Gemstones

Adam Green | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 22, 2005)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Rough Trade Us
• ASIN: B0007N19RS
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #344,926 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

With a style that steps closer to the likes of Bacharach and Brel with each release, Adam Green has created Gemstones, his third solo record, combining his singular songwriting vision and plaintive, almost-angelic tenor with elegant melodies and playful art-pop arrangements. Gemstones is an album whose songs transcend indie rock in favor of more enduring virtues, and it offers 15 prime examples of Green’s sculpted-yet-irreverent songcraft that has won him a sizable and ever-increasing audience in the U.S., Canada, Europe and Japan, where he's toured with the likes of The Libertines, Badly Drawn Boy, Ben Kweller and The Strokes.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars oddly fascinating, March 10, 2005

By 

superinkygrrl "fixating daily so you don't ha... (Portland, OR) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gemstones (Audio CD)

I'm not sure if Adam Green is deliberately trying to sound one part folksy-druggy kooky balladeer and one part vaudevillian-cum-cabaret singer. Either way, it matters little. I'm completely intrigued.

Oh, I'm not saying I love his music, but I certainly appreciate the gusty chutzpah to put something out there like "Gemstones". The lyrics are strange and somewhat disturbing and the music is stripped down and, yes, simple. But it's Adam's voice, his character that really kept me listening track after track.

Actually, I take that back, I am saying I like his music and I'm totally going to endorse this cd! And don't let the haters keep you from enjoying something completely left of center.

The songs are short (around 2 minutes each), so it wasn't a huge time investment. It didn't change my life, but it didn't rob me of 30 minutes of my life, which I can assure you happens every time I happen to flick on American Idol.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A breath of fresh air in a world of crap!, April 3, 2005

By 

Ryan Jackson "R. Ramone" (Los Angeles,CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gemstones (Audio CD)

I love this album! I've heard a lot about adam but I did not hear him until just the other day, man was I missing out. Great album full of weird and funny as hell songs,it's so great to hear something original out there in a world of copycats. highly recomended. 4.5*

5.0 out of 5 stars Green's Most Consistent Album, September 27, 2011

By 

The Incredible Pete - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Gemstones (Audio CD)

It seems that the main complaint that people who have left negative reviews for this album have is that it's different from the 2 albums that preceded it. In my eyes there's plenty of room in the world for both "Friends of Mine" and it's immediate successors, "Gemstones" and "Jacket Full of Danger", though.

Adam Green was introduced to me by my cousin as being a novelty artist who's songs were built upon the contrast between their pretty musical arrangement's and Green's often shocking, profanity-laden lyrics. "Gemstones" was the first LP by Green that I purchased, and while I liked it upon the first listen for it's simple, organic arrangements and the sound of Green's voice, I felt a bit disappointed by the lyrical content of the majority of the songs; a number of them seemed to be sort of shapeless lyrically, comprised entirely of non sequiturs. Upon repeat listenings to "Gemstones" and the other albums I own by him I've come to realize that, at least on the surface, Green seems to prefer stringing together words to get a reaction from the listener rather than writing songs with clear-cut meanings, often utilizing a bait-and-switch tactic by leading into a verse with a lyrical cliché only to turn it completely on it's head in the next line. More often than not he does a damn fine job of it, too, and I find myself looking forward to certain songs largely for individual lyrical snippets.

I highly recommend "Gemstones" as well it's predecessor "Friends of Mine" and the album that would immediately follow it, "Jacket Full of Danger". Approaching these albums with the right mindset is important, though: the music is lighthearted, funny, and occasionally incredibly filthy, and is definitely not meant to be overanalyzed. It's great to listen to while drinking and driving around late at night (Uhh... not both at the same time, of course...). I'm not going to list what I consider the "best tracks" since, like with any good album, that will come down to personal taste, but I'll say that "Carolina" and "Choke on a Cock" definitely get people's ears to perk up if you put them on at a party. Great songs for getting friends interested in the artist.

The album clocks in at around half an hour, and the last time that I checked new copies were selling for as little as $2 here on Amazon (in fact, most of Adam's albums sell for criminally cheap), so you've got very little to lose by purchasing yourself a copy.