Customer Reviews

Bridge of Spies

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Clearly, Carol Decker and company are Star Trek fans, as they took their name from the priestess in the Star Trek episode "Amok Time." Me, I heard their single "Heart And Soul" and was entranced by the dreamy new-wave/alternative pop hybrid they came up with. The smooth melodic keyboards and wall of sound makes me imagine of floating down a river. Carol's voice varies between the sultry monologue: "Something in the moonlight catches my eye/the shadow of a lover goes dancing by/looking for a little bit of love to go, so/give me love give me heart and soul" to lilting singing, of which the two are mixed together, and finally the shrill emotion in the chorus. One of my favourite songs of all time.

"I Will Be With You" is one of those wishful dreams of going back to times past. However, it's the third single (in the U.S., anyway) that rivals "Heart And Soul" in sheer silkiness. "China In Your Hand," which did better in T'Pau's native UK, opens with pizzicato strings, and this leisurely paced song coated with their usual wall of synthesizer. The chorus goes "Don't push too far/Your dreams are china in your hand/Don't wish too hard/Because they may come true." Or, as another proverb goes, "Be careful what you wish for-you may get it." The sax solo at the end is a nice touch, and the fact that there is a brief reprise of this song as the last track hints at its status as the keynote track here.

"Friends Like These" takes a critical look at tunnel-visioned friends who fall down once their dream and vision prove fallible: "But oh how the mighty all fall down/Heavy in a sea of principles." The chorus goes: "Only one dream/only one way/only one vision and thought for the day." Carol wonders if they are aware that there's more than one way to the answer.

"Sex Talk" sounds like a flashy upbeat Elton John pop song. She says of the title theme, done by the phone as "love without a face." The narrator has been alone too long and can't go on this way.

"Bridge Of Spies," the second single, is a mid-paced ballad with its slow U2-like guitars, equates the meeting of lovers akin to standing on opposite sides of a bridge the way Cold War spies were exchanged-remember Francis Gary Powers and Rudolf Abel? "I am walking/over the bridge of spies today/Freedom is only one more step away/You only have to hold me/Take me to you." Another nice line: "where I lived in my fantasy on the continent of dreams." Funny, I thought that's where I lived.

That song segues into the down-and-dirty "Monkey House" with its watered down AC-DC rock guitar. It's an analogy of Puritanical censorship being the wealthy state of Mental Hygiene. "We can make or break your mind/With Mental Hygiene/And you will see things in the way we think you should" definitely has totalitarian overtones.

"Valentine" is a sad forlorn look at a lost love who's now married and has a child: "I know mine are the arms you'll never hold/I know mine is a love remains untold." She sings in her lilting ballad voice here. That is followed by the bittersweet "Thank You For Goodbye" with a sax permeating the song. Notable lyric: "So I really don't matter/I'm just a rung on your ladder/To climb over on your way to town."

The raucous "You Give Up" is a scolding tone of people who aim for extremes and don't go for closer dreams. Not a good song for idealists or romantics.

Even sixteen years after its release, I still can't find myself just shuffling it off into any category except as a hybrid combination. So give a little bit of heart and soul...

I first saw the video for "Heart and Soul" when I had insomnia as a 17-year old -- and ran out and bought this cassette the same day. Little did I know that, good a song as it was, that it was the worst song on the album.

I recently rebought it in CD form and it's as amazing now as it was then. How T'Pau was so successful in the UK and yet a one-hit wonder in the US, I have no idea. China in Your Hand is such a well-done song, lyrically, musically, and emotionally, and the rest aren't far behind.

Now if only they'll rerelease The Promise, and actually come up with a US version of Rage, I'll be happy.

Having heard Heart & Soul many times I finally got around to buying T'Pau's CD. We all have bought vynil and Cds because of a great song and then were disappointed by the rest of the album; they had 1 good song and just cranked out the rest to fill up the album. Not so with this one! I first played it at my office on a little player and was impressed with the lyrics of every song. They were carefully thought out. Harmony was good and the back-up musicians were very creative. Then I took it home. I played it on my big sound system, wow! I've never rated any album with 5 stars until I heard this one. It's mixed perfectly and someone was thinking while they wrote because there's so much depth. Musical routines, sub-routines, sub-sub-routines. The album explores many emotions of Carol Decker the lead singer and Ron Rogers the guitarist. This is one time I got more than my money's worth. It would make a great gift for someone special.

I LOST MY COLLECTION OF ABOUT 500 CDs A FEW YEARS AGO DURING A MOVE FROM GERMANY TO THE STATES. I HAVE REPLACED ABOUT 150 OF THEM. THIS ALBUM T'PAU, WAS IN THE TOP 20 OF THE ONES I CHOSE TO REPLACE. IT IS AN EXCELLENT COLLECTION OF SONGS THAT PLACE YOU IN A VERY RELAXED AND SOULFUL MOOD. AT LEAST THATS HOW I DESCRIBE IT.

I can still remember picking up this album in 1987 because I loved "Heart and Soul" the first time I ever heard it. Since then, it's been a permanent part of my CD collection (if increasingly more difficult to find). The only reason I don't give it five stars is because I'm not crazy about "Friends Like These"--it annoys me. But the rest of the album is terrific, particularly "Monkey House," possibly the greatest speeding song of all time! A friend of mine described T'Pau as "Kate Bush meets Def Leppard." I describe T'Pau as one of the bright spots in the musical wasteland that was the late 1980's.

i bought this cd for my partner and have to admit ,i really find myself listening to it more than he does, i really love heart and soul ,its a great beautiful love song. never get tired of listening to it.

This is without a doubt one of the best CDs made. There are so many catchy songs that I'm surprised Heart and Soul was the only hit for T'Pau in the US. Sex Talk, You Give Up, and definitely Bridge of Spies should have made it to the top of the charts. It's been in my CD player for almost a month now and I never get sick of listening to it. Worth the money.

WHAT CAN BE SAID ABOUT THIS CD....TPAU FOUND AN AWSOME FORMULA OF SONGWRITING THAT BOWTH ENTERTAINS YOU AND FULFILLS ALL MUSICAL NEEDS..I LOST THIS CD YEARS AGO AND HAVE FORTUNATLEY FOUND IT AGAIN AND BELIVE ME I COULD PLAY IT EVERYDAY AND NO GET TIRED OF IT.

This is one of the very best albums you will ever buy.
There is not one track that is not an excellent production.
Shame it's out of stock at the moment.

While not everyone knows of their music, everyone will appreciate it. I bought the tape when it first came out, and had to replace the tape three times. Now I'm about to go out and buy the CD version and it will probably remain in my car cd player for many weeks to come. You can never tire of the songs, and even my mother, a die-hard country fan for over 20 years, enjoys listening to their music. My husband, a die hard classic rock fan enjoys them, as well, and wants his own copy. I've had rap fans, heavy metal fans, any kind of music fan, just clamor to know who the group is. Buy it! You really won't regret it!