5 comments about The Joshua Tree.

1. A documentary about U2,manager,re-mix producer,
   co-producers and Elvis Costello talking about how
   they started writing songs about the Joshua Tree album.



2. I thought this would be videos from this CD. Instead it's like a documentary about the making of the CD. If you like to listen to people talk then I guess this is for you. If your looking for the videos for the songs then do not waste your money.



3. If you r looking for Joshua Tree concert this is NOT for you. I just got it in the mail and I already could throw it in the trash. Its just the guys talking about the making of Joshua Tree. If you want to buy the making of you in the right place. If you looking for a concertI really hope this helps people that are thinking of buying .This is not is not a concert



4. This is great if you are a U2 fan or just love The Joshua Tree album. Also if you are interested in the recording process. However, this also comes in a purple cover with the four faces of U2 on the left side. Make sure you don't buy both!



5. This footage focuses on the production process of U2 creating music and videos, rather than the final product. If you want to see the polished stuff, pass this one up. If you like the details of how it comes to be, this gives great insight.

5 comments about Producers/You Make the Heat.

1. The answer would be: This CD in Print! The Producers were one of those terrific power-pop bands in the early 80's that seemed on the verge of stardom only to see label woes and a vindictive record exec bury their career mid-ascent. Nearly as criminal is that this laudable CD of their terrific first two albums for CBS/Portrait in languishing in out of print status, with not even a commercial download available.
   
   Why these songs have not enjoyed a renaissance of sorts is beyond me. Of the multitudes of skinny-tie power poppers to hit the MTV airwaves, The Producers, with their flawless harmonies, killer hooks, dynamic stage presence (I emceed a show of theirs in Sunbury PA around 1982, where "She Sheila" as a Top 5 requested song) and secret weapon in keyboardist Wayne Famous. They had energy to burn, and as "You Make the Heat" pointed out, were rapidly growing their musical palette beyond the skinny tie scene.
   
   The debut album was a hook laden exercise in perfect pop. Both "What's He Got" and "What She Does to Me (The Diana Song)" became regional hits, while the rest of the songs were inventive and catchy. "Who Do You Think You Are" and "I Love Lucy" are almost as good. (Although I always thought it was funny that the album cover had the band in Directors chairs.)
   
   It was the second album, "You Make The Heat," that should have put The Producers over the top. "She Sheila," with its sublime keyboard introduction and infectious hook, became an MTV staple, and The Producers were tapped to play MTV's New Year's Ball. In what should have been a crowning moment, "She Sheila" capped the year and the band then sang "Auld Ang Syne." Given the ferocity of the title song and the intricate sound of "Chinatown," along with easy to like power-pop like "Operation" and "Merry Go Round," this album should have massive. However, as previously noted, there were outside influences that road-blocked the band. Portrait Records folded and a certain Al Teller - angered for some reason - jammed up The Producers' contract and held Coelacanth hostage for almost 10 years.
   
   Even with this CD out of print, the odd over-priced used copy pops up now and then. If you loved bands like The Plimsouls, The Shoes, The Motels, etc, this CD will send you to heaven. There's also a TheProducers org site you can check out.



2. I applaude ONE WAY RECORDS on a fantastic job..This CD has all the impact of the original lp's and much more..Clean and powerful...The inner pics are an exact repro of both albums..
   
   How would I describe these guys ....for anybody not all that familiar with their sound? How about this??.... "The Beatles meet The Police" (matching suits and shoes...but in different colors...check out the hair) ..The powerful vocals and harmonies are reminiscent of the EARLY Beatles..and the music has the energy and drive of The Police....with that Reggae spice....Every song is a keeper!!!!
   
   I grabbed this 2fer when it first came out...for an amazing price of $12.99 new....
   
   I have always been impressed with ONE WAYS consistency and this is just one more example of another great effort.....if you find one at a good price...definitely grab it!!



3. During the time this band was popular, one could go to the Agora Ballroom in Atlanta and see a host of hot bands who were signed to major labels. Fortnox, Riggs, Swingin Richards, and so many more. The Producers were the best of the lot.Even today the question remains as to why these guys{ Producers} did not make it all the way. The vocals were unbelievable,and the musicianship was as good as it gets. I think this album is a little high, but quite frankly I don't care. I owe it to these guys for some of the best shows I have ever seen. Thanks for the memories, fellows. Buying this is the least I can do...



