Customer Reviews

Emotional Rollercoaster

5 star:		(5)
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I had a cassette and lost it. Have looked all over and want to thank you amazon.com. I love R/F and their music. They're so diverse... emotionally touching, funny, you name it... I can't wait to get the cd.

Since any gay reviewer would necessarily have to rate these guys 5 stars just for doing what they did, I'm addressing the heteros .... OK, the ONE hetero who might read this (Hi! How ya doin'? Good):

As Paul used to say to his audience: "Don't be uncomfortable with that word in your mouth!", and "You don't have to be happy to be gay". Here are the real concerns of real gay men, openly discussed with a witty frankness that is as refreshing as it is educational -- and not always strictly homosexual. While "Straightening Up the House" or (obviously) "The Sodomy Song" may be specifically gay, "Emotional Rollercoaster" and "I've Created A Monster" prove that the relationship issues aren't always different for being same-sex oriented. "Woman Next Door" deals with abuse, and while "Waltz For the New Age" may seem a little dated now, it's an excellent lampoon of the surge of New Age popularity happening in 1988.

"Give Me a Homosexual" deserves a paragraph of its own, as it really deserves to be heard by those least likely to want to hear it: straight men who worry that every gay men is after them. While reassuring the homophobes, they express their clear preference in language which is hilarious to those not so worried -- and routinely brought down the house to a roomful of gay men (possibly because they are entirely sure of their sexual preference).

But there's more: R&P aren't merely content to state their gayness & laugh at their foibles. Acting as social activists, they also celebrate & encourage the social support necessary for those who are often ousted from the families which bore them, and we see this too in "Family of Lovers" and "Living With AIDS". There's also some simply sensible advice ["Be On the Safe Side"].

Obviously, there's no point aiming messages like these to those who won't listen anyway, so the mere act of creating such songs is already an exercise in optimism. But the tangled web of life is no simpler for being same-sex oriented, and never more clearly (and entertainingly) expressed as it is here. Should be required listening for everyone.

I can't believe I found this album! I am so psyched!
I forgot how awesome this CD was. My original copy (which was SIGNED, by the way) was stolen in a break-in many years ago. [...] This album was given to me by my friend Stephen Hill (RIP, my baby).
So if you guys (Ron and Paul) ever read this... know that I still love you with all my heart. You should know how much joy and pride you instill in your fans, now and forever.

all the tracks on this CD are all that
I play it very often.
I can and do listen to it for hours

I would like to say to anyone and everyone even thinking about getting this album GO FOR IT !!. It is a complete mix of all feelings that gays go through with this type of troublesome times. I highly recommend it. I had the distinct priviledge of meeting these two in a live concert done in San Deigo. It was back in 93 or 94. They were outstanding in person. So I jsut had to buy the tape. Now I am looking for the CD to it. Due to that my tape is getting worn out. Again it is a great album and very highly enjoyed.