The single collection includes the original voice memo she sent co-producer Aaron Dessner.
Taylor Swift is thanking fans for all the Folklore love by releasing a limited-edition “Cardigan” single collection featuring the original voice memo idea she sent co-writer/producer Aaron Dessner with alternate lyrics.
The bundle for the song from Swift’s acclaimed eighth album comes with the voice memo Swift sent to Dessner on April 27 of this year after he zipped over his instrumental tracks for the song, with both available on 7″ ($8) and 12″ ($13) vinyl editions and on CD ($5) through midnight of July 30.
The announcement of the special came with a hand-written note from Swift, in which she said, “Thank you for all the love you’ve shown Folklore. It’s been the most magical creative adventure of my life thus far, and I wanted to share with you a recording of how it all started — the first recording I ever sent to Aaron for ‘Cardigan,’ including the original lyric and lots of rambling.”
The “Cardigan” single also comes with a note in which Swift describes her songwriting process and sings a cappella over the original track.
The National’s Aaron Dessner is still buzzing about the project. Dessner, who worked on 11 Folklore tracks, has a special place in his heart for “Cardigan.”
“Looking back at Taylor Swift’s text with her original voice memo of Cardigan…still surreal,” he tweeted. “A special edition of the song with the voice memo (which has alternate lyrics) is available thru Thurs. 7/30 only on her web site and iTunes.”
Folklore has earned more than 500,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in its first three days of release, according to initial reports to Nielsen Music/MRC Data. The set was released with little advance notice on Friday, July 24.
Per those reports, Folklore has, in just its first three days, already surpassed the biggest week of 2020 for any album, captured earlier this month by the arrival of Juice WRLD’s Legends Never Die, which launched with 497,000 units in the week ending July 16. The last album to garner at least 500,000 units in a week was Swift’s previous LP, Lover, which bowed at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart dated Sept. 7, 2019, with 867,000 units earned in the week ending Aug. 29, 2019.