4. Glad I got mine, 'coz look at the price of this baby. I think Van Temple and this core of rockers have been sadly underated. Every track here is tight, melodic, in-your-face rock and roll. The Producers gets most the raves, but You Make The Heat backs it up plenty. Many of the overlooked and underappreciated songs deserve mention. How can you NOT crank up "Who Do you Think You Are?", "You Go Your Way", "Sensations" and "The End"? This is awesome, rock-edged power pop, loaded with catchy riffs and skinny-tie attitude. "She Sheila" is pure powerpop brilliance, pubescently charged. "Operation", one of my favorites, showcases a bit of Van's killer guitar technique, plus thundering, heart pounding drums, all driving a storyline of heartbreak and angst. Cranked, you can't help but succumb to its emotional gush, as Van reminds us what it all feels like. "Dear John" is the reminder and the story to back it up. Superbly crafted rock songs, a perfect detachment from the hum drum corporate stuff that continually pours from the radio today. You'll be happy you gave this disc a few spins. Glad I got mine. ===MikeG===



5. Having had the honour & privilege to open for this Atlanta-based quartet on two occasions are among the highlights of my 18+ year musical career, so I'm glad to see their first two LPs have finally been transferred to digital era.
   
   Back in the early era of MTV (when they used to actually play music videos!), The Producers had three videos in heavy rotation ("What's He Got?", "Certain Kinda Girl" & the inimitable "She Shelia") & things looked very good for them. Unfortunately, a rather petty falling out between the band & a spiteful rep (who shall remain Al Teller) at Portrait Records cost them the brass ring after their sophomore -- & superior even to their excellent debut -- effort, which they've been paying for ever since.
   
   The Producers, fortunately, are still very much a viable entity, although they generally don't travel very far outside their stompimg grounds unless they're performing for a private or special function. If you're ever in the Atlanta area, LOOK FOR THESE GUYS!!! It's a Power Pop feast you won't be sorry you saw. If you're not lucky enough to catch them live, get this compilation of their first two LPs, "The Producers" & "You Make the Heat". It won't replace the live energy of their shows, but it'll give the listener an extremely close approximation of how good these guys are, as there's not too terribly much lost in the translation.
   
   (Then, go buy their finally-released "lost" album, "Coelacanth" -- but that's for another review!)

5 comments about What a Life!.

1. Australia has produced some fine bands (Bon Scott's AC/DC) & some absolute rubbish (Men at Work), but none can compare to Christina Amphlett, "The Wonder From Down Under" & her band Divinyls. This is the best of their releases, a truly amazing experiment in powerful, energetic Punk/Pop that has never been duplicated - & judging by the state of music these days - never will!!
   This is one of my favorite albums of ALL TIME! "What A Life!" is one of those rare examples of a record that kicks ass from opening note to glorious conclusion; every song, every chord, every lyric intelligently crafted by talented musicians who know how to get a point across to the listener without being pretentious or overbearing. Amphlett's delivery is caustic yet invigorating, raw yet poignant, sweet & sexy yet sinister all at once - a feat only a rare few can attain. Each tune has its own unique identity, yet they blend together seamlessly as if parts of a "concept" album. The instruments accent each other perfectly, & when combined with Amphlett's power they resemble a hard-rocking blues band more than a punk outfit (a la Patti Smith or Concrete Blonde). This record must be listened to in its entirety to get the full impact - cherry-picking is for 80 IQ & under lame-oids!
   MTV & VH-1 classify Divinyls as "One-hit Wonders", which shows how much they know about music! Trust me - this band is HOT!! I highly recommend EVERY DIVINYLS RECORD, but this is the best of the best! Do yourself a favor & add "What A Life!" to your collection - you'll never watch music television again!!



2. I love this cd By Australia's Divinyls...My favorite songs are: Pleasure and Pain and Dear diary..I love Christina's super sexy style. The Divinyls will always be one of the best rock bands of the 80's..Must have for Divinyls fans!



3. The second full-length album by the DiVinyls, this is the 'International' Edition of "What A Life" that was released for the world at large and not the original Australian version, which is apparantly unavailable anywhere on CD. The two differ in this disc's exclusion of the tracks 'Talk Like The Rain', 'Old Radios', 'Para-Dice' and 'What A Life', and the abscence of 'Don't You Go Walking', 'Motion' and 'Casual Encounter' from the old original version. This disc is perfect in the songs it has, but somehow somebody has to get those other tracks out on CD format.
   
