A very rare gem from a band that should have gone further...
01/03/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Been looking for this on CD for years. Their greatest hits was
a very good apeaser but, this record...by THE RECORDS is just a great Beatle-esq must have, if you like young British nasal guitar rock bands with great, sincere hooks and juvenile lyrics."
Want some Records? Start with this one.
Music Lovin' Guy | FL | 10/28/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"The Records debut has been a favorite of mine ever since I bought the vinyl album in 1979. I have always loved power pop, and this album is one of the best examples of the genre ever. Of the ten songs on the original album, it is impossible to say one track is superior to another, it is a rock-solid collection of great tunes - everyone a winner.
The songs don't have much depth lyrically, but boy, do they rock! Their songs all revolve around the teenage experience. The Records sing about teenage girls (Teenarama), fantasy girls (Girls That Don't Exist), girls that have done them wrong (Girls, Affection Rejected), partying (All Messed Up and Ready To Go, Up All Night), dreaming of being a rock star (Another Star), and general neurosis (The Phone, Insomnia). The only song that doesn't fit the teenage mold is the hit "Starry Eyes" which is about the band's misadventures with an early manager.
I was ecstatic to see this reissue, complete with the songs contained on the bonus 45 included with the original album (their version of Spirit's 1984 is KILLER) and even more bonus tracks. Head Held High is a re-write of Another Star (or is it the other way around?) and all of the other bonus tracks are essential Records music. The track sequencing is a little different than the original US release, but in fact mirrors the original UK release, with Girl being track 1 and All Messed Up being track 6. (It was the other way around on the US release). Plus, the re-issue sticks the original version of Starry Eyes into the rotation and tacks on the US version as a bonus track. The original UK version of Starry Eyes is quite a bit different but is satisfying and well worth hearing. If it bothers you, you can always use the programming feature on your CD player to sequence the tracks in their original US order - the booklet even gives you the correct sequencing order to make it easy.
The booklet has some great info on the band and some extra photos and artwork. A first-class reissue production!
The Records' second album "Crashes" is a lot weaker in my opinion as the band went for a less power/more pop sound. Even though the lyrics may be more mature than singing about teenage girls and wanting to be a rock and roll star, the punch of the first album just isn't there on "Crashes". Not to say that it isn't worth owning, but if I had to choose one over the other, I would go with "Shades in Bed" - no question.
The Records released a thrid album "Music On Both Sides" which has not yet been released on CD. For this album, they brought in a new lead singer, which alienated a lot of fans and the album didn't receive much support from their label, Virgin. It has it's moments, and deserves to be preserved on CD, although some of the better tracks can be found on The Records compilation "Smashes Crashes and Near Misses"."
The Real Deal
Maclen | 03/06/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"OK where to start? This is the finest album to come out of the New Wave era. It is my favorite album of the 80's even though it was released in 1979 (I bought in the Autumn of '79 but associate The Records with New Wave of the 80's).
The lead guitarist is immaculate, his name was Huw Gower, he is left handed and could write guitar hooks in his sleep. His playing was pristine, unmatched by anyone of the era. The Songwriters John Wicks and Will Burch, 2 talented tunesmiths deserve kudos for assembling an incredibly consistant batch of songs for their first release.
The songs on this album (for me the US name "The Records") stick in my head to this day, most of you probably know "Starry Eyes", a great lyric, especially the part about the lawyers upstairs and the writ has hit the fan, great Byrds like guitars and acerbic John Lennon wit in the lyric. The other songs on the LP were more about teenage romance and such, but the music was and still is top drawer all the way, songs like "All Messed Up" "Up All Night", "Girl", "Affection Rejected", "Another Star" were all Killer material. I'm especially thrilled to see that this CD has the old 45 Covers that were included as an EP with the original album, the Kinks' "See My Friends", The Rolling Stones "Have You Seen Your Mother Baby, Standing in the Shadows", Spirit's "1984" and Blue Ash's "Abracadabra". In addition the B Sides "Paint Her Face" (This tune is equal to ANYTHING on the album), "Held Up High" (which I think was an early version of "Another Star"). Plus the 12 inch singles: "Rock `N Roll Love Letter" (I believe was covered by the Rollers) and "Wives And Mothers Of Tomorrow". I was lucky enough to catch this band twice, the first time was the original Band with Huw Gower at the Bottom Line in NYC, they closed with "Paint Her Face" - I still have a recording of this show that my sister taped for me off the radio. This is a 5 Star Classic, a no-brainer purchase at twice the price!
March 13, 2008. A Post script: Just got the CD yesterday, for the Audiofiles among us the sound is terrific, it is detailed with clarity, power and sonic resonance not heard before with these songs. Excellent job on the mastering. Two songs worth mentioning that I didn't know about, 1) Starry Eyes is represented here in 2 versions, the 45 "Hot Version" that I'm familiar with on the US release and the British LP version which is a bit different, there is an "extra" guitar sound on it and it also has "stops" inserted into the song for emphasis. I like it, it's not better, not worse, but different. Also Rock n Roll Love letter is a different version and I believe the Mutt Lange version included here is the definitive version."
Track Listings (20) - Disc #1