|
|
Post by snakelady on Aug 24, 2018 8:44:04 GMT
Since HT I had been looking forward to new Quo material. Riffs had just been a blip, forced on them and not to be taken serious. Then there had been the great You'll Come Round single and the not too bad Thinking Of You one with Lucinda, all rock songs. My expectations were definitely quite high .. Listening to the Party album brought me down to earth with a thump again. And it didn't get any better with more listens, didn't grow on me the way Quo albums sometimes do. Basically from my POV it should've been an EP made of the first three songs - with the two John David songs the b-side and the one outstanding song, Gotta Get Up And Go prolonged as a rock song with the whole band to come crashing in. The rest is either Quo by numbers, instantly forgettable or even annoying IMO. Checking the credits I did notice that there were as near as no Rossi/Young songs and three JD tunes. Obviously Francis and Bob hadn't come up with the goods - not enough time to write together ? Bob was on the road a lot with his various artists at the time .. - and the other's hadn't been able to make up for it. Belavista Man is even better on A2 and that's saying quite a bit. And they didn't come up with enough material by themselves anyway, so had to use outside songwriters. There had been the occasional JD song before, never that many on an album and who's Webb Wilder ? The album did contain Matt's first songwriting contribution too, but I wasn't too impressed with it. At least better stuff was to come from him in years ahead. The partnership Bown/Edwards didn't work IMO and generally speaking I felt Rhino still wasn't able to write in a Quo style, while Rick's songs have a habit to very much sound like something you've heard before from the band. I really tried to like the album, but I just couldn't .. The one good thing from the time that deserves a special mention is John Keeling's documentary. The best that has been done so far IMO and the only one showing the band in the studio. The out takes from the studio are hilarious and the rest of the bonus material is ok, although I could've survived without the Coronation Street stuff. But I'd really love to get another Quo documentary (from JK) that solely concentrates on the band making an album. I'd buy it in a flash !  |
|
|
|
Post by johns on Aug 24, 2018 9:37:07 GMT
Nothing on here I'd skip. I really like the album and I think it is better and more consistent than Heavy Traffic.
|
|
|
|
Post by Quoincidence on Aug 24, 2018 11:52:43 GMT
There are only 5 tracks that I skip, the rest I really do like... One of their better albums in recent times and possibly the only decently produced album by Paxman, better than his other attempts, and possibly the last recorded onto Master Tapes.
I also enjoyed watching the studio bits during the Party Documentary, the only footage of Quo in the studio
Would be a great bonus DVD if all of the footage from the studio sessions for the Party album was put together... John probably still has a bunch of footage from those sessions
|
|
Dark
High Flyer
Posts: 128
|
Post by Dark on Aug 24, 2018 14:55:43 GMT
I had enjoyed Heavy Traffic, refused to purchase Riffs as I'd had enough of covers albums and didn't see the point in encouraging them/the record company to do more. I thought that You'll Come Round was a good rock song, but was pretty non-plussed about, Thinking 'Bout You. So went into this album hoping on a continuation of HR & YCR style music.
The title track came out as a single and I thought it was rubbish, and the b-side, I'm Watching Over You, wasn't up to much either. But then I felt the same going into Heavy Traffic with the JSD single.
Bought the album on CD, didn't think much of the title, artwork, or linear notes. The fact that the first track was the title track didn't bode well, not exactly a rip roaring rocky start. Gotta Get Up & Go is good, but doesn't quite seem to burst into life at any point, certainly not as much as the build up merits. Get the feeling it could have rocked out a bit harder and been slightly more satisfying. Unfortunately it ends up just coming over as a poor mans Softer Ride. I really enjoyed watching Francis record the solo on the DVD though, that was a real highlight.
Follow up single, All That Counts Is Love, arrived next with a real wimper ... skip. Familiar Blues did nothing for me, on the other hand, The Bubble, is the one track on the album I still play and enjoy to this day. I like the lyrics and the music has a different groove, while the vocal delivery is a bit different and works well in the context.
Belavista Man made the setlist, but to my ears it just sounds very derivative, like trying to write what the general public would perceive to be a Quo song.
In all honesty none of the rest of the songs made any impression on me, other than not wanting to hear them again. It was a real low point for me in my Quo fandom. As much as I loathed Thirsty Work when it came out, I still realised there was some nice pop songs/melodies on there that I could appreciate, while I didn't find any of that on TPAOY. While the local Quo gigs to me, Edinburgh/Glasgow, had long since gone to all seated venues which subdued the atmosphere, I no longer finished a gig soaking from sweat having had a great time down the front being crushed in the crowd as we jumped in unison to the music. While I didn't care for Matt's drumming, he seemed to hit the drums so quietly, and it just robbed the music of power.