   Onto the disc at hand: "What A Life" is definately the most New Wave-ish of the DiVinyls's albums, mixed with more of a power rock/hard rock style than New Wave usually has (I'm not really an expert on the style but I have heard and liked some of it). And it's quintessentially DiVinyls, having that unique intangible that's at the core of all their albums, whatever style they're playing, that's always taken bits and pieces of the best of so many genres and subgenres until the DiVinyls almost constitute their own genre.
   
   "Pleasure And Pain" is one of the least typical musically of the group's output, probably because ('cover songs' excluded) it's the only one they've done that none of the band members wrote or co-wrote. It's a great song though, very well written and distinctively performed, about a woman trying to find a way out of an abusive relationship. It's got this poppy beat, strange for a song of its subject matter, but Christina Amphlett's vocals hit all the right notes emotionally and it, like other tracks before and after this album, debunks the notion among critics that DiVinyls only do one kind of lyrical material. "Pleasure And Pain" helps show their true versatility musically and lyrics-wise.
   
   "Don't You Go Walking" treads the tried but true ground of 'lover don't leave' material found on so many rock albums, but with the added vocal quirks and impassioned bellowing Amphlett brings to the table and a great extended guitar outro. "Good Die Young" is on the much rarer (musically) ground of what I think of as Dark New Wave, with drummer Richard Harvey getting a good chance to shine, and another turn of the tragic/dark side of Chrissie's vocals which she used to such devastating effect on "Elsie" off the "Desperate" album.
   "Sleeping Beauty" - now here's the kind of song the DiVinyls Are known for, and how they shine on this one! Deliciously suggestive vocals from Chrissie ranging from dreamily pure to teasingly playful to red-hot whispered husky. "Motion" is just plain bizarre, and wonderfully so, with Chrissie in full Wild Girl mode through most of her singing.
   
   On "In My Life" though, the vocals manage to go from wild to downright scary. Christina is one of four singers I know who can really, on more than just an occasional basis, 'sing scary' when they want to (the others are Alice Cooper, King Diamond and Till Lindemann from Rammstein). This is a delight though, not dark. Roller coaster ride scary vocals. "Casual Encounter" is a misinterpreted song. People say it's mean and taunting; I get the opposite from it. It's about a girl looking for love (and sex, might as well call a spade a spade) but who's tired and cranky (Really cranky in this case) from potential suitors faking the first just to try to get the second. That's how I read it anyway. Musically, it's one of the most clearly Hard Rock tracks on the album and the least New Wave.
   
   "Heart Telegraph" is really different musically again, with unique intro effects and a pulsing, electronic-sounding rhythm throughout and more subdued but still excellent vocals. "Guillotine Day"'s vocals are definately not subdued and highlighted by great keyboards.
   
   The album ends with "Dear Diary", one of the most beautifully haunting tracks I've ever heard. Soft and powerful vocals, an outstanding example of the art of songwriting, incredible musicianship all around, the effect of the rain heard in the background fitting in perfectly, the slow drums seeming to bleed with unnameable emotions. A perfect way to close an eclectic album.
   
   Only downsides: not enough pictures of Christina (alright, to be fair there'd have to be some of the rest of the band too, but it's the abscence of a booklet of Chrissie pictures I'm mourning); the 4 missing tracks from the original version of this still NEED to get out there ("Old Radios" has the single most adorably bizarre vocals I've ever heard) and it's been too many years since there was any new DiVinyls material. Maybe they've retired or gone onto non-performing ventures, but if you read this, PLEASE consider coming back for even just a couple of new songs to go on a collection of rarities. We miss you!
   
   Okay, enough lamentations. Great, eclectic and unforgettable album. 10/10, at the very least.



4. God I miss the eighties! when are we going to have another creative explosion, from the looks of things that's not going to happen. I loved this band the first time I saw them on MTV, and I miss them. When is America going to wake up and smell the roses instead of wallowing headfirst in the dingleberries of current music. Stop pipe dreaming...Guitar driven and fun! classic alternative rock album, not really a bad song on it...give it a try at least for nostalgic interest and remember... they did it before Nirvana or Hole or any other imitator that's followed.



5. Before Nirvana, before Godsmack, before Alanis, before anybody considered alternative nowadays, there was Christina Amphlett and the Divinyls, period. This album was made in 1984, when many of todays "alternative" band members were still in diapers.
   It is also one of the rare albums, you can play front to back without skipping any songs.

1 comments about Echo & the Bunnymen: Dancing Horses.

