One of my favorite tracks from Em's new album has got to be "Beautiful", a song reminiscent of previous lyrical memoirs like "Sing for the Moment", "When I'm Gone" and "Mockingbird".

Like the former, which sampled an Aerosmith cut, "Beautiful" lifts the vocals from a classic rock piece - in fact, a recent concert by Queen and Paul Rodgers. The track is titled "Reaching Out", and it was difficult to track down because I had to find the specific live show it was sampled from. Live in Japan, 2005. Gotcha! The song itself, sung by Paul Rodgers, was written by Don Black and Andy Hill and evokes emotive lyrics injected with somber solace, before the imminent guitar riffs that soon follow.

"Beautiful" samples the first few lines of the song, each of which can be interpreted as Em's own message to friends, family and his fans: "Lately I've been hard to reach" - a nod to Em's absence from the music scene and the public eye; "I've been too long on my own" - a glimpse at his state after the loss of his longtime friend and partner in rhyme, Proof; "everybody has a private world where they can be alone" - again, addressing his absence from the limelight, as well as, perhaps, describing drug addiction, in which many users develop a parallel reality for themselves in such a state. The next lines might either be indicative of the most telling or simply the most elastic interpretation on my part: "Are you calling me? Are you trying to get through? Are you reaching out for me, like I'm reaching out for you?" I don't know much about Em's spiritual/religious beliefs, but these lines could be indicative of such a relationship he may have with a higher power he may (or may not) believe in. Again, I might be reaching with this one. Be that as it may, being that "Beautiful" was the only Relapse track solely-produced by Eminem himself, it's safe to say that the words sung by Rodgers seemed to have touched Marshall personally. These are qualities that might not be found on other albums, in which a sampled drum break was nothing more than that - just a bangin' drum break. Em's sample choices, as documented in the past, are often eclectic, sometimes defining his eccentric demeanor. Again, maybe it's just how I see/hear it.

Much hoopla has been made over the apparent sample usage of Metallica's "One" for the track "Same Song & Dance". I say "apparent", because the song is the only one featured on this set which was not mentioned in the album's liner notes. But there's a distinct sound between "One" and "Same Song & Dance" that is quite noticeable. I can't say much for the Metallica track, other than the fact that those sparse guitar pluckings are beautiful in contrast with the band's rugged, metal sound. But "Same Song & Dance" is yet another one of Relapse's few tracks that stick out to me, both for the beat and lyrical content. On the production tip, "Same Song & Dance" wows me with those eerie vocal synthesizers which evoke a dark, yet somewhat soulful melodic tapestry. But Em's pen and pad skills, unleashing the depths of his madness, can't help but scream at the listener. The verses are filled with enough twisted, misogynistic content to sound like a follow-up to "Kim" from The Marshall Mathers LP. But the chorus, albeit violent and cruel like the verses, somehow possesses the bounce and swing of a club track.