Customer Reviews

Friend Or Foe

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

What can I say. A classic! Adam, in my book, was and always will be to me, the quintessential entertainer. He came along and gave the music scene much needed style and flair. His musical style and witty lyrics from Dirk Wears White Socks on through Vive Le Rock, was, for me, inspirational and inspiring. I was 16 when Friend or Foe came out and it quite literally changed my life. It made me take a look at myself and gave me the attitude of "take it up or leave it". The standout tracks for me are: Friend or Foe, Something Girls, Place in the Country, Goody Two Shoes, Crackpot History..., Made of Money, Try this for sighs. Fresh music, clever lyrics. Adam was my generations Elvis. "People lie people hurt, like to read their Sunday dirt. So every Jeckyll needs a Hyde to blame the business on" Great line! Most of his albums have just recently been remastered. Dirk, kings and Prince Charming are available now and Friend or Foe, Strip and Vive Le Rock are being released April 4, 2005. I recommend getting these as there are loads of extras on them. "Antmusic for Sexpeople! Sexmusic for Antpeople! You might not like it now but you will" I could go on and on but i'll stop now. Enjoy!

Most people today don't remember Adam Ant. Those of us who do seem only to remember "Goody Two Shoes." He was/is more than that. In fact, all of Adams' cds have something memorable about them. I chose Friend or Foe to review because I think it's arguably his best cd. It has the hit "Goody Two Shoes" on it but it also contains non-hits such as "Friend or Foe", "Desperate But Not Serious", "Crack Pot History and the Right to Lie", "Cajun Twisters" and "Place in the Country." 12 solid tracks all together. Prince Charming is also very good, and so is most of his early work. 1995's Wonderful is a fine example of what Adam Ant can do. But, start with Friend or Foe. It's relentlessly frenetic. Definitely upbeat, with an emphasis on BEAT. The music on this disc isn't like anything you'll hear on the radio these days. A must have for any rock collector.

It is my opinion that this is his best album. My favorite song of his has always been Desperate But Not Serious. Adam is the KING!!!! Do yourself a favor, BUY IT! Thank you Adam for being one of the greatest entertainers of all time. WE LOVE YOU!!!

Oh, how I long for the glory years of the 1980s. I have to admit that, for about a good 9 months, I was a big time fan of Adam Ant, and to this day I still listen to this disc (I still have the vinyl album, as worn out as it is). Having reached his peak in popularity after "Prince Charming," Ant gripes about the trials and tribulations of fame throughout his solo debut. The title track has Ant declaring rather defensively, "Nobody's perfect/so leave me if you object." He lashes out at intrusive journalists in "Desperate, but Not Serious." Also, he disses a materialistic girlfriend in the catchy "Made of Money." But Adam doesn't complain thoughout the album, mind you. "Place in the Country" is classic antmusic: tribal drums, twangy guitar, and playfully silly lyrics. And his American hit, the rockabilly-esque "Goody Two Shoes," has lost none of its luster. In the title track, Ant says, "I want those who get to know me/to become admirers or my enemies." After listening to this album, he's made me an admirer, no doubt!

There are very few albums that I can hear over and over. This record is one of them. Adam got everything right on this one.
The songwriting and arrangements are perfect (and rocking, fun and lively). And they perfectly suit Adam's lyrics, hang-ups and swagger. He's the ultimate showman/bandleader on Friend Or Foe
which contains loads of perfectly arranged horns, BIG drums as per usual and great vocal arrangements to boot.
Friend Or Foe is his first album minus the Ants and the first where he receives credit for playing all the bass (something he did on the "Kings" and "Prince" LPs but credited them to Mooney and Tibbs, respectively). He's also is a pretty good rhythm guitarist and certainly knows how to use his voice (something never before fully displayed in the Ants).

The Songs? Ahh, the songs. Friend or Foe contains his best batch of consistantly enjoyable songs (cohesively sequenced as well).
The songs are alternately moody - the perfect "Desperate But Not Serious", "Here Come The Grump" - a song with an unwitting reference to AIDS (lines include "doctors say sex kills" and "come inside and die") and "Friend Or Foe" and UP.
The perfectly swinging songs "Goody Two Shoes", "Place In The Country" , "Try This For Sighs", "Something Girls" and "Made Of Money" all make for a perfect soundtrack to an old-school swinging dance party. Way before the mid 90's swing revival mind you. There's also it's share of interesting songs "Man Called Marco" (which sounds like a theme to a spooky horror film that never was), "Crackpot History And The Right To Lie" the fine album outtake "Coup D'Etat" and the weirdly sexy and danceable "Cajun Twisters".

The remastered cd has twelve(!) bonus tracks. Nine of which are rough home demos and are all in all pretty interesting. There's also the single version of "Goody Two Shoes" which is great and features Chris Hughes (aka Merrick) drumming and producing. There's also the excellent album outtake "Coup D'Etat" and "Good Sex Rumples The Clothing" which came out of the same sessions as "Juanito The Bandito" and "Why Do Girls Love Horses" and sounds it and has a great guitar part too.

Weird thing is is that many lyrics on the album deal with Adam's critics and they all responded with rave reviews for this record. Rightfully so as this is one of Adam's finest albums (if not his best).

The album also produced two American hits in "Goody Two Shoes" and "Desperate But Not Serious".

