The B52s - Cosmic Thing

MINE

So when did that happen?  Sometime post 1995ish Fred Schneider's voice went from amusingly quirky to oh-my-god-shut-him-up-please.  Perhaps it's due to my spending some years working for commercial radio, where Love Shack remains a staple to this day.  Ruined it for me, along with Gerry Rafferty's Baker Street as I've previously mentioned, which just gives me the horrors now.

Back when this album came out (1989) I was very fond of it.  And playing it today, I can still remember vaguely how good Cosmic Thing sounded then.  I remember how disappointed I was when I realised an overseas trip would coincide with the band visiting Sydney - so I've never seen them live.

There's no denying the music's good, and I'll never get tired of hearing Kate Pierson sing - Roam is still clappy, happy and just plain gorgeous to listen to.  I felt the same about Deadbeat Club and Channel Z - but the rest was a bit awful.

VERDICT: TURN IT DOWN

YOURZ

The band who started their career with a song about crustaceans, The B52's have never been far enough away from the 'novelty act' zone for me to appreciate them as anything else.  Cosmic Thing, and particularly the vapidly annoying Love Shack, didn't help much either. 

VERDICT: THROW IT OUT

For more information:

The Cars - Complete Greatest Hits

MINE

When YourZ informed with excitement some time ago that he'd bought this CD, my response was lukewarm.  And I guess it's kind of remained that way - not because the tunes aren't good, because they are; and not because I don't like the band, because I do; but because working in commercial radio has ruined The Cars for me.

They are such a staple of classic hits radio, it's quite impossible for me to get overly enthused about Let's Go or  Shake It Up.  It's a bit like Gerry Rafferty's Baker Street - once a firm favourite and now it makes me cringe.

Which is sad, because listening to the songs in a bunch like that instantly transports me to my last year of high school, where Candy-O was a staple record in many people's collections.  Not to mention the visceral response I have to My Best Friend's Girl due to an unfortunate incident where I was "the girl" referred to.  In fact, listening to the song the other day made me remark out loud to myself "What were you thinking?"  All I can say is - sorry, Richard.

VERDICT:TURN IT DOWN

YOURZ

Ah, yes, The Cars. They hold a special significance for me. Let's Go was the first single I ever bought with my own money (and I still have it too). I'm amazed it hasn't been worn flat with the amount of play it's received over the years. I coveted the album it came from, Candy-O, like you wouldn't believe but wasn't able to afford to buy it. Thankfully, friends who had it taped it so I didn't miss out. A few years later, when I had the funds, I was able to buy my very own copy.

Unlike Mine, I have absolutely no problem with listening to any of the songs on Complete Greatest Hits (well, maybe with the exception of the later ballady songs, which never really appealed to me anyway). Listening to the collection for this review reminded me of being in a covers band in the early 80s and playing a number of their song (the band, in very 80s fashion, was called U4RIA - geddit? The irony, oh the irony, was we were a 5 piece and thought we were so clever) My Best Friend's Girl and You Might Think were staples of our set and very popular with both the band and audience.

I also remember being blown away by their use of technology. They managed to rock and sound new wave at the same time - how cool! And the overdubbed vocals (reputed to be 72 tracks in You're All I've Got Tonight, for instance) was only rivalled, at the time, by Queen. All this served to make a very big impression on me, both as a fan and as a wannbe rock star. I still love simple-sounding rock tunes the most.

But mostly doing this served to remind me I need to add Candy-O and Shake It Up to our ever-growing list of CDs to own.

VERDICT: TURN IT UP


For more information go to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cars (I know, it's Wikipedia but it's all there is)