Customer Reviews

Collective Soul

5 star:		(102)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I was apalled to read the review first by Amazon's, Editor Jim DeRogatis, about the "Collective Soul", and then the reviews by all your buyers.It appears as they are talking about 2 entirely different things. In my opinion DeRogatis is ignorant, when it comes to music. I would'nt go as far as one of the reviewer suggested about having a "Proctological Exam" to find Jim's head, but seriously, I think he should have his head examined. I was not a "Collective Soul" fan untill 3 months ago when I got CD "Blender" as a gift, and now I have their entire collection and I love them. The moral of the story is that review should be honest, unbiased and not misleading, because of your dislike or ignorance. I really believe that "Collective Soul"is one of the top ten best bands, and i own thousands of Rock cds. Most of the people buy cds after reading editorial reviews(including myself)and this dude is hurting your business.

The Beatles put out the White Album, Metallica put out the Black Album, and then Collective Soul put out the Blue Album. In short, self-titled, monochromatic albums will never let you down. How can anyone not love this album? This is one of the first albums I ever bought, and it still sounds fresh each time I listen to it. It's kind of hard to classify, it's too heavy to be considered alternative, yet it's not quite metal. Maybe, alternative hard rock? Well, whatever it is, it is good stuff. Fans of both alternative and metal alike should enjoy it. Highlights are...everything! There is not a bad moment on this album. Ross Childress is an incredible soloist, and Ed Roland is a very soulful, versatile vocalist. The first time I heard "December", I could have sworn there were two or three guys singing lead, and that it couldn't possibly be one guy. But, it is! You've got a wide variety of songs here, from hard rock ("Simple", "Where the River Flows") to melodic ("The World I Know", "When the Water Falls") to just unusual ("Gel", "Collection of Goods"). And, if that ride wasn't exciting enough, the album ends in a soft, gospel-type song called "Reunion", with what appears to be a church choir backing the band. At the end, you're just thinking, "man, that was good!". I recommend this album to anyone. It will never get old. This is the second best alt-rock type album I've ever heard, right behind Live's "Throwing Copper". I was hoping for another album like this in "Blender" after the very mediocre "Dosage", but no such luck. You can buy those albums if you want, but this is the definitive Collective Soul album.

From beginning to end Ed Roland and his band crank out hit after hit on this album from soft ballads ("The World I Know") to more powerful hitters ("Untitled" and "Where the River Flows"). The hit single "December" delivers on all accounts with an amazing guitar beat plus lyrics that shine. The very up-beat fast tempo song "Gel" is another great cut. More of the softer ballads come when we get to "When the water falls" and "Reunion", which are more amazing tracks. Reunion sounds a little like December, in which, they use the same guitar line, which is not a bad thing of course. "Bleed", another one of my favorites, hit on all cylinders with the stellar drum loops and guitars. The only flaw in the album, if you can really call it a flaw, was "Collection of Goods". I'm not sure what they were trying to do with this track because the music sounds a bit garbled. Maybe they decided to experiment with a new sound for one track. But in all essesences, with an album that is chock full of hits, it is difficult to choose a favorite. I recommend this album to music fans of all tastes. You will not be disappointed.

after the decent debut. collective soul really hit it in their own both comercially and artistically w/ the self-titled follow up album in 1995.

what's great about this album, is that it has hit after hit on it. "the world i know", "gel", "smashing young man", "december", and "where the river flows"...all radio singles appear here. my fav is "the world i know." it's a beautiful song, and very meaningful lyrics. the rest are are solid rock classics that are equally great, and fun to just rock to.

the rest of the songs are good as well. "simple" is a nice opener, "untiled" is cool. "she gathers rain" is good as well.

this is a good cd to have in your collection if you are a 90's alt rock fan.

This is possible the biggest selling Collective Soul CD and, while I will agree that this was a great CD, it's a shame the masses didn't keep buying with "Disciplined Breakdown" and "Dosage", which in my opinion, are by far the two best CDs they've done. Possibly their best known song "World I Know", it is an acoustical and lyrical masterpiece. "Simple" and "Smashing Young Man" are fun songs to jam to. The thing I love most about Collective Soul is that they can have the best jamming songs along-side some of the most thought-provoking, deep lyrical ballads without any hint of incongruence. I have been a big fan of this band since this CD came out and still am a big fan today. Collective Soul is one of those rare bands that actually have talent - musically and lyrically. Ed Roland is one of the best songwriters I've heard in years. This was a very strong release (especially compared to their debut release) and is a must-have in many music lover's collection.

