Taylor Swift’s “Red (Taylor’s Version)” offers more than 2012 reminiscence, bringing 30 tracks together to create an album masterpiece.

“Red (Taylor’s  Version)” marks the second re-recorded Swift album, following “Fearless (Taylor’s Version)” released in April 202 0. The decision to re-record and re-release these albums comes after an intense legal battle between Swift and her previous record company, Big Machine Records. After the recording company was sold in 2019, a fierce, highly-publicized debate over the song masters began. Masters, refer to the original recordings of songs which give the owner the legal rights, and therefore money-making rights to songs. After losing the masters to her first six albums, Swift vowed to re-record each of them in order to retain the rights to her music. 

While only few instrumental differences and slight pronunciation differences are featured in the  re-recorded versions of the songs, the real excitement for most Swifties, the self-given nickname for die-hard Swift fans, lies in the “From The Vault” tracks.  

“Red (Taylor’s Version)” includes the 16 original album songs, four songs from the original deluxe album and the charity single “Ronan” as well as nine “From The Vault” tracks. The “From The Vault” tracks are songs that had not previously been recorded or released by Swift, but had been written around the same time as the original album. The vault songs include, “Better Man (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault),” “Nothing New (feat. Phoebe Bridgers) (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault),” “Babe (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault),” “Message In A Bottle (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault),” “I Bet You Think About Me (feat. Chris Stapleton) (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault),” “Forever Winter (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault),” “Run (feat. Ed Sheeran) (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault),” “The Very First Night (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault)” and “All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault).”

Swift’s renditions of “Better Man” and “Babe” reclaim the songs she wrote for the groups Little Big Town (“Pontoon”) and Sugarland (“Still the Same”). Hearing Swift’s vocals on her own words, years after the original song’s release, brings new perspective and appreciation to the tracks. 

The highly anticipated 10 minute version of “All Too Well” was perhaps the most jaw-dropping track on the album. The fifth track on the album became known as a devastating expose and heartbreak ballad, already a relatively long track, falling at five minutes and 29 seconds. The 10 minute version presents a slower burning narrative, adding verses and bridges that listeners never knew they needed. The lines “They say all’s well that ends well, but I’m in a new Hell/Every time you double-cross my mind/You said if we had been closer in age maybe it would have been fine” show Swift’s gorgeous ability to encapsulate human experience in such a compelling manner. Swift’s performance in this version is perhaps even more compelling than the original, shorter version because of the noticeable maturity in her voice. Another reason fans got excited for this release was the surprise announcement in which Swift revealed that she directed a short film starring Sadie Sink (“Stranger Things”) and Dylan O’Brien (“Teen Wolf”) that would be released on the same day as the album. The short film follows the narrative of the 10 minute song, interlacing the song with stunning performances from Sink and O’Brien. Swift gave a gift that kept on giving with the inclusion of the 10-minute version and “All Too Well” short film.

In addition to the short film for “All Too Well (10 Minute Version) (Taylor’s Version) (From The Vault),” Swift released a video alongside the vault song, “I Bet You Think About Me” which features country artist Chris Stapleton (“Cold”). The song is the perfect angsty, tell-it-like-it-is anthem for those who still have a bit of pent-up aggression from a dissolved relationship. The chorus, delivered with a Swift-esque ferocity reads, “But now that we’re done and it’s over/I bet you couldn’t believe/When you realized I’m harder to forget than I was to leave/And I bet you think about me,” bringing the perfect passive-aggressive lines for those looking to get back at a former partner. Stapleton’s deeper, masculine tone, pairs perfectly with Swift’s higher, feminine tone, bringing a balance that places emphasis on the idea there are always two sides to a story. The song contrasts the idea that a relationship has ended for good with the idea that there is an aftermath of thoughts, hence the name “I Bet You Think About Me,” contrasting the higher and lower toned vocals illustrates the contrasts outside of the lyrics themselves. “I Bet You Think About Me,” may not have been as highly anticipated as some of the other vault songs but has stood out as one of the more compelling vault songs. 

The collaboration with indie-pop artist, Phoebe Bridgers (“Motion Sickness”), on the vault track “Nothing New,” brought Swift’s devastating lyrics about growing up and not feeling self-worth to a new level with Bridger’s renowned melancholic vocals. The track features the lines, “How can a person know everything/At eighteen, but nothin’ at twenty-two?/And will you still want me when I’m nothin’ new?,” in the chorus, linking the song to the upbeat sixth track of the album “22.” Contrasting the “happy, free, confused” version of a 22 year old with one who does not seem to have a clue what to do with themselves is yet another way Swift manages to bring the complications of being an individual in their early 20s into her album. The song is as equally devastating as it is beautiful leaving fans wanting more from the new duo of Bridgers and Swift.

Swift managed to bring together more than 90 million people with the re-release of “Red,” breaking her second Spotify record becoming the most-streamed female artist in a single day on the day of its release. Swift has, and always will have, an ability to bring people together with her storytelling. The re-released versions of her albums further prove that Swift only gets better as she goes. The maturity and growth Swift fans have witnessed over the years are more than present in the released version of “Red.” With “Red (Taylor’s Version)” taking the world by storm, the only thing left to do is sit back and ask, “what will she do next?”