Galore [IMPORT]

Kirsty MacColl

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 18, 2001)
• Original Release Date: January 24, 1995
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: EMI Int'l
• ASIN: B000026DNY
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #179,719 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
UK 'Best Of' for the late lamented singer songwriter who sang with The Smiths, Talking Heads, the list goes on and on. This 18 track collection (long out of print in the U.S.) gives an overview of her eclectic career, highlighting her skills as an interpreter of classic songs and a talented songwriter in her own right. Tracks include her first hit for Stiff records, 'There's A Guy Down The Chipshop Swears He's Elvis', 'They Don't Know' (Kirsty's own composition, later a hit for Tracy Ullman), the Brian Wilson inspired, 'He's On The Beach', the Christmas classic, 'Fairy Tale Of New York' feat. The Pogues, and covers of The Smiths' 'You Just Haven't Earned It Yet Baby', The Kinks' 'Days' and Lou Reed's 'Perfect Day' feat. Evan Dando. 1995 release. Standard jewel case.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A most under rated British female singer, May 31, 2003

By	Peter Durward Harris "Pete the music fan" (Leicester England) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Kirsty was a daughter of the great folk singer Ewan MacColl and his influence inevitably shows in her music, but she was very much of her time. Kirsty was always keen to experiment and the results were not always brilliant, but the best of her music is to be found on this outstanding collection. Apart from experimentation, Kirsty's success was limited by her desire to lead life to the full and raise a family as well. She died in a high-speed boating accident while still in her early forties.

Most of the songs on this collection were written by Kirsty, often but not always on her own, including They don't know (a song which provided Tracey Ullman with her first hit), There's a guy works down the chip shop swears he's Elvis, He's on the beach, Free world, Don't come the cowboy with me Sonny Jim (a song covered by Kelly Willis on her Easy album) and Walking down Madison.

Kirsty was also well capable of recording distinctive covers of other people's songs. Their diverse sources show that Kirsty was not a lady that anybody could typecast. They include A new England (Billy Bragg), Miss Otis Regrets (Cole Porter - one of two duets with Irish rockers The Pogues), You just haven't earned it yet baby (The Smiths), Days (The Kinks) and Perfect Day (Lou Reed - a duet with Evan Dando of the Lemonheads).

Her biggest UK hit was the other duet with the Pogues - a Christmas song titled Fairytale of New York. It can be found on several British Christmas compilations and is not really typical of Kirsty's music. I would describe Kirsty's music as sixties pop rock updated for the eighties with a little folk and country added into the mix.

If Kirsty had pursued her career with single-minded dedication, some say she could have been a world megastar. Maybe, but she wanted a life outside music. As a consequence, her musical legacy is limited, but the quality more than makes up for that.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thank you for the music, December 27, 2002

By	Gena Chereck (Nebraska, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I started seeking out this CD about three years ago, when I first heard Kirsty's poignant holiday classic "Fairytale of New York" (with Irish punkers the Pogues) on a free-form radio station. I finally came across a $20 import copy a few months back, and I must say Galore: The Best Of... was truly worth the money and the wait. The first thing that struck me about this 1995 MacColl sampler was her awesome taste in cover material: Billy Bragg's "A New England," Cole Porter's "Miss Otis Regrets," the Smiths' "You Just Haven't Earned it Yet Baby," the Kinks' "Days," and Lou Reed's "Perfect Day."

The more I listen to it, though, I am more impressed with her musical and lyrical range. "There's a Guy Works Down the Chip Shop Swears He's Elvis" is piano-driven rockabilly (a la Jerry Lee Lewis); "My Affair" is Latin-pop; "Free World" and "Innocence" are pure '80s Brit-pop; "They Don't Know" is '60s girl-group-style pop. The New Wave-y "He's on the Beach" tells of a friend's life-crisis; in the ersatz country ballad "Don't Come the Cowboy with Me Sonny Jim!" Kirsty plays a woman who's been jerked around too many times (best line: "I fell out of favor with Heaven somewhere, and I'm here for the hell of it now"); the jangly, power-poppish "Caroline" has Kirsty playing a girl who steals her best friend's man ("I think I've gone too far this time / I've leapt across that thin blue line / God help this selfish heart of mine"); in "Walking Down Madison" she addresses homelessness and inner-city life over a gentle hip-hop beat; the lush, pretty "Titanic Days" picks apart a love affair gone sour ("His arms, his face, the way my words got twisted out of place"). My favorite track is still "Fairytale of New York," in which a woman picks up her lover at the drunk tank on Christmas Eve for what may be the last time.

Smart, honest, and often witty lyrics delivered with energy and a sweet voice, this is quintessential British pop, female pop, singer-songwriter pop, pop PERIOD. Though MacColl is no longer with us (she was killed in a boating accident in 2000), Galore stands as a perfect introduction to her brilliant and all-too-brief career. Thanks, Kirsty, for the music!

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Shame on I.R.S., May 10, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Galore (Audio CD)

I used to think that I.R.S. records was one of the coolest labels around. Not only did they give the world R.E.M. but they rescued Kirsty MacColl when she was dropped by her first label. They even reissued Kirsty's albums "Kite" and "Electric Landlady," and in 1995 released this CD, which is one of the greatest "best of" compilations EVER.

But since then, I.R.S. appears to have become just another label, more concerned with marketing and sales than with great music. Both "Kite" "Electric Landlady" have fallen out of print in the U.S. as has the equally superb "Titanic Days." To make matters more insulting, I.R.S. has let this title fall out of print as well.

This is a crime, as every song on here is magnificent, catchy, and sung with a gorgeous voice. Look for this one high and low, and never relinquish it if you find a copy, and maybe one day it will be back in print where it belongs.