Customer Reviews

Crawdaddy

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

 

 

This CD is under-rated. It's true they didn't change the world but who does? I recently found this CD again and listening to it realized it's better than most anything on pop radio today. I haven't heard the group's later efforts, but this was an energetic, original spin on the rhythmic things going on in alternative rock of the late 80's/early 90's. It's a great effort from a virtually unknown band, not overproduced, with lyrics that are light but smart, sly, sexy. Just good fun edgy pop rock, dark and sweet. I've re-bought old CD's from groups of this era, wondering if I'd like them as much the second time around. Most disappoint, sounding dated. This one is as good today as it was then.

'Crawdaddy' is what albums used to be: 10 songs, 40 minutes long, and not a clunker in the bunch.
The songs are simple and extremely catchy; it's one of those cds where after you listen to it, you have to play it again.... and again.
'Crawdaddy' actually spawned three college radio hits, the soft-loud-soft "It Makes No Difference", the romping "Crystal Clear", and the life affirming "Fall". The thing is the other seven songs could've been hits as well, especially the one two-punch of "A Little Bit of Heaven" and "Honeysuckle".
I wish the Darling Buds had hit it BIG; they deserved it. This cd is proof. It's 15 years old, but still as fresh as today.

This CD is great. The music is nice. I could listen to it all the time. The Darling Buds are great. This CD is not that hard to get so why don't you go get yourself a copy of it. My favorite song on it is So Close.

I think the comments from other reviewers are pretty accurate. I just thought I'd add one more thing.

I've had the experience several times of liking one track from a band, buying the album, and finding that the rest of it doesn't sound like the track I like. That is NOT the case here. If you've heard "Crystal Clear" or one of the other tracks, then rest assured that it represents the sound of the band and the album.

I give it 4 stars out of 5 because it's not exactly a life-changing album but it is very fun and listenable all the way through. I have no complaints at all - I'm glad I bought it.

I agree with the others, as Welsh band the Darling Buds should have hit it big, but other similar bands overshadowed them, as good as they all were...some being the Primitives (with their great single "Crash" later featured in "Dumb & Dumber"), Lush (another one of my faves), and even Echobelly (also featured in D&D with "Insomniac"...but their best work came later on in "On" and "Lustra" but that's another story).

This is a Darling Buds review, of their sophomore and best album, IMO, "Crawdaddy" from 1990.

I'm not sure if any other band combined these styles better, but picture a yummy sweet hybrid of 60s Brill Building girlgroup pop, powerpop and Britpop, with just a tinge of tasty, trendy guitar feedback thrown in for good measure. Just scrumptious...and the album just charms over and over. I think the album was promoted to some degree by Columbia to alternative channels like college radio and MTV's "120 Minutes", but it never took off in mainstream areas..."Crystal Clear" and "Tiny Machine" were promoted as the singles...ALL 10 tracks really could have been hits as they are perfect gems of pop songcraft sung by a great charming female singer in Andrea...she's one of THE overlooked greats...as good as Sandie Shaw, Dusty Springfield, Sandra Cretu, Kirsty MacColl, her voice and the way she harmonizes with herself...over great Britpop guitar and a nice rhythm section and catchy-as-hell tunes.

To be honest, I think the wrong songs were promoted as the singles...if anything, the best song on the album is "Do You Have To Break My Heart??", track 4...easily on the list one of THE greatest and most overlooked songs of all time. Killer chorus, verses, and one of the greatest middle-8/bridges I have EVER heard in my life...unbelieveable...a second choice would be the closer, "End Of The Beginning"...I keep going back to those songs...for the past 18 years I did just that.

Yes, their debut "Pop Said" was awesome, and their 3rd and final effort "Erotica" was cool, but on their middle album, "Crawdaddy", the Buds perfected their formula of girlgroup sweetness and powerpop punch, but the timing was just off...history will be kind to the Buds, I really think so.

The Darling Buds did not change the world, but they made some pretty good melodic-kind of bubblegummy-guitar pop in their day. It's a guitar-bass-drums-poppy female vocal lineup. This album came out before Smells Like Teen Spirit and grunge changed the face of "alternative music", and is pretty representative of what US college radio stations were playing at the time. Crystal Clear and It Makes No Difference are two of the catchiest tunes. The Primitives are (were) a similar band.

One of the best releases of the 90's. This is an excellent band at their peak. The Darling Buds deserve to be remembered as one of the best bands of their era.

I have to credit late night MTV with my exposure to "Darling Buds". The 1990 video was for "Crystal Clear", and I've liked that song ever since. It's easily the best track on here, and I think "Tiny Machine" was a minor hit as well. The rest of the album is good, just not as sweet as the first few tracks. This group actually reminds me of two other of my favorite bands from the era, those being "Lush" a little bit, and "The Primitives" alot. It's just that female voice over catchy alt-pop that's hard to resist. Check it out if you can find it.