Search - Tears for Fears :: Raoul & The Kings of Spain

Far from humdrum

Wayne Klein | My Little Blue Window, USA | 10/17/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I'm a bit at a loss--All Music Guide rates this album 2 stars. What are they smoking over there? I've got to say they are hiring people that are **less** than qualified. Well, to each his own.



This is one of Tears for Fears (essentially Roland Orzabal supporting by Alan Griffith and a terrific group of session players)finest albums. As much as I liked "Elemental" that album had some filler on it and this is a stronger, more solid album. Many of the songs were inspired by the trials that Orzabal experienced during his marriage. Musically rich and diverse, Orzabal makes up for the absence of Curt Smith's sweet sounding soulful vocals by bringing in Oleta Adams who contributed to "Seeds of Love".



The bonus tracks make an exceptional album even better; "All of the Angels" and "Queen of Compromise" would have complimented the album perfectly. "Until I Drown", "War of Attrition" and "The Madness of Roland" complete the bonus tracks that were originally released on the CD singles for the album.



We also get two acoustic numbers the title track and "Break It Down Again" from "Elemental". The liner notes in the CD booklet features excerpts from a recent interview with Orzabal. The mastering for the album is exceptionally good--I'm not sure who did the remastering here (it's not credited)or if the original mastering was used with some minor tweaking for the bonus tracks but either way it sounds quite good with a nice, crisp presentation.



This is an exceptional reissue by Cherry Red."

EXCELLENT REISSUE, BUT NO REMASTERING

BOB | LOS ANGELES, CA | 01/18/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It's gratifying to finally see this fabulous album available once again, replete with the majority of the non-album tracks released on an accompanying handful of CD singles in 1995.



The only missing track from those CD5 releases was a live cover version of Radiohead's "Creep" (omitted most likely to avoid paying a royalty).



However, I have A/B'd this CD against the original release, and despite the claim at the top of this page, there is no new remastering. That's not a bad thing, because the album was well-engineered originally, and sounds just fine in its original master.



So, if you already own the original CD, and the CD5's with all these bonus tracks, there's no need to rebuy this CD. If you don't have this title, however, you are missing, IMHO, the best album in the TFF catalog.



"

Stunning masterwork gets reissue treatment

Fredric A. Cooper | Los Angeles, CA | 10/14/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is a superb reissue of Tears For Fears' 1995 masterwork, with the addition of all of the tracks that were issued on CD singles. The artwork remix is excellent, and there is an interview with Roland Orzabal included. Art rock doesn't get any better than this. Highly recommended."