1. This is a low-key concert video following Echo's undervalued Siberia album. It has a good selection of tracks from that Britpop-flavored cd plus intense renditions of some classics. Ian McCulloch is a bit hoarse at times, but it doesn't detract from the performances. Ian and Will Sargent make the songs sound fresh and intimate. "Stormy Weather" and "Ocean Rain" are particularly good. I would have liked to see "A Promise" and "It's Alright," but you can't please every fan's particular taste.
   
   Maybe the real treat here is the long, rambling interview with McCulloch and Sargent. Relaxed and leisurely, they talk about their whole career from the present album to the early days to various friends and associates. Mac's famous ego is intact, as he constantly says that E&B are the coolest band in the world.
   
   He ends the concert by saying, "Thank you - you've just seen the best band of all time." Their sales have been modest lately, but this isn't such an outrageous claim. Certainly they are one of the most distinctive British bands to come out of the '80s new wave scene.

5 comments about Pop Trash.

1. I wasn't expecting a masterpiece like "Rio" "The Wedding Album" or "Astronaut" when I first got this album, but after I listened to it, I quickly came to enjoying it. It is a slight departure from their original sound, but it's something unique that I've never heard in recent times.
   
   From the beautiful melodies like "Someone else not me" and "Starting to remember" to the rocking "Mars meets Venus" and "Last day on Earth" this album sounds like a cross between the modern sound with some 60's style pitched in. If you want a clear sample of I am talking about, listen to "Lava Lamp" and you'll see what I mean.
   
   My personal favorites include, "Someone else not me" "Lady Xanax" and "Mars Meets Venus." My favorite from the album was "Playing with Uranium" not only for its funky-rocker sound but the lyrics as well. C'mon, how many artist today would've came up with something like that? And the lyrics: "C'mon over to my place, Playing with Uranium, if it blows up in my face, see you on the otherside...reinvent the human race, you've just got the invitation..." Who else could write up something like that? It's a nice treat and I thank them for having a creative imagination. I admire artists who actually sit down and take the time to write a good song. Creativity is winner, and I wish we could have more of it nowadays instead of, "what,what??" or "I'm so miserable!"
   
   From beginning to end, "Pop Trash" stands by itself when it comes to the music and the lyrics, I give them credit for going out of their way and taking risks. Overall, this album is pretty good and I do recommend it for all fans new and long-time. It's a unique sound/style that shouldn't be passed up. Not the best album of their career, but worth giving a listen to.
   
   **If you're looking for the import edition, I wish you luck! I spent $51.00 for it. It contains "Someone else not me" in French & Spanish along with "Prototypes," a collection of sound-samples.**
   
   The "Mad Mind" has spoken.



2. For those who have been carefully following Duran Duran's career over the last 30 years, this review will not say anything new. I think that it would be helpful for someone who is considering this disk to take a little trip with me, because I bet it is not too far from that of many lapsed Duran Duran fans. I personally lost track of them after my extreme disappointment with Liberty and Big Thing back in the late 80's and early 90's. This was not because Liberty (4 stars) and Big Thing (5 stars) were bad albums, but rather because I was not ready for those albums. I was simultaneously still hoping for Planet Earth and Careless Memories, while at the same time comparing them unfavorably with my REM albums. I'm not certain what precisely I was expecting Duran Duran to do, but whatever it was, I just wasn't ready for "I Don't Want Your Love". So I stopped listening. Completely. I wasn't even interested beyond a yawn when "Ordinary World" came out.
   
   Well, I recently hauled out my copy of Big Thing, and discovered that it is not only a good record, but actually a pretty visionary record (see my review of that record as well). On the strength of that realization, I decided to find out what the boys had been up to since I had lost track of them. And I discovered that they have been putting out some of the most interesting, challenging pop/dance music out there. Interesting, challenging **dance** music, you say? Yes. Duran Duran have always embraced the fact that at the core of it all, they are a good band with dance tunes.
   
   Pop Trash, then is the back end of a long line of pop/dance albums. But wow, what an album. It has pop-hook after pop-hook, most songs sounding gorgeous, infectious, or both. Oh, and somewhere along the way, Simon learned to really use the colors in his voice. He has always had a few shades of richness to his tone in the middle range, but he has been accused of having his sound be thinner at the upper and lower ranges. Well, that is probably true, but now he is using his entire range to good effect. Warren Cucurrillo, whom I have always been a little suspicious of, is really quite a remarkable guitarist. His compositional additions are really quite remarkable. Anchoring everything is one of the least heralded keyboard geniuses: Nick Rhodes. If Simon LeBon has kept the Duran Duran sound consistent with his voice, Nick has been the constant background with his musical taste. His keyboards are impeccable here as elsewhere, and as you trace some of the sounds through his discography, you see that he has been consistently developing well throughout, and Pop Trash is really amazing.
   
