Although I of course buy albums by artistes I like, and this therefore usually leads to collecting their whole catalogue, or as near as I can, there are artistes by whom I will buy one or maybe two albums --- and quite like them --- but never feel the compulsion to go ahead and buy the rest of their material. Sometimes it might just be one song I'm after, or perhaps I want to see how the rest of this particular album measures up. In the old days, it was often also the case that, should an album have up to three hit singles from it (or three singles I enjoyed), then it was financially more prudent to buy the album, as the price of three singles would usually outweigh, or at least come close to, the price of the full album.
There are other reasons why I bought just one or two albums from a particular artiste and never any more, among them perhaps the fact that although I really enjoyed this album, I knew in my heart that the rest of their output would not appeal to me. Sometimes, you just know. George Michael's “Listen without prejudice” is one such album, which I already reviewed. Then there are bands whom I think are going to be great, but the album doesn't measure up to the single(s) and I'm sorry I got it. Lots of reasons, and no hard-and-fast rule, therefore, that just because I have, say, one Duran Duran or Nik Kershaw album that I'm going to have them all.
We too are one --- Eurythmics --- 1989 (RCA)
So it is with the Eurythmics (surely one of the all-time misspelled band names?). I bought “Savage”, quite enjoyed it, but was not blown away with it. Then they released “We too are one”, and to be honest it was cheap and second-hand, and I had liked the two singles from it, so I thought, why not? It's a good album --- in places
really good --- but never impressed me enough to make me want to seek out their other six, at the time, albums.
As it happens, “We too are one” followed “Savage”, so you could say the latter led me on to the former, though in truth I did not buy “Savage” when it came out, and it's actually purely coincidental that the only two Eurythmics albums I have were released two years apart, one after the other. It just happened that way.
The album in question opens with the title track, with a kind of weird horn sound, then gets going with a mid-paced rocker, Annie Lennox's voice clear and unmistakable, Dave Stewart's guitar taking a little of a backseat to Pat Seymour's keyboards, though it certainly makes its presence felt as the track goes on. Nice sort of whooshy sound on the keys and also the vocals, giving a sort of spacey feel to it in places. It's a good opener, and certainly sets the stage, and the second track doesn't disappoint either, upping the tempo a bit and introducing more brassy horns, romping along on a nice clean keyboard line, “The king and queen of America” is more poppy than rock, with elements of soul in there too, courtesy of the horns, which could be made on the keys, as they don't seem to be credited.
Production is clean and crisp, as you would expect from Jimmy Iovine, who shares duties with Dave Stewart, who always had a strong grip on the Eurythmic sound. Surprisingly perhaps, this song, although released as a single, did not get a US outing, maybe due to the rather pastiche nature of the video that accompanied it, which parodied certain aspects of American culture. Oh, those Americans!
“(My my) Baby's gonna cry” is almost new-wave in its melody, Stewart's guitar coming more to the front, and he adds to the vocals this time, for the first time I've heard on the album. It's a slower tempo, though not a ballad, very solid, and the dual vocal works very well, especially when Stewart and Lennox sing in unison. Nice little new-wave keyboard touches from Seymour stay just where they should, not trying to take over the song, but definitely helping to form its identity. Nice guitar solo from Stewart, not over the top, but certainly making the point.
With definite shades of their big hit single “Here comes the rain again”, the next track up, “Don't ask me why” is again a pop-driven tune, with more keyboard taking the lead, and Lennox's voice absolutely taking command as she revels in her element. With lyrics like
”I don't love you anymore/ Don't think I ever did/ And if you ever had/ Any kind of love for me/ You kept it all so well hid” it's fair to relate this back to her perceived failed love affairs and her attitude towards men, most famously exposed on the track “I need a man” from the previous album. Despite the bitterness in the lyric, it's quite a tender and lush song, with a really nice melody and some almost strings-like keyboard arrangements.
The first ballad on the album, the sumptuous “Angel”, features some lovely restrained guitar work from Stewart and a lonely, almost lost vocal from Lennox, emotion drenching the memories she recalls in the lyric:
”I remember you/ Like Elvis Presley singing/ Songs on a Sunday.” Some great backing vocals in an almost gospel style, a very big production and indeed this should have been a big hit for them, but perhaps because the subject matter concerns suicide it did not do as well as perhaps it could have done. “Revival” is a real hard-edged rocker with more gospel elements, a real call to action, a “pick yourself up off the ground” sort of song. Nice little keyboard hook, reminds me of the Tubeway Army.
There's little ambiguity about a song with the title “You hurt me (and I hate you)”, and as you might expect it's a tough, bitter, savage little song, opening with a deceptively low-key piano intro before it kicks into gear, as Annie lists her faults:
”I'm not an angel/ I'm not a saint/ I'm not a saviour/ I'm not that quaint” and then snarls the title with all the vitriol a scorned or hurt woman can muster. Great horns again in this track, some nice whistly keyboards and there's almost a false sense of fiesta about the melody: you could nearly take it as a celebration, and perhaps it is --- a kind of “I will survive” mentality.
“Sylvia” comes in on beautiful string intro, quite similar in ways to INXS's classic “Never tear us apart”, a great sense of drama and tragedy in the song, perhaps presaging the woman in “Angel” who takes her own life, as Annie sings
”She wants to fall/ Into a deep, deep sleep/ So she can forget herself.” Nice solo on what sounds to me like a harpsichord, but may be Stewart being really inventive on the guitar, who knows? It's a sparse but yet powerful song, while “How long” rides on a deep bass line carrying a pretty rocky track with some great guitar, but it's the closer that really puts the finishing touches on this album.
Opening on a low, wailing bass and keys, “When the day goes down” is a deeply powerful ballad, with Lennox giving her all on the vocal, as she talks about the evils in the world: “
All the people of this lonely world/ Have got a piece of pain inside/ Don't go thinking you're the only one/ Who ever broke right down and cried.” It's almost a lullaby for adults, a calming voice in the maelstrom of modern life and all our worries, fears and nightmares are shushed away by Annie's gentle voice, the lush soundscape behind her perfectly complementing her passionate vocal. Great little guitar solo from Dave, and then the whole thing fades out, as it really has to, it's the only way it can end. Lovely, truly lovely.
You might say, if I enjoyed the album so much, why did I not get more of their work, and to be honest I don't know. This is a really great album, but I was never a huge fan of the Eurythmics, and as it happens this was their last album before they broke up, though they did reform some years later and released another album. Maybe I came in too late, or maybe just at the right time. I know from their previous singles that they had some very good music (but then, I don't
like all of their singles), but were their albums that good? I don't know, I guess I never will.
But this one is really good, and I'm certainly glad I listened to it.
TRACKLISTING
1. We too are one
2. The king and queen of America
3. (My my) Baby's gonna cry
4. Don't ask me why
5. Angel
6. Revival
7. You hurt me (And I hate you)
8. Sylvia
9. How long
10. When the day goes down