It still stands up today. Full of catchy but not trite riffs and melodies and substantial lyrics. From the funky opening of "Simple" to the good-time rock of "Gel" to the gospel-like tones of the concluding, elegiac "Reunion", there are a variety of sounds not often found in modern rock bands. The riff on "Where the River Flows" is almost as heavy as classic Metallica and the strings on "December" and "The World I Know" are woven seamlessly into the band's instrumentation.

The topics covered by Ed Roland's lyrics are also more evolved(and in many cases more positive) than are generally found in popular music. The hit song "December" is a tale of betrayal, written about the discovery just prior to this album's release that their friend and manager had been rather deceitful in his dealings with the band("Why follow me to higher ground?/Lost as you swear I am"..."Don't worry about/Don't speak of doubt/Turn your head now baby/Just spit me out"). On the other hand there are the observations on the innocence of young child's quest for knowledge in "When the Water Falls"(She's a picture perfect child of innocence/Searching out in childlike ways for knowledge..."Do you know where the sun goes/When the water falls?...").

Songs like "She Gathers Rain" and "Bleed" touch upon the difficulties of dealing with emotional and spiritual hardships. SGR shows a more positive course of trying to overcome pain("Her imagination/Has started stretching wide/And her new convictions/No longer will she hide...She gathers rain/to rinse away all her guilt and pain/She gathers rain/To wash and cleanse and make her whole again"). The rain being a sort of baptism into a new life. "Bleed" goes for the other extreme, the state of a person unable to overcome their pain alone(and based on a true story from Roland's childhood), with lines such "I think her gun's unloaded now/I guess tomorrow will be after all"..."Mirrors of her memory/Reflect nothing with each word she says".

The song "Smashing Young Man" shows a more sarcastic humorous side of Roland, poking some fun at the gloomy attitudes of the grunge era in which they first found their success--"Success is so tragic/Pain is your gadget/Your tongue is just lashing/You're b!tchin' by habit/Hey I hope you're feeling/A little purer now/Hey I hope you're feeling/Securer now.." (BTW, that cuss word is the only one in the 4 Collective Soul albums thus far).

Another theme throughout the album, carrying over from their first hit "Shine" in 1994(and continuing on in their next 2 albums), is attempting to find and sustain a universal type of love. This can be seen in songs such as "Simple", "Untitled", "The World I Know", "Gel" and "Collection of Goods". The well known chorus from "Gel" bears this out "Let's mingle/And make it well/Come together now/Yeah let's gel".

At the turn of a new millenium what could be more timely:-)

There are several bands and artists that helped rock music survive grunge, but none more than this great band with this classic album. This is the perfect hybrid of modern and classic rock. With 5 (count 'em, 5!) rock radio hits, this album and band made a huge splash on the rock music landscape at a time it was really needed.

Need I rave about such hit tracks as the rockers "Gel" and "Smashing Young Man" or the slower tracks "December" and the absolutely stunning "The World I Know"? These tracks are all modern classics in my book. However, I also have to rave about such tracks as the rocking opener "Simple" (one listen to that when I first played this CD and I knew I was in for a special treat). Another fav is the second to last track "Bleed", a slightly above mid-tempo track with a killer bass line.

Another reviewer referred to this album as progressive rock with an edge. I couldn't agree more. For sure this album stands up as one of the classics of the 1990s decade. Both commercially and musically, this album is a winner.

This is one of the best albums in rock to date. It's also one of my all-time favourites. From start to finish, there is no need to skip a song, dislike a song at first listen or change your mind after a couple of listens. EVERY song is good from start to finish even after all these years. One of the first CDs to grace my CD collection, I think I've burnt a hole in it (thankfully it still plays or I'd have to get myself a new one). My favourite song has always been 'Bleed' and probably still is my all-time favourite C.Soul song (probably tied with 'Compliment' from Dosage). Their single 'The World I Know' blew the band up and to no surprise their success stuck with them throughout the years. A definite MUST for any C.Soul or rock fan.

Collective Soul's sophomore album "self titled" tremendous. Following their smash hit "Shine", the guys hit the studio and recorded their first CD as a band (as their first CD was originally supposed to be a demo). Their time was well spent. From start to finish Self-Titled is excellent listening. It is a wonderful guitar-driven album that showcases the band's ability to write songs that rock and other songs that are truly reflective. Although I was first drawn to the heavier songs after listening to this album for ten years I now am a huge fan of the reflective and narrative songs as well (such as Bleed and Reunion). In my opinion this is one of the top three rock albums from the 1990's.

I'm sorry, but Jim DeRogatis, the writer of that earth-shatteringly intelligent critique of this CD at the top of the screen has his head shoved so far up his rear that we will now need all the world's finest proctologist's to find it again. I can't believe they would use this kind of obviously biased and uninformed drivel as the "official" Amazon.com position on any album here. Yikes. Funny, neither intelligence nor good taste are required to be a music critic.