) spent eleven weeks at number one on the Billboard 200 and was the best-selling album of 2009 in the US.
- Shifted from country to pop with 1989 (2014), which spent eleven weeks at number one.
- Released Folklore and Evermore (2020), indie folk albums that debuted at number one.
- Re-recorded her first six albums after a dispute over her master recordings.
- The Eras Tour (2023–2024) became the highest-grossing concert tour of all time.
- Holds 14 Grammy Awards, including a record four Album of the Year wins.
- Named Time Person of the Year in 2023.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Reception
At release
- Received universal critical acclaim from music critics
- Many critics said the re-recorded tracks had better production with more emphasis on the instrumentation
- Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone, Helen Brown of The Independent and Hannah Mylrea of NME were among the critics making this point
- Pitchfork named it Best New Music of its release week; Olivia Horn summed it up as Swift's ecstatic, expressive vocals and tender attention to love and loss
- Metacritic gave it a weighted mean score of 91 from 16 reviews, Swift's highest-rated project on the site
- Bobby Olivier of Spin and Laura Snapes of The Guardian thought the changes brought a less intense listening experience than the original
- Lydia Burgham of The New Zealand Herald called the original Red Swift's magnum opus
Reappraisal
- Paul Bridgewater of The Line of Best Fit wrote that the album balances fan service with an insightful documentation of Swift's songwriting
- Ms. and Slate argued that the original Red's initial reviews had been shaped by sexist scrutiny of Swift's image and dating life, and that the re-recording prompted a critical reevaluation
Records
- Topped the album charts in Argentina, Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, Portugal and the United Kingdom
- Debuted atop the US Billboard 200 with 605,000 first-week units
- 26 tracks charted on the Billboard Hot 100 in the same week, a record for most single-week new entries by an artist
- All Too Well (10 Minute Version) became the longest song to top the Hot 100
- Certified six-times platinum by the RIAA
- Sold over 1.2 million album-equivalent units globally in its first week
- Won a Billboard Music Award, two American Music Awards and an NME Award
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
Trivia
- Vault tracks I Bet You Think About Me and Message in a Bottle were promoted as radio singles, to country radio and pop/adult contemporary radio respectively
- Publications credited the album with popularizing the Sad Girl Autumn trend
- Swift premiered the short film All Too Well: The Short Film on the album's release day, starring herself, Sadie Sink and Dylan O'Brien
- The day after release, Swift performed All Too Well (10 Minute Version) on Saturday Night Live
- Discogs lists the release in a gatefold sleeve with two 12-inch records per side
Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com
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