By 1982 Adam Ant had ditched his band The Ants and gone solo. "Friend Or Foe" was his first solo album and probably his best. Following off the mega-success of his previous album "Prince Charming", he and Marco, the only band member he kept, came up with another brilliantly catchy and fun album. Again, in America, unfortunately only "Goody Two Shoes" hit the top 40. There are other greats here, and again, like "Prince Charming", not a wasted note. "Friend Or Foe", "Place In The Country", "Desperate But Not Serious", "Here Comes The Grump", a cover of The Doors' "Hello I Love You", "Crackpot History And The Right To Lie" are all great!

Besides the original 12 tracks you also get an overwhelming 12 bonus tracks, most of which are demo versions of album tracks and forgettable. There's not much difference between the Chris Hughes mix of "Goody Two Shoes" and the original. "Coup d'Etat" was only okay. "And So You Shall" as a demo is funny and shows promise. It's too bad it didn't make a final version. "Yellowbeard" is average fare, same with "I Know They Know" and "Gargoyles Are A Go". "Good Sex Rumples The Clothing" is actually amusing and catchy though it sounds like a blueprint for "Crackpot History And The Right To Lie".

Again, the lyrics come with the booklet and the graphic design and artwork ties in nicely with the other remasters in this series. All in all, another great album!

All the Adam Ant (or Adam and the Ants) albums that I have are all vinyl. I may be stupid but I feel that somehow at least I get the original intent of Adam Ant's music. I've read some mostly good and some bad about Ant music on this site. I didnt grow up listening to Adam (that I can recall).. my first was Prince Charming two years ago.. And I'll tell you from this listeners viewpoint, being a D'n'B fan, he has the best drums of all time.
When I went to Coachella in like 04 I saw the lead singer of Queens of the Stone Age in his side project (what I was told anyway) Desert Sessions, and they played a song with three drummers pounding out a tribal beat in one of their songs.
I just kept thinking about how the drums were used just like that, but twenty years before, by Adam.
In all of his albums the drums are a focal point that drive the song, more so than maybe they should be. But it works. The catchy horns and vocals are there too... they add so so much to every single song. This album, in my opinion is not as good as Prince Charming, but those drums...those drums, they're there and with every album I buy, newer or later, are present and beautiful.
When u listen you can hear the beats pounding and thats the signiture sound that should be associated with Adam, and/or the Ants, great sound. Its rough and good stuff.
If I had a kid who wanted to play drums I would make him listen to all Adam stuff and tell him to pound out the jam just like in the Adam and the Ants albums. Along with the tribal paint Adam really created a persona of his music and created a feeling that really wasn't and still cant be matched to this day. Buy this album and Prince Charming, you should be happy with your Antmusic collection at that point. Then keep searching for the relentless pounding tribal drums in all music and you'll see/hear it.

Adam Ant is my favorite artist of all time. And no I am not old- I am 27 (ok to some that is old). This is a GREAT cd. I love every single song on it. I wont compare it to any of his other brilliant albums because they all have a different "flavor" to them (and they are all fantastic) and you can't really compare them. If you like Goody Two Shoes then you will LOVE Place In The Country. My favorite song on this cd is Here Comes The Grump. Made of Money is a very pretty song, with very angry lyrics directed toward a woman that was in his life at the time. You won't regret buying this cd. All of the songs are upbeat and very easy to listen to. It is one of my very favorites and I listen to it all the time.

I assume from other reviews written that some people don't understand the driving force behind one of Adam Ant's (Stuart Goddard's) most revieling songs on this cd. Here comes the Grump shows (in my opinion) a fear of leaving the band and venturing out on his own and where was he to go from there with his music. "When you get a #1 the only way is down". This cd is very fun and interesting, Adam kept some heavy drum sounds from his Wild Frontier days and added a Brass Band sound to switch things up a little. All in all, anything by Adam Ant or Adam and the Ants is an asset to any CD collection. I believe he is a rare musical talent, and an Artist in all respects! I am a True and Loyal fan always!

After the incredible British sucess of Adam and the Ants, Adam wisely decided to sack the band and continue as a solo artist. In my opinion he had ( no pun intended ) painted himself into a corner with the whole Prince Charming character and the music that went with it. ( The Prince Charming album itself, save for the single Stand and Deliver, was crap. ) When he released Friend or Foe , created with the help of longtime writing partner and guitarist Marco Pironni, it brought him a whole new audience ( namely America ) and a hit single "Goody Two Shoes", although to many fans it ( the single ) seemed mere novelty. However, the whole of Friend or Foe is actually quite good. The only song I personally don't think works is a cover of the Doors' "Hello, I Love You". I really like the songs "Here Comes the Grump" and the title track especially, as the lyrics deal with Adam's reaction to sudden hysterical fame, and how he perceived it and those around him who would latch on because of his fame. "Here Comes the Grump" contains the line I like most - "when you get a number one the only way is down", which is refreshingly honest and incredibly self aware, considering what eventually happened to Adam's career. "Desperate But Not Serious" is quite fun too, its lyrics containing a jab at the press who are only interested in his sex life. Many artists have tried, to varying degrees of success, to write about how fame changes their lives, and how it might have been a mistake to pursue fame ( most notably, Madonna lately seems terribly caught up in that - see her American Life cd, if you can stand the slight, hookless tunes, and read the lyrics if you want a recent example ). But Adam Ant wisely puts these sometimes bleak words to great music, full of catchy horns, spaghetti western flavoured guitars, and tribal drumbeats ( the only thing leftover from his days with the Ants that remains ). All in all, I think Friend or Foe is his best solo release, certainly his commercial apex in America, and probably what he will always be remembered for. "Don't drink, don't smoke...what do you do?"