I think it is basically then that I started buying Status Quo albums to continue the collection, not to have new music to listen to, which was a great shame.
|
|
|
|
Post by craydarr on Aug 24, 2018 17:02:14 GMT
|
|
|
|
Post by snakelady on Aug 25, 2018 7:28:50 GMT
"... finished a gig soaking from sweat having had a great time down the front being crushed in the crowd as we jumped in unison to the music."
I admit I listen to the Party album very rarely. I did listen to it the other day, though, and I felt a tad uncomfortable when I realised (again) how "poppy" some of the songs are. Contrary to some, I do like the title song. When I decide to listen a second or even third time, I tend to skip five or six songs. I love the songs sung by Rick. I think the first "yeah" in Belavista Man isn't well-placed, though.  This is me always gives me goosebumps.
Only did that just over a week ago.  You tend to forget that you shouldn't even be able to jump around any longer  . The difference is how you feel the night and day after .. *ouch* BM on the Party album leaves me cold the way it's recorded, for me it's definitely far better on A2. The way the girls compliment Rick's singing just fits it perfectly IMO. TIM is a nice tune music-wise, but the lyrics just haven't an impact on me since I learned they were written by Rhino to suit Rick. |
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 29, 2018 7:30:50 GMT
Another album I only found when i rediscovered my love for Quo in 2010/11.
Don’t play it that often but like it very much..I don’t skip any tracks.
|
|
mortified
Administrator 
This is no' gettin' the bairn a shirt
Posts: 5,614 
|
Post by mortified on Aug 29, 2018 7:51:24 GMT
One of my absolute favourite albums. No idea why. It just seems to tick all the boxes for me; a great sound, a variety of guitar based material and all of the melodies seem to have a bit of an edge. They're less predictable than Quo can be at times. I'm not mad on the title track but it's OK. I don't skip it, put it that way. The only track I began to skip after a while was Kick Me When I'm Down. The riff in it is pretty good but there's something about the lyrics and the vocals I can't take to. Rick definitely sings better on other tracks. But it's only an occasional skip. We (i.e. me and Mrs Mortified) both like All That Counts Is Love so much, we walked back down the aisle to it I actually think it's up there with Lonely Night as a Quo classic. I thought the album was a triumph and was a little disappointed when the band didn't really share my enthusiasm when reviewing it in FTMO. They can often be very self-critical though. All in all, a thing of beauty. |
|
|
|
Post by johns on Aug 29, 2018 10:56:14 GMT
One of my absolute favourite albums. No idea why. It just seems to tick all the boxes for me; a great sound, a variety of guitar based material and all of the melodies seem to have a bit of an edge. They're less predictable than Quo can be at times. I'm not mad on the title track but it's OK. I don't skip it, put it that way. The only track I began to skip after a while was Kick Me When I'm Down. The riff in it is pretty good but there's something about the lyrics and the vocals I can't take to. Rick definitely sings better on other tracks. But it's only an occasional skip. We (i.e. me and Mrs Mortified) both like All That Counts Is Love so much, we walked back down the aisle to it I actually think it's up there with Lonely Night as a Quo classic. I thought the album was a triumph and was a little disappointed when the band didn't really share my enthusiasm when reviewing it in FTMO. They can often be very self-critical though. All in all, a thing of beauty. Totally agree with all that |
|
per
Wild Horse
Posts: 62
|
Post by per on Aug 30, 2018 14:53:51 GMT
In this vote I only choose to skip All That Count Is Love and Cupid Stupid as I always skip them. In reality there are only two songs on this album that I really love: Belavista Man and Gotta Get Up And Go. The rest is listenable, though they are no favourites of mine.
I feel that I also have to explain why I'm not so fond of this album: it was released during the most intense period of my divorce and listened to it alot during that process, so it still leaves a bit of bad taste in the mouth so to say every time I hear it....
|
|
|
|
Post by craydarr on Aug 30, 2018 17:56:19 GMT
Totally agree with all that If my memory serves me right, Fran didn't say a lot when being interviewed which generally means he wasn't that keen? |
|
col
High Flyer
All my Gods are leaving......