   This is the last album so far with Warren. I think that although I will always have a really special place in my heart for the Fab Five as they originally started, Warren really contributed something amazing to Duran Duran's middle years output. He was experimental, flamboyant, but overall a solid guitarist. I think that his ejection from the band was probably good for the band as a whole, but should not take away from the fact that he put out some great tunes with DD.
   
   The songs are excellent, overall. I think that I could have done without Lady Xanax, but by the same token, Someone else Not Me is incredible. So it balances out. I gave this 5 stars not because I think that this should be compared to "Astral Weeks" by Van Morrison, but rather because I feel that within Duran Duran's output, this is an excellent album, easily to be enjoyed by fans old and new.
   
   Oh, and check out Red Carpet Massacre. Amazing.



3. Loved it when it came out...but when you listen to it now the weaknesses really stand out. One big problem is the lyrics. The book "Notorious" explains how Simon was absent during most of the production, leaving Nick with lyric duties. Nick can get by, but after a while you realize the songs are too cold and stylized (most share the same depth as "Electric Barbarella"). The second problem is you can't hear any bass! How can you have a DD album with no bass? It's sad that Warren got the ax after Pop Trash, as I feel Warren, John, Simon and Nick were by far the better lineup in DD's history. In the end Simon was right in thinking they couldn't go on without John. Pop Trash was proof of that.



4. This album is perfect on the surface. You have the mature sweeping epics like "Pop Trash Movie" from Warren Cuccurullo and company, the lush ballads "Somebody Else Not Me" and "Starting to Remember," the pure pop of "Lava Lamp" and the pointed pop of "Mars Meets Venus." It's almost too planned, too contrived for its own good. There's nothing that comes out of left field which is why I had to dock it one star. There's just not enough adventure happening this time out.
   
   That said, what's here is very, very good. All the previously mentioned tunes are excellent and the musicianship is top knotch. "Hullicinating Elvis" is a hoot and the ending "Last Day on Earth" rocks with some authority. This is not the clunker some would have you believe. It's an accomplished set of good pop songs with range and depth. Exactly what it should be, but probably needing a little more of something unexpected to push it into the classic region.



5. I'll make this quick. If you're looking for anything resembling Rio, The Wedding Album, Notorious, or even Medazzaland, then you're going to be mildly disappointed.
   
   This is the DD album for people that have always wanted harder and more prominent guitar, and a much heavier sound. That's not to say this album has an alternative sound or anything like that...just more moody and lethargic. You'll find a lot of slower songs on this album compared to others, in addition to a much heavier influence by Warren on here.
   
   Songs like "Playing with Uranium" or "Last Day On Earth" (easily my favorite on the album) are going to make you wonder if you're listening to the same band...and by all means, they're not bad songs at all - just basically the opposite of what you'd expect from Simon and the boys, so this takes a little getting used to. Kind of like if your best friend shaves his/her head...might not look bad on them, but it kinda freaks you out the first few times you experience it.
   
   For the most part, the songs are pretty solid, with the harder tracks and the ballads standing out over everything else. And while some of their experiments don't work on this album (I thought "Hallucinating Elvis" was abysmal and was almost devoid of melody, and "Lava Lamp" was completely boring despite it being one of the only faster paced songs here), you're still going to find tracks you really enjoy.
   
   I gave this album 3 stars because while it's not the powerhouse return that Astronaut was (in my opinion), it's still not dominated by throwaway tracks like Liberty or Big Thing (also my opinion).

5 comments about Victorialand.

1. I just bought this album and have listened to it three times. The songs are on average a bit low-keyed compared to some of their more rockin' albums. Ohter than this, my only complaint is that the vocals have some echo effect that diminishes the clarity of them. They lose some of the aural bite that is present on other albums. Overall, I would recommend this album to any fans of the group. The songs are unique from other songs they have recorded.



2. Imagine Teletubbies all doing acid and singing in the hippest way you can conjure.
   
   Simply one of the most inventive, transformative pop albums of the 80s and 90s, "Victoria Land" was the stroke of beauty that found me in a mid-80s L.A. looking desperately for something to lift me above the manners of moraes of coke-snorting white trash film-industry yuppies from Vassar and Brown.
   
   "Whale Tales" and "How to Bring a Blush to Snow" are repeat-play classics that reinvented psychedelia-with-class for a new age.
   
