Gentlemen Take Polaroids [Original recording remastered]

Japan | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 24, 2007)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Caroline
• ASIN: B000F3T7X8
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #68,597 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Gentlemen Take Polaroids

2. Swing

3. Burning Bridges

4. My New Career

5. Methods Of Dance

6. Ain't That Peculiar

7. Nightporter

8. Taking Islands In Africa

9. The Experience Of Swimming

10. The Width Of A Room

11. Taking Islands In Africa (Steve Nye Remix)

Editorial Reviews

Digitally remastered reissue, in standard jewel case, of 1980 album including one bonus track, 'Taking Islands In Africa' (Steve Nye Remix), Features the tracks 'Gentlemen Take Polaroids', 'My New Career', 'Nightporter', 'Methods Of Dance' and more. 11 tracks. Virgin.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Timeless Masterpiece, March 25, 2010

By 

John Wilson "son of a pioneer" (Boston, MA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gentlemen Take Polaroids (Audio CD)

I have been a fan of Japan and Sylvian for the last 30 years and have to say that this album is undoubtedly the Zenith of all their output .The early albums were not that bad, it is just that they were not that good either , Quiet Life was a mish mash of post Obscure Alternatives pseudo 'Glam / Punk' and their Donna Summer Disco collabrative work with Moroder so it naturally felt somewhat disjointed at times .

Tin Drum although outstanding for it's time not to mention still sounding fresh today already had the feel of a man ready to move on and strike out for pastures new , which ultimately Mr.Sylvian duly did.

So that leaves this body of excellence, what GTP gives you is the resounding beauty of a band that had eventually found it's place and time , gone are the rough edges , the uncertanties and doubts . Instead what we have here is a collection of finely crafted songs which evoke pure pleasure , Sylvian was at his best and the whole album sits with a comfortable air .

Stand out songs and probably the ones that get the least recognition - 'Swing ' and 'My New Career' - these finally bring together Karn's superb Bass mastery with Barbieri's sublime Synthmanship all glued together by Sylvian and his treacle coated vocals.

My one complaint was the replacement of ' Some Kind of Fool ' with ' Burning Bridges ' , not sure what Sylvian was thinking about but SKoF was far more suited to the overall feel of the album .Anyway do not let this deter you from listening or even better purchasing this great piece of work , if you have never listened to Japan before this album delivers the absolute essence of their time together as a band - enjoy - JW

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An interesting album re-examined, September 6, 2007

By 

Steven Guy (Croydon, South Australia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Gentlemen Take Polaroids (Audio CD)

I bought this album on Lp many years ago when it was first released. I enjoyed it then. Some of the tracks never made a big impression on me, but I generally liked the entire album. GTP is a development from "Quiet Life" and probably represents, for some, Japan's finest album - "Tin Drum", several years later, saw Japan going in quite a different direction.

The good tracks far outweigh the "filler" here and some of the music is sublime - "Swing" and "Taking Islands in Africa" still intrigue me. The use of the Roland Compu-rhythm drum machine with Steve Jansen's drumming is very effective. Jansen is a very fine musician indeed. The synthesizer playing is imaginative and very impressive.

The measure of this album is that much of it still sounds fresh today and it still suggests pathways of music and ideas that may be explored.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars gtp, May 24, 2008

By 

Jo day - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gentlemen Take Polaroids (Audio CD)

Swing and nightporter are shimmering 80's treasures. Like nothing else, swing is an uptempo rain of colours, nightporter a soft-vamp ballad, the only true pierrot-song i've ever heard. Outstanding and very original.