Forever Winter Explained

Forever Winter
Type:song
Artist:Taylor Swift
Album:Red (Taylor's Version)
Label:Republic
Genre:Power pop
Producer:

"Forever Winter" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. Originally written for her fourth studio album Red (2012), Swift ultimately left it out from the original and deluxe tracklist and later re-recorded the song for her second re-recorded album, Red (Taylor's Version) (2021) as a "From the Vault" track. Co-written and co-produced with American musicians Mark Foster and Jack Antonoff respectively, "Forever Winter" is a power pop song about a friend's mental health issues.

Background

After ending her 13-year contract with Big Machine Records and signing a new deal with Republic Records in 2018, Swift began re-recording her first six studio albums in November 2020.[1] The decision followed a public 2019 dispute between Swift and the talent manager Scooter Braun, who had acquired Big Machine, including the masters of her albums which the label had released.[2] [3] By re-recording the albums, Swift had full ownership of the new masters, which enabled her to encourage licensing of her re-recorded songs for commercial use in hopes of substituting the Big Machine-owned masters.[4]

In April 2021, Swift released her first re-recorded album: the re-recording of her 2008 studio album Fearless, subtitled Taylor's Version. In addition to the re-recorded tracks, it contained several unreleased "From the Vault" tracks that she had written but left out of the original album.[5] On November 12, 2021, she released her second re-recorded album: the re-recorded version of her 2012 studio album Red, also subtitled Taylor's Version.[6] As with its predecessor, Red (Taylor's Version) also includes "From the Vault" tracks that Swift had intended for but left out of the original Red.[7]

Around the release of Swift’s third studio album, Speak Now (2010), a troubled high-school friend of hers died from a drug overdose.[8]

Composition and critical reception

"Forever Winter" is a power pop song opening with energetic brass[9] before proceeding to the chorus that features Swift's dynamic vocals and incorporates horns, flutes, and guitars.[10] The song is four minutes and 23 seconds long.[11] Lyrically, "Forever Winter" is about Swift trying to help a friend through his mental health struggles.[12] [13] Swift worries about the dark path her friend is taking because of them, even though what he says through their phone calls seem less suicidal that it actually is.

Chris Willman, writing for Variety, praised the "breezing lilt" of "Forever Winter" in his ranking of 25 of Swift’s bonus tracks, placing it in 19th place. In a Billboard ranking of every vault track in Red (Taylor’s Version), Jason Lipshutz ranked it at 8th, praising its "intricate" production and Swift’s "nuanced" vocal range in the song. Uproxxs Josh Kurx ranked "Forever Winter" at 15th out of 25 vault tracks, noting a "voice crack" he found around the chorus but later praising it as giving the song "texture".[14] In a ranking of every song on Swift’s discography by Vultures Nate Jones, "Forever Winter" is ranked at 120th place. Jones praises the truth in Swift’s emotions in the song.[15] In another ranking by Rolling Stone, Rob Sheffield ranked it at 168th place, praising its "empathetic look" to its subject, connecting it her 2021 single, "Renegade".[16]

Release

Red (Taylor’s Version) was released on November 21, 2021; "Forever Winter" is track 27. "Forever Winter" charted in Canada (64), Australia (64), and the Billboard Hot 100 (79) and Global 200 (87).

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Melas . Chloe . November 16, 2020 . Taylor Swift Speaks Out about Sale of Her Masters . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20201118064935/https://www.ctvnews.ca/entertainment/taylor-swift-speaks-out-about-sale-of-her-masters-1.5191925 . November 18, 2020 . November 19, 2020 . CNN.
  2. News: August 22, 2019 . Taylor Swift Wants to Re-Record Her Old Hits . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20190822202321/https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-49432817 . August 22, 2019 . August 22, 2019 . BBC News.
  3. Web site: Finnis . Alex . November 17, 2020 . Taylor Swift Masters: The Controversy around Scooter Braun Selling the Rights to Her Old Music Explained . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210212170953/https://inews.co.uk/culture/music/taylor-swift-masters-scooter-braun-selling-rights-music-rerecording-row-explained-762411 . February 12, 2021 . February 13, 2021 . i.
  4. News: Shah . Neil . April 9, 2021 . Taylor Swift Releases New Fearless Album, Reclaiming Her Back Catalog . subscription . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20211008111731/https://www.wsj.com/articles/taylor-swift-releases-new-fearless-album-reclaiming-her-back-catalog-11617945524 . October 8, 2021 . September 25, 2022 . .
  5. News: April 9, 2021 . Taylor Swift Remade Fearless as Taylor's Version. Let's Discuss. . limited . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210409224903/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/09/arts/music/taylor-swift-fearless-taylors-version.html . April 9, 2021 . April 9, 2021 . The New York Times.
  6. Lipshutz . Jason . July 6, 2023 . 7 Key Stats Proving That Taylor Swift's First Two Taylor's Version Re-Recordings Have Been Dominant . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230707161950/https://www.billboard.com/lists/taylor-swift-taylors-version-stats-chart-numbers/an-even-more-enormous-difference-in-total-sales/ . July 7, 2023 . July 7, 2023 . Billboard.
  7. Web site: Red (Taylor's Version): Release date, tracklist, why Taylor Swift is rerecording her albums. CNET. Abrar. Al-Heeti. November 11, 2021. November 13, 2021. November 20, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211120224012/https://www.cnet.com/news/red-taylors-version-release-date-tracklist-why-taylor-swift-is-rerecording-her-albums/. live.
  8. Web site: Willman . Chris . 2023-08-09 . Taylor Swift’s 25 Best Bonus Tracks, Ranked . 2024-10-13 . Variety . en-US.
  9. News: Brown. Helen. November 12, 2021. Taylor Swift's Red Is a Better, Brighter Version of a Terrific Pop Album. live. limited. November 12, 2021. The Independent. November 12, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211112050614/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/taylor-swift-review-red-version-b1955805.html.
  10. Lipshutz . Jason . November 12, 2021 . Every 'From The Vault' Song Ranked on Taylor Swift's Red (Taylor's Version): Critic's Picks . November 12, 2021 . Billboard.
  11. . . 2021 . . digital media liner notes.
  12. October 25, 2023 . The Best Taylor Swift Vault Songs, Ranked . April 5, 2024 . . November 5, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231105054343/https://time.com/6327597/taylor-swift-best-vault-songs/ . live .
  13. Web site: Kurp . Josh . October 27, 2023 . Every Taylor Swift 'From The Vault' (Taylor's Version) Song, Ranked . April 5, 2024 . . November 4, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231104202516/https://uproxx.com/pop/taylor-swift-taylors-version-from-the-vault-songs-ranked/ . live .
  14. Web site: 2023-10-27 . Every Taylor Swift ’From The Vault’ (Taylor’s Version) Song, Ranked . 2024-10-15 . UPROXX . en-US.
  15. Web site: Jones . Nate . 2024-05-20 . All 245 Taylor Swift Songs, Ranked . 2024-10-15 . Vulture . en.
  16. Web site: 2024-04-26 . “Forever Winter” (2021) . 2024-10-15 . Rolling Stone Australia . en-AU.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Forever Winter".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2025, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.