   I could be wrong, but I don't think their catalogue gets better than this outing.
   Total trance music, audio-hallucinogens, but not numbing.



3. 
   I am a mere 25 years old and, therefore, don't remember when "Dreampop" was alive and well. I grew up with the music of Smashing Pumpkins and some ethereal goth, both of which, I had heard, were influenced by this genre. So, I checked out Cocteau Twin's "Victoria Land" and was very pleased. This album does take you to new places through whimsical soundscapes. Some good songs on this album are...
   "Lazy Calm" is exactly as the name says, just a calm, flowing song, that takes awhile to really start, and remains quite and flowing throughout. "Omminmak" is more upbeat, with almost "double-dutch" sounding, "child singing and rhyming" vocals. "Throughout The Dark Months Of April And May" is more atmospheric, with a slightly darker edge...not dark as in scary dark, but dark as in regret and sorrow. "Little Stacey" is the closest thing to a "tradition" popular music song, with lyrics that are almost understandable and a very pronounced melody.
   I give this album four stars because it seems to be lacking the structure of later Cocteau Twins albums. Also, Elizabeth Frazer's vocals are fantastic, however, it would be nice if there was at least one song that had more of a "traditional" sound, at least to the point of having lyrics which could be understood.
   
   Other than that...a great album, and a great place to start in the "Dreampop" genre...and no, alas, they really don't make em like this anymore :(



4. Victorialand, released in 1986, two years after their crtically acclamied album "Treasure" stands strongly as some of their best works. "Victorialand" is a complete change of direction, this tim using no bass, drum machines and a more ambient and calm sound. Victorialand is named after an area in Antarctica, and the sound does reflect this title. "Whales tales" feels like walking in a blizzard. "Lazy calm" stands as one of the most fantastic lavender-scented lullabies ever released. The fluttering guitar parts of "Oomingmak" project images of butterflies in the snow into the listeners mind. "Fluffy Tufts" musically looks like a sunset in Antractica. Victorialand is the perfect soundtrack to a bubblebath, rainy evening, Car/Train trip in the counrtyside, or one to listen to after a tiring day. A sublime and chilly album



5. The record is a masterpiece from the beginning to the end. This album is tied with "Head Over Heals" as my favorite record of the Cocteau Twins. And like "Head Over Heals", Robin Guthrie and Elizabeth Fraser do this one without Simon Raymonde. After a hard day, please put this record on, and all problems will just disappear. I think it is a tragedy that for the most part this album will never be heard by the mass majority of the people, and they are saddly never going to hear one of the most prettiest, peaceful, delicate, blissful albums ever made. And if we could hear butterflies sing they would sound like Elizabeth on this album. She always has amazed me, and here she astounds once again. Let me review my five favorites on "Victorialand".
   1)"Throughout The Dark Months Of April and May". The wicked and at the same time delicate guitar playing and singing on this song is simply gorgeous. When you think the song will be going one way, they do a U-Turn. 2)"Lazy Calm". If you don't cry on this one, you have turned to stone. There is a stillness in this song any group would kill to be able to achieve, but these guys do it effortlessly. 3)"Feet-Like Fins" Pure brilliance. Here again another U-Turn song. 4)"The Thinner The Air". On this one close your eyes and experience pure ecstacy. 5)"How To Bring A Blush To The Snow". Another Cocteau Twins masterpiece. And the song title says it all about how you will feel after hearing it. Listen to this album, and be prepared to be a Cocteau Twins fan for life. I rate this group priceless and this album 5 stars.

5 comments about It's My Life.

1. It's my life by Talk Talk is much better than the Gwynn version. I loved the video with the animals, but I do not think the song really has anything do with what you see on the video. Actually, how many songs do you actually see that the video and the song have anything in common?



2. "It's my life" was a great song. Even though the refurbished Gwen Stefani version is basically the exact same song with a different singer, it is still lame. Mark Hollis has a voice that is haunting, honest, hopeless, gritty and comforting at the same time. It is too bad that he does not make himself heard nowadays. This album has 3-4 fantastic songs and the rest are pretty good as well.



3. not much to add to everything said, yes, it is synthy, but no doubting (pun unintended) the maturity of the songs, Renee is for anyone who has experienced unrequieted love, and Tommorow Started, the way Hollis's voice hangs onto the stretched bass note beofre the trumpet solo, it symbolises everything wonderful about Talk Talk. Get a copy of Its MY life, add Lexicon of Love by ABC and New Gold Dream by Simple Minds and take back the airwaves from the Stefanis of this world.....



