Customer Reviews

Anthology: A Lonely Life

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Back in 77 or 78 I saw Rainbow live. They had a young "Wakemanesque" keyboard player named Tony Carey. Didn't know much about him then but some 5 years later I would. It's 1983 and "Planet P Project" comes out and the radio hit "Why Me" gets my attention. I buy the album (also featured on this disc is "King For A Day") and find the name Tony Carey and after reading an article (probably Rolling Stone or Circus) I find he's the same guy from Rainbow. The next year is even bigger. He releases another Planet P Project album "Pink World" which is fantastic (featured here is "What I See") and a solo album "Some Tough City" (featured here is "A Fine, Fine Day", "Lonely Life" and "First Day Of Summer"). I am now and have been since a certified Tony Carey fan.
This disc also covers his first solo album from 1982 "I Won't Be Home Tonight" with the title track and "West Coast Summer Nights". Tony's songs tell stories very similar to Springsteen or Mellencamp in my opinion. There's 3 songs from 1985's "Blue Highway" with "We Wanna Live", "She Moves Like A Dancer" and the title track. From 1987's "Bedtime Story" there is 2 tracks with the title track and "Burning Bridges". 1989's "For You" has "No Man's Land", 1990's "Storyville" has the title track, 1994's "Cold War Kids" also includes the title track and 1999's "The Boystown Tapes" covers the song "Boystown".
The other song included is "Only The Young Die Good" and although the cover notes do not mention as to where any of the tracks come from this must be from his upcoming disc "Only The Young Die Good" scheduled for release on 6-24-08.
The only knock I could give this disc is I would like to have seen "Believe It" included from Planet P Projects 2003 release "1931:Go Out Dancing Pt. 1" and "It's Your Party" from the 2004 release "Island and Deserts".
Get this disc and experience a wide range of rockers to soft melodic tunes as well. A truly under appreciated artist, this is ESSENTIAL Tony Carey.

This CD is much better than I had expected it to be. I purchased it to have CD copies of A Fine Fine Day and First Day of Summer, two of the last songs I'd bought as vinyl 45s back in the 80's. I still have the two 45's. Well....I like every single song on this 18 song collection. That was a major, pleasant, surprise. The songs are melodic, well thought out, and relect Rock at it's best. Bedtime Story, e.g., should have been a major hit here, but I'd never heard it before. I highly recommend this anthology - I think you'll be pleasantly surprised by the quality.

An Amazing collection from the super-talented, enigmatic, storyteller, and songsmith Tony Carey. Nice choice of tunes to highlight the somewhat hidden collection of one the best songwriters of our times. This is my opinion which after hearing I hope you will share. This CD breathes new life into songs (1-10) that are now over 20 years old. An excellent choice was made on this collection, its very upbeat and rocking. Love the artwork on this CD but it would seem to convey that this is a collection of sad songs or ballads which isn't the case. My personal favorite here is "Storyville" which to me puts a nice crowning touch on these gems. From "Cold War Kids" to "No Man's Land" to "Boystown", I hope you will enjoy the musical journey and rediscover what it is like to be entertained once again.

Tony Carey's stuff has been sometimes hard to obtain here in the USA, with him primarily releasing his stuff in Europe. I'm not rich, so I can't afford to take a chance on buying every one of his cds that I run across. This is a great compromise. It has tracks from all phases of his solo careerand gave me a good idea which of his other music I might like to purchase in the future. It makes for a nice best of cd for in my car also.

Tony Carey is one of the best musicians of our time, yet he gets very little exposure. Every song he puts out has meanings way beyond cheating, lying, partying, or having sex; perhaps that is why most in the mainstream don't 'get it'. His lyrics, at least on the surface, can come across as being dark; yet his intent is to make us think. Most of what gets airplay is intended for just the opposite; no thought required. Tony's music is amazing, especially when you consider he pretty much does it all; not only does he write the music and lyrics, he plays nearly all of the instruments. Truly a magnificent talent and this album captures a wide range of his offerings. I highly recommend it for anyone willing to step outside of the typical radio offerings.

Tony Carey deserves a lot more recognition than he has gotten so far in his 30-plus years making music. There are many great songs here, including two new ones. The highlights of this anthology are "I Won't Be Home Tonight", "What I See", "Why Me", "Fine Fine Day", and "First Day Of Summer." If you're unfamiliar with any songs by Carey other than the aforementioned ones, buy this CD and listen to it. I guarantee you won't be disappointed.

Tony Carey had two top-40 singles ("A Fine Fine Day", "The First Day of Summer"),
so he cannot be labeled as a one hit wonder,
in spite of the false claim by "Tell It Like It Is" in his rubbish he calls a review.
(This idiot should really change his name to "Tell It Like It ISN'T"), since that's his speciality).

Both of those hits are included here, along with his other two chart singles,
"I Won't Be Home Tonight" and "West Coast Summer Nights".

Also included are two singles by Planet P, which featured Tony Carey on lead vocals,
"Why Me?" (a chart single) and "What I See" (a pink vinyl 45 that is a fan favorite).

All six of these tracks are excellent songs and all are included here on this one CD,
which is unusual since three different record labels were responsible for those six original releases.

Tony Carey is a talented artist and this collection gathers all of his highlights onto one CD.
That makes it a bargain and well worth the money.

This is a good collection of songs and if you
do not know much about Tony Carey you should walk
away feeling satisfied. It has most of the songs
you would expect with strong appearances by
"I Won't Be Home Tonight" and "Why Me?" and as
a whole charts the trajectory of Tony Carey's
vast career (though it does miss out on his dance/
electro albums). The quality of the audio does
not do him justice and for a 2008 disc disappoints.
He writes most of the lyrics and plays almost all
the instruments and his talent yet remains un-
recognized. My favorite song "Reach Out" is not
here and I recommend it to people interested in
procuring this anthology, which is good but falls
short of great but at least flaunts his breadth as
a musician.

I have all of Tony's work now thanks to a dear friend helping me get the 'out of print' and it is sheer genius and a beautiful talent! I even use one track on the intro to my radio show!

If you do or don't know of Tony you need to 'catch up' - this is a man who is right up there with the legends... in fact probably envyed by the legends!

Thank you God for sharing this talent and thank you Tony! And Tony, if I can ever do anything for you from my home in England or my home in Texas... just ask!

Smiles and best wishes,
Bill Moore
www.billmoore.info

Tony Carey is pretty much a one hit wonder. His one hit, A Fine, Fine Day, is on this CD. All the other songs are basically filler. Save your money.