Taylor Swift (Bonus Track Version)

At 16, Taylor Swift entered country music’s big time with her wistful ode to summer love, “Tim McGraw.” The song may use another artist’s name as its title hook, but this album is very much about Swift’s precocious talents as a singer and songwriter. Her self-titled debut captures the dreams and desires of a girl on the cusp of womanhood with candor, intelligence and authentic sweetness. Producer Robert Ellis Orrall provides Swift with sympathetic backing, adding banjo-driven twang to “Pictures To Burn” and lending some electric guitar punch to “The Outside.” For her part, Swift sings with clarity and conviction, filling tunes like “Tied Together With A Smile” and “Mary’s Song” with a winsome yearning. There are moments here — such as the lovely “Teardrops On My Guitar” — that recall the tenderness of an old Everly Brothers song. Other tracks, like “Picture To Burn,” have a distinctly sarcastic edge. Most of all, Swift keeps things real and true to her own experience on her winning premiere effort.