4. Talk Talk singer Mark Hollis has the most expressively emotional voice to have emerged from the "New Wave" (or whatever pigeonhole you need..) singers. Just hearing the sorrow, the pleading in "Renee" is enough to send you off if you like emotional singers - and I do. This is a fantastic album, atmospheric and yet claustrophobic. Talk Talk were one of the rare groups that really didn't set out to be BS rock stars, and one might say they accomplished that. It is a shame that Mark's voice was destined not to be what the music programmers wanted, so you got Simon Le Bon (and tinny-voiced Gwen Steponme) instead. Hope you're happy about that - I'm not.
   And I didn't add the line about "voting buttons" either. Buy this CD.



5. The original Talk Talk "It's My Life" was not a smarmy love song. For those who have seen the original video, you can see it's a protest song against animals in captivity and animal cruelty. This does not come across in the re-recorded version by "whoever". The song only makes sense against the backdrop of vision of animals in the wild and then those kept in captivity. The most poignant part of the video is where the character's mouth starts to appear with bars across it, silencing him.

4 comments about Headlines and Deadlines: The Hits of A-Ha [Region 2].

1. This DVD is a collection of the band's earlier hits. A-HA changed their sound to use less keyboards and more piano and acoustic guitar in the 90's. There are a couple of live videos included. The band sound amazing. The lead singer sounds just as good live as he does in the studio. In fact, he can hold long notes at various ranges!!
   Don't miss the video collection of this very talented band.
   I give Headlines and Deadlines a 5 star rating.
   
   Please be sure that you have a multi region player for this A-HA DVD.



2. a-ha is a Grammy Award-nominated band from Norway.They were most popular during the 1980s. The trio, composed of lead vocalist Morten Harket, guitarist Paul Waaktaar and keyboardist Magne Furuholmen, formed in 1982.When a-ha was put on rotation on MTV in the USA for their video Take On Me, it instantly became a hit, or more appropriately described, as a phenomenon. a-ha has sold 79 million records (including singles) worldwide. This is a hard to find complete video collection of the band that includes:
   
   1. Introduction [1:08]
   
   2. Take on me [3:46]
   
   3. Cry wolf [3:34]
   
   4. Touchy [4:32]
   
   5. You are the one (remix) [3:48]
   
   6. Manhattan skyline [4:14]
   
   7. The blood that moves the body [4:07]
   
   8. Theres never a forever thing [2:54]
   
   9. Early morning [3:04]
   
   10. Hunting high and low [3:46]
   
   11. I've been losing you [4:50]
   
   12. Crying in the rain [4:24]
   
   13. I call your name [4:05]
   
   14. Stay on these roads [4:44]
   
   15. Sycamore leaves [5:07]
   
   16. Train of thought [4:18]
   
   17. The sun always shines on tv [4:37]
   
   18. Move to memphis [5:26]



3. a-ha is the best group of music for me, i like all the videoclip and his albums.



4. j aimerais me procurer ce dvd du groupes a-ha headlines and deadlines svp me dire comment peut on se procurer se dvd merci jose

3 comments about Secondhand Daylight.

1. If you have any interest in investigating this band, this, their 2nd album, is the only place to start. This has been in my top 10 rock albums of all time -- all genres -- for 25 years.



2. THE NEW REISSUES OVERALL:
   
   SOUND: The mastering job makes a noticeable difference. The mix remains true to the originals, but there's more definition around the edges of each part - resulting in more powerful dynamics and an overall clearer sound. They refrained from maxing out the volume, which also helps with the dynamics.
   
   MUSICAL CONTENT: They did it exactly right. Every non-album studio-recorded a-side and b-side has been slotted onto the ends of the appropriate albums. Previously, you had to buy the four albums, the non-album collection "Scree," and an additional disc to get the original a-side version of "Shot By Both Sides." (There was a great live 3-song b-side on an e.p., which is now only available on "Scree." Some alternate 2002 mixes of "Magic Murder and the Weather" songs are only available on the boxed set, "Maybe It's Right to be Nervous Now." The third disc of that box - the complete Peel Sessions - was released as a stand-alone cd in November, 2008.)
   
   PACKAGING UPSIDE: Magazine had great album covers, but the Virgin cds all printed a diagonal banner across them indicating that they were budget cds. So that has been rectified. Also, the new cds come in clear jewel boxes and have nice artwork adaptations beneath the cds (which also have album-specific graphics on them). Typography on the spines is also specific to the albums and their visual aesthetic.
   
