Taylor Swift releases original version of ‘The Lakes’

Taylor Swift marked the first anniversary of her album folklore by releasing the original version of the bonus track “The Lakes.” 

“It’s been 1 year since we escaped the real world together and imagined ourselves someplace simpler. With tall trees & salt air. Where you can wear lace nightgowns that make you look like a Victorian ghost and no one will side eye you cause no one is around,” the 31-year-old singer wrote on her social media accounts Saturday, July 24. 

Taylor continued, “To say thank you for all you have done to make this album what it was, I wanted to give you the original version of “The Lakes.” Happy 1 year anniversary to Rebekah, Betty, Inez, James, Augustine and the stories we all created around them. Happy anniversary, folklore.” 

The new version of “The Lakes” features a more elaborate orchestral arrangement. In an interview with Billboard, producer Jack Antonoff revealed that it was Taylor who decided to strip out the orchestral elements of the song. 

“There was this big orchestral version, and Taylor was like, ‘Eh make it small.’ I had gotten lost in the string arrangements and all this stuff, and I took everything out. I was just like ‘Oh, my God!’ We were not together because that record was made [remotely], but I remember being in the studio alone like, ‘Holy s–t, this is so perfect,” Jack said. 

Taylor dropped folklore  on July 24, 2020, after announcing its existence just hours before its release. “Most of the things I had planned this summer didn’t end up happening, but there is something I hadn’t planned on that did happen. That thing is my 8th studio album, folklore. Surprise,” she wrote. “The Lakes” was initially released as a bonus track on physical copies of folklore. 

In March 2021, folklore won album of the year at the Grammy Awards. Taylor is currently working on a re-recorded version of her 2012 hit album Red, which will be released in November 2021. – Rappler.com