Posts: 302
|
Post by col on Aug 30, 2018 20:54:55 GMT
I quite like this album, so much so I only skip You Never Stop (Oh! The irony) and Cupid Stupid.
Additionally, I truly love All That Counts is Love and it's B-Side, I Ain't Ready. One of the best ever couplings on a single, ever.
|
|
|
|
Post by snakelady on Aug 31, 2018 7:30:57 GMT
craydarr - Yep, Francis seemed to not like the album much while Rick was in favour of it, whereas Rick couldn't stand ISOTFC, while Francis very much preferred that. I'm very much with Francis concerning these two albums and for me Rick's contributions for Fourth Chord were better than the ones for Party too. Looks like Francis and me are in the minority about the Party album though, as it seems quite popular. Interestingly enough the title song has the fewest votes so far. While it's a nice enough pop tune, I'd have expected GGUAG to be the one nobody skips ..
|
|
|
|
Post by craydarr on Aug 31, 2018 9:23:20 GMT
craydarr - Yep, Francis seemed to not like the album much while Rick was in favour of it, whereas Rick couldn't stand ISOTFC, while Francis very much preferred that. I'm very much with Francis concerning these two albums and for me Rick's contributions for Fourth Chord were better than the ones for Party too. Looks like Francis and me are in the minority about the Party album though, as it seems quite popular. Interestingly enough the title song has the fewest votes so far. While it's a nice enough pop tune, I'd have expected GGUAG to be the one nobody skips .. I too am surprised at the popularity of this album, I would have thought it was too commercial for some . I’m ok with this album , it’s just not a favourite of mine . |
|
Deleted
Deleted Member
Posts: 0
|
Post by Deleted on Aug 31, 2018 10:11:51 GMT
I’m finding it hard to vote. Despite owning the album and listening to it a few times when I first got it, I can honestly say there’s only four songs I remember. No idea what the rest sound like.
Sure it’d come back to me if I did listen to it again but I suspect my lack of recollection speaks volumes.
|
|
|
|
Post by snakelady on Sept 1, 2018 6:57:24 GMT
craydarr - Yep, Francis seemed to not like the album much while Rick was in favour of it, whereas Rick couldn't stand ISOTFC, while Francis very much preferred that. I'm very much with Francis concerning these two albums and for me Rick's contributions for Fourth Chord were better than the ones for Party too. Looks like Francis and me are in the minority about the Party album though, as it seems quite popular. Interestingly enough the title song has the fewest votes so far. While it's a nice enough pop tune, I'd have expected GGUAG to be the one nobody skips ..
Now that made me smile, snakelady.  In the meantime our little group has grown .. |
|
Isaac Ryan
Special Forces 
Loz' Deputy
Posts: 1,053
|
Post by Isaac Ryan on Sept 2, 2018 18:56:29 GMT
Not played it for a while, but wouldn’t skip a track.
|
|
|
|
Post by kursaal75 on Sept 2, 2018 20:05:39 GMT
When I do play it and I have to admit, it's not very often, I will play the first 7 tracks and skip the rest.
|
|
frozenhero
Administrator
Drop-D beautiful
Posts: 1,435
|
Post by frozenhero on Sept 5, 2018 13:16:10 GMT
I've voted five songs; All That Counts is Love, Familiar Blues, The Bubble, Nevashooda and Cupid Stupid. That doesn't mean I really care for all other tracks; Goodbye Baby could have been a lot better with better lyrics; You Never Stop sounds like two songs meshed together that don't belong together; This is Me is only marginally better than Familiar Blues but the lyrics save this one for me; Velvet Train has an awful intro but is quite good otherwise. Rick's voice on Kick Me When I'm Down doesn't sound good. Belavista Man is the standout for me, Gotta Get Up comes next but it's not perfect. What also doesn't help is that the band just sounds lacking in energy. Too many slow and mid-tempo tracks, and even the faster ones sound like they're playing with handbrakes. Maybe it's also due to the dull sound (although the production itself is rather good - it needs a better mix). @dark "Linear notes" is the best typo I've seen in a while! Thanks!  |
|
|
|
Post by snakelady on Oct 5, 2018 9:15:39 GMT
Time to move this to the past Quo cups section me thinks ..
Seems at least with this album they got it right live - with TPAOY they obviously chose the most popular tune and the second one, Rick's BM isn't too far behind either.
|
|
This is me always gives me goosebumps. 
. The difference is how you feel the night and day after .. *ouch*
sorry I mean 64 
