Sandra - Close To Seven

The beginning of 1992 also marks a new chapter in Sandra's story of success - a story of success never heard of before in the German music biz. No other female German artist has been as successful as Sandra on an international basis. Countless gold and platinum discs as well as many other awards mark the stages of her seven-year career. The single Maria Magdalena was only the beginning. Michael Cretu's production work and a certain smoothness of the songs really get into the spirit of the music and are characteristic for the albums that followed the first single success. Her latest album Close To Seven was produced in Michael's studio in Ibiza. Michael always proves to be a skilful and adroit producer and songwriter thus showing the wide range of Sandra's voice and her expressiveness especially well. Both Sandra and Michael are very musical people which is emphasized all the more by Sandra's esprit and charm and Michael's precise and individual work as an experienced producer and song-writer.

Close To Seven is an album with an outstanding stylistic range and exceptional finesse - it goes without saying that it was produced with great care and conscientiousness. The 10 album tracks show the expressiveness of a serious artist in a very passionate as well as personal way from the smooth melancholy of ballads like Mirrored In Your Eyes to the sensuality of a jazz and blues track like Steady Me.

Sandra's and Michael's mutual creativity goes back to 1982 when they first met in a Frankfurt studio. They soon reaped international laurels with their music that soon became known as "Sandra sound". One of the secrets of their success certainly is that Sandra's recordings always reflect a certain warmth and naturalness - which is also a main feature of her latest album.

Haunting rhythms and great song-material - like the first single release Don't Be Aggressive show that Sandra is as open-hearted and outspoken as she was at the beginning of her career. It doesn't come as a surprise that she has the talent of charming people. Thus it was rather easy to convince Jim Rakete, a very well-known photographer, to do the cover photo session, the result being extraordinary pictures of a great woman. Close To Seven is not only a musical portrait of Sandra but also another sequel in the story of success.


Updated December 31, 1996 by Joar Grimstvedt joarg@hsr.no