   PACKAGING DOWNSIDE: The Virgin cds did a good job of adapting the back covers of the albums for the jewel box, and only the new "Correct Use of Soap" really tries to do that (poorly). The printing job is okay but not great. The typography on "Soap" and "Magic" is a little wonky, and the background color on "Soap" far more yellow than the original artwork/album. The Virgin cds also included the complete lyrics. The new cds do not have any lyrics. There's no additional graphic content either - photography, single covers, or anything else. Aside from the credits, all you get are mediocre essays that don't tell you much if you're already a Magazine fan.



3. This is a masterpiece it is the best magazine cd
   Incredible beautifull
   every music fan needs this!!
   I have been listening to this for 20 years
   If you buy 1 MAGAZINE BUY THIS!
   Then Buy Their first
   Simply perfect
   alla joy division!

5 comments about Autumnal Park.

1. I always knew of the band's minor hits on American radio, but nothing could prepare me for the retro-goodness of this! There isn't a bad song on here; and of instead of rocking guitars with synthesizers sprinkled in the mix it's vice versa.
   
   Ladies and gentlemen, this is 1983 unadulterated and it sounds wonderful. This carries the true sound of an Australian synth pop band before they made inroads to Americanize themselves.
   
   Luckily, this is the original Australian version not the international version which omitted the great instrumental title track. Also, few rarities have been thankfully added.
   
   It always amazes me how new wave music from like 25 years ago manages to sound more progressive and futuristic than the stuff heard on the radio now. Tracks like "His Eyes", "Listening," "Stranger in Me," and "Destination Unknown" really soar.
   
   The cd was re-mastered from a vinyl copy, but there is only like 10 seconds spread across the entire disc that you can actually hear the distant crackles of a record.
   
   Critics of this cd's source material really blow that issue out of proportion with their reviews. True, it would be nice if they used the original master tapes of the recordings, but unfortunately Pseudo Echo doesn't command the kind of respect of their audio legacy like Depeche Mode, The Cure, or Tears for Fears does with their deluxe re-mastering of classic albums. This is a smaller act, but not necessarily a lesser act.
   
   I hope this cd doesn't go out of print, but I sadly think it will. However, "Autumnal Park" is one of the best music discoveries I have found in years and if you like this style of music than you owe it to yourself to buy a copy now. Listen and time warp back to a future that never reached full fruition.



2. OMG! I cant believe it's happened! They've finally put this album on CD! I've been looking for it (literately) for 20 years. In my opinion this is the best that Pseudo Echo has ever done. The songs are Fantastic! My favorite has always been "Dancing Until Midnight" The music just flows, has a romantic theme. It brings back a lot of memories. I think the sound quality is excellent. A reviewer said that the sound was remastered from a record (LP), I've listened to it with headphones and have not heard any difference/inconsistency in the sound. Brian Canham is definitely one of the most sexiest male voice's ever heard!
   This is a must-have for fans!
   
   ~ Nicole



3. I was shocked when I saw that this album was finally available on CD. Honestly, I never thought I'd see the day that would happen. It is a very obscure title. My warning to those that are about to purchase this CD however, is not to get your hopes up on perfect sound quality. This CD was definitely remastered from a record (LP) and the b-sides from 45's. Granted, they did a good job cleaning it up. But still, from a record? I had heard in the past that the band was not allowed access to the original master tapes for whatever reason. I guess it's still true. It is completey ridiculous that they weren't allowed to use their own master tapes. There must be a legal issue with the old record company or something. Very strange.



4. A gem of synth/guitar new wave dance music, Pseudo Echo's first album is possibly better than their follow up, which contained the hit cover of "funkytown". Ironically, several of these songs were rerecorded (or maybe just remixed) for inclusion on the second album. But the original tracks are just perfect, and great 80s treasures for fans of Flock of Seagulls, Berlin, etc. And finally, here on CD is the track "His Eyes", used in Friday the 13th: A New Beginning, when the punk chick is listening to her headphones before getting smeared by Jason.



5. ALL I CAN SAY IS THAT THIS IS A DREAM COME TRUE. TO HAVE THIS ALBUM ON CD IS AWESOME. THIS IS THEIR BEST ALBUM AND CONTAINS SOME GREAT POP SONGS. BRIAN CANHAM'S VOICE IS ONE OF THE SEXIEST MALE VOICES EVER. TOO BAD IN AMERICA THEY WERE MOSTLY KNOWN FOR FUNKYTOWN.