Customer Reviews

Boys Light Up

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

 

 

Their first appearance on Australia's national rock show of the '80s "Countdown" featured lead singer James Reyne wearing a plaster cast. Listen to the track from this album "Indisposed" and you'll know why.

Australian Crawl, as their name suggests, captured elements of Australia's east coast surfing culture, pub rock, with a dash of power pop. On this album you feel the band is somewhat restrained, ready to rock on tracks such as "Chinese Eyes" and "Way I've Been", but holding back for effect and style.

The title track is now an Australian iconic track, but at the time of release was highly risque and did not get radio airplay. Beautiful People was the band's first single. It and the last track sling off at the alouf element of the upper crust with good effect.

Upbeat, jovial and with James Reyne's biting lyrics, give this album at least three listens before passing judgement. Enjoy.

This is an awesome album ... a required listen for anyone into Australian 80's music. The 80's in Australia was the era of great pub music - and Aussie Crawl were one of the frontrunners, together with the Angels, Rose Tattoo, Choirboys (I could go on & on - it was a fantastic era for Australian music, bands SOUNDED Australian).

For me, this is a feel-good album, everytime I listen to it I get transported me back to a time when life was much simpler (and FUN - I WAS only 13 :-))

As Molly would say "Do yourselves a favour..."

BTW ... the lyrics are included so you can sing along (and decipher James Reyne)

This overrated band enjoyed moderate success in Australia during the early 1980's and for awhile there they were "Flavour Of The Month". One can be forgiven for thinking that Mr. Reyne suffered from a speech impediment as can be heard on the track "Beautiful People" where he sounds as if he is singing "Boodifall Beebol". I give this albumn 5 stars because I suspect that if you are multilingual and under the influence of alcohol then the lyrics as sung by Mr. Reyne may just might become comprehensible and coherant!

It took me 3-4 listens of this album to fully appreciate the skill and workmanship of 80's rockers 'Australian Crawl' who arrived on the sparse Australian rock scene in the early 1980's with this album, actually their opening album release. 'Boys Light Up' is a release you shouldn't expect to much from. This group of 5 men from the beach and pub culture of Sydney enjoyed a short stint as 'Flavours of a period' on the rock scene before being transplanted by the Brit's 'Police'.

This is a 12 song album release that is B-Grade. Sometimes it was hard to work out what the lead singer was saying in some songs especially 'Indisposed' and 'Beautiful People'. The better songs of this album were 'Downhearted' and 'The Boys Light Up'. Other than these two songs the album hasn't got anything much else going for it.

Give this CD a go listeners, you might like it better than I did.