Taylor Swift - "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together"

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Taylor Swift's first single from the upcoming album Red is a solid effort and another lyrical triumph. However, she set the bar extremely high on her last album Speak Now, which leaves a feeling that perhaps she could push even a bit further to produce something transcendent. "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" is not that record, but it's not a disappointment either.

It's possible to listen to "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" and wonder if Taylor Swift thought she was in danger of losing her hard earned breakup song crown from the Speak Now project to Adele and Katy Perry. What does distinguish a Taylor Swift breakup song from the others is that lyrically she glides along the line between disabling bitterness and upbeat self-confidence with the artistry of a master figure skater. Her scoffing, "And you, will hide away and find your piece of mind with some indie record that's much cooler than mine," is another brilliant line from one of the best songwriters in the popular music business.

You are forgiven if you listen to "We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" and think you hear echoes of Katy Perry. That is due to the presence of producer and co-songwriter Max Martin. The pop master played a key role as one of the architects of Katy Perry's Teenage Dream sound. It works well with Taylor Swift's attitude and approach to a pop song. However, it is difficult to see how this is considered a country record. Taylor Swift has fully embraced mainstream pop music.

"We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together" is a solid teaser for the upcoming album Red. Will it be another bracing set of intensely personal songs like Speak Now? This time around she is doing more collaborating and did not write everything on her own. For at least one song she connected with Ed Sheeran, one of the most promising of young male songwriters. Finally, the song will generate conversations once again about who exactly Taylor Swift was thinking of in writing this song. Rarely does a major pop artist make their failed relationships so public. However, that choice has certainly played a role in the commercial success of Taylor Swift's music.