A Girl Called Eddy

Girl Called Eddy

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 10, 2004)
• Original Release Date: August 10, 2004
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Anti
• ASIN: B0002IQGBC
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #53,574 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
A Girl Called Eddy is the rather unassuming name used by singer-songwriter Erin Moran. On this, her debut album, she teams up with former Pulp guitarist and acclaimed solo artist Richard Hawley to produce an album of elegance and depth. Quite simply, A Girl Called Eddy is music made by grown-ups for grown-ups. The band, who also featured on Hawley's own opus Lowedges, create sophisticated arrangements that add an almost jazz-like feel to tracks like "Tears All Over Town," "Girls Can Really Tear You Up Inside," and "Life Through the Same Lens," yet they never threaten to overpower Moran's own tender and emotive voice. She is, after all, the real star here, and she proves her abilities both as a singer and as a lyricist throughout. "You're lonely like only the broken can know," she broods on "Somebody Hurt You," and her voice conveys both sympathy and intimacy, never an easy feat on a recording. This is a surprisingly accomplished debut album--dignified, literate, and well-observed. Its mellow, relaxed pace may sound perfect for late-night listening, but A Girl Called Eddy will command your attention. --Robert Burrow

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A thing of beauty , August 26, 2004

By	Geoff Hall "Geoff Hall" (Borehamwood, UK) - See all my reviews

Trust me, this is a fabulous album which is instantly likeable.

When I first listened to her voice, I heard an accent which sounded like an American with a touch of north-country English and that couldn't be right, could it? Well, I logged onto her website and found she was from New Jersey and spent a couple of years in Sheffield, in the north of England, and the place she receorded the album. It seems she's an anglophile!

She is really Erin Moran (I like her real name as much as "Eddy") and she sounds like a cross between Karen Carpenter and Chrissie Hynde, with some female Scott Walker touches - so it is appropriate that these great singers appear to be either influences of her or singers she just admires.

Most of the songs are slow-paced, sensitive and downbeat, with a very 60's feel, which I found uplifting and very warm - an extremely pleasureable experience. Her voice is very easy on the ear and one which makes you want to listen closely, but when it needs to be extended/stretched, it sounds stronger, purer and even better. There are also some really nice, understated string arrangements and some lovely tight playing by her backing band.

The tracks are all great songs - there is nothing here which is remotely worse than very good. However, for me, the best tracks are "Kathleen", "Golden" and "People Used To Dream About The Future"...but then again, I could name all 11 selections.

This is as good a debut album as I have heard in a very long time and I hope it is a runaway success. I would like to think there is more to "Eddy" than just one album worth of sheer class.

So what are you waiting for? Don't just take my word for it - go and buy this today.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars What A Thrill!, September 7, 2004

By	L.D. Mit (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews

I was in a music store when "Girls Can Really Tear You Up Inside" played. I picked up the album and bought it then and there, not knowing if I would like anything else on it. I am very happy to say I loved the entire thing! I remember when I heard Shelby Lynne's "I Am Shelby Lynne" for the first time. I had never been so moved by an album before. "A Girl Called Eddy" is possibly the first album I've heard since then that has moved me in the same way. So few artists write music like this anymore! Eddy's (or Erin Moran's) voice is beautiful and rich, with strains of Karen Carpenter, k.d. lang, Shelby Lynne, even a little Goldfrapp in the melodies and orchestrations. These songs with their deep, brooding, twisting melodies stay with you long after the CD stops playing. "Tears All Over Town" sets the tone for the album nicely. "Girls Can Really Tear You Up Inside" grips your heart and just doesn't let go. Utterly gorgeous! "People Used To Dream About The Future" sounds like something Burt Bacarach might write. It's the sort of song that might play over the end credits of a movie (I mean that as a compliment!). Very touching. "Heartache" is beautiful with its jazz-influenced percussion. The biggest surprise is "Life Thru The Same Lens". A meloncholy lyric coupled with an upbeat tempo. It works very well. It's a great song. This is a fabulous album. So mature and polished. In the midst of skantily-clad pop wannabe's, with no substance whatsoever, being cranked out right and left, what a thrill it is to hear music like this being made. I already can't wait until her next effort.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant Music, October 5, 2004

By	floyd latruth (annapolis, md usa) - See all my reviews

This is the finest cd to come across my ears in many years. I have not stopped listening to it for a sold month. My favorite piece has changed several times as I have gotten cozy cut by cut. Now that I have listened thoroughly I can report that the last track, "Golden", is not only my favorite on this CD but the best new song I have heard in at least ten years.
To appreciate Golden's rare power you must hear it in context. As the final cut, this stirring, life-affirming song is the coda to an otherwise moody and melancholy album. It takes all the preceding heartache and loss expressed so tenderly and evocatively and makes sense of it. It evokes joy and pain simultaneously, like the greatest eulogy you've ever experienced.
What is more, on this astonishingly beautiful vocal recording the last word is given to the guitar; a soaring slide solo with delicate phrasing that seems a comprehensive review of the complex emotional themes covered throughout this great work of art. This is a watershed moment rarely achieved in popular music. Imagine the climax or Orbison's Running Scared or the searing guitar at the finish of Springsteen's Incident of 57th Street, where the music makes you feel precisely as the lyrics intended.
This sort of brilliance is not attained by accident. This is a supremely talented group of artists who, if they get their due, will be busy on Grammy night.