The Essential Mondo Rock
01/09/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"This is a 2CD set. The 1st CD is probably the best one with a lot of tracks that were regularly played on the radio in the 80's, such a Summer of '81, State of the heart, Cool World, Chemistry, Come Said the boy and Rule of threes. The 2nd CD is mainly B sides but is still enjoyable."
Some of the greatest pop/rock from the 80's: 4.5/5
dfle3 | Australia | 09/21/2007
(5 out of 5 stars)
"
Some years ago I emailed the lead singer of Mondo Rock enquiring when the band would be releasing a long overdue compilation album. Fortunately he told me one was in the works. I'd like to think that some of my suggestions swayed song selection, though I am kicking myself for forgetting to mention "Good advice", which featured on their first, compilation, I think, many years ago. Even though that song was not great, it was catchy, but perhaps the lead singer, Ross Wilson, found it a little bit to simple or something to include. It surprises me how often really good pop songs don't get a guernsey on some compilations, perhaps because they embarrass the artist or something! Classic example: George Harrison's delightful song...forget what it's called, but I call it "The doorbell song"!
Anyway, one of the songs that chatting to Ross made me nut out what song I had in mind, was "Boom baby boom". A thumping, rhythmic rock song. I did mention an instrumental from that very early compilation, entitled "Winds light to variable" but, I must say, the track didn't endear itself to me as much as it used to. It's pleasant enough in any case-a very mellow instrumental.
Anyway, Mondo Rock are a band which have some of the all time great pop songs, but I tend to remember them having just them, and tend to forget that they had a few other decent tracks too.
Of the great songs, I rate "Chemistry", "Cool world" and "No time" as amongst the band's best. "Chemistry" is just one of the all time great pop songs...a pure pop song if you will. It has a gorgeous keyboard melody and dreamy vocals from Ross. In fact, I consider Ross to be at his best with Mondo Rock-his singing in the very heavily American influenced band Daddy Cool was rather affected and lispy sometimes, especially in the classic "Eagle rock", a song which he says influenced Elton John in his visual style and in his song "Crocodile rock". In Mondo Rock, Wilson stamps himself as one of the world's great vocalists. As a pure pop song, "Chemistry" is right up there with pure pop classics like: Coldplay's Clocks, The Go Go's Our Lips Our Sealed, Meat Loaf's You Took The Words Right Out Of My Mouth, Alex Lloyd's Green and Tears For Fear's Head Over Heels. It's that good.
You often hear people talk of the "phrasing" of Frank Sinatra. I'm not really sure what they mean by that. I suppose I have Wilson in mind when I try to think of people whose "phrasing" is noteworthy. He sings soulfully, or wildly, and with emotional meaning. The appropriateness of his vocal delivery is most evident in songs like "Cool world", where his phrasing is superb.
Chatting to Ross, he told me of the background to the song "No time". Apparently this great song was hacked by the suits in the US. They hacked out what I thought was one of the great hooks of the song-the chanting at the start of the song. To me that was just butchery. It's like hacking out the "na na na"s of "Hey Jude", say. Pointless. Who were those "geniuses" who did that? Fortunately, you get the original Australian version on this album. It's a terrific rock song. Think I read somewhere that it is one of the great songs about performance anxiety.
Of their other great song, Cool World has a terrific guitar riff at the start and some great vocals and phrasing.
These are the songs I tend to consider the great ones. But then you will hear a song on the radio and be reminded that they are some pretty good, but sub-classic songs too. E.g. the grunty guitar riff of "Summer of 81"-I used to think this was about the seminal music show here in Australia "Countdown", as it featured that word in the lyrics. As an adult, I now listen and know that it's about the end of the world. It's the kind of song that could get a second life in around 74 years time.
A song which I don't particularly like but which is probably their most successful in Australia is "Come said the boy". This song I lump with the likes of The Police's "Every breath you take". In other words, it's like the curates egg...good in parts. Not a fave of mine, but I think since lots of people like it and it gets frequent radio play here, there must be something to it. Both this song and The Police song have lots of different and interesting melodies happening in the song.
One song "Primitive love rights" almost broke them in the US. Ross says some record company scandal thwarted them. I do remember hearing though that the song didn't chart that high in the US because its success was staggered in the US-it became popular on one coast, and later on the other coast. If it had happened at the same time, they could have broke, perhaps, in the US.
The band have a few lesser songs, that are nice enough rockers or pop songs. Songs like "The Queen and me", "Modern bop", "State of the heart" [this song is actually very beautiful and has wonderful lyrics-a nice song for your sweetheart, perhaps] and "Baby wants to rock".
It's been quite a while since I've listened to this album, so, from memory, I think that I was quite amused by their song "Mondo sexo"-it's just a silly, nonsense kind of song, but amusing and fun...not unlike a Red Hot Chilli Pepper's song like "Pea".
Of the songs on the second cd, I think, if memory serves, that "Dark secret" was a very nice Easter Egg song for me. Had never heard it before, but it was catchy, in a moody, atmospheric way.
All in all, I think this cd is a must buy for the great vocals of Ross Wilson, and for some of the best pop rock ever made.
I've reviewed other cds at this site-
Check out John Farnham's definitive cover of Mondo Rock's "Touch of paradise"-having heard the Farnham version first, I think it is a great and classic song, something which the Mondo version doesn't match.
I've also reviewed albums here by Alex Lloyd and The Go Gos-they have songs I class in the same league as Mondo's "Chemistry".
Really, I think it is a great shame that some Mondo Rock songs that I consider to be absolute classics aren't know outside of Australia. I have no doubt in my mind that they stack up more than well to any other great pop or rock songs you may care to mention.
P.S. I'm giving this album 4.5 out of 5 because it is missing "Good advice". This absence is not a deal breaker for this compilation, but I think there are any number of songs, especially on the second cd, that could have been sacrificed to make way for it. Even though I only heard this song a few times on Mondo Rock's last compilation "Up to the moment", I still remember parts of the song and how it sounds. That surely speaks well for the quality of the song.
P.P.S. Ross Wilson produced the seminal Australian pop/rock band Skyhooks. I've reviewed a Skyhooks compilation at this site."
Track Listings (28) - Disc #1