Taylor Dayne - Can't Fight Fate (Expanded Edition) (2014)

Arista was poised to take Taylor Dayne beyond the dance tracks and drum beats which established her as a force to be reckoned with on her smash debut Tell It to My Heart. Can't Fight Fate, her sophomore outing, featured much more straight-ahead rock & roll, lush production, and top-notch songwriters (including Diane Warren, who penned her biggest hit "Love Will Lead You Back"). The album proved an even bigger success than her debut, scoring two Top Ten hits, one number one hit, and one Top 20 hit. Unfortunately, however, the momentum was lost after this album, and Taylor Dayne never again reached the commercial stratosphere she scaled with this set. The album's dance songs, such as the lead-off Top Five hit "With Every Beat of My Heart," feature more organic instrumentation, although there are a few straight-ahead dance tracks, such as "Up All Night." The ballads are lush and dramatic, and one of them, "Love Will Lead You Back," soared all the way to number one. The real killers, however, are the rock songs, and Taylor delivers like a true, seasoned rock star. The set's third single, the Top Five hit "I'll Be Your Shelter" (also written by Warren), brings to mind Tina Turner, while other tracks, such as the unstoppable "You Can't Fight Fate" (again written by Warren) and "Ain't No Good," are just as delicious, and should have been hits. The hit procession unfortunately stopped after the groovy mid-tempo jam "Heart of Stone" failed to reach the Top Ten. Years after its release, this album stands the test of time, and can safely be classified as one of the more diverse and exciting dance/pop/rock albums of the late '80s/early '90s.