Customer Reviews

Gossip

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

 

 

I can't believe this hasn't been reviewed by an Australian fan yet. This is definitely one of my favourite Paul Kelly albums and the first one I listened to (and bought) way back in '87. Beautiful, spare, raw and the songwriting is just so incredibly evocative - Paul just makes it look so simple because he is so incredibly good at telling the stories of these peoples lives (his own?) - and our lives. Here's a couple of examples:

In one hand
Out the other
Baby I don't even know why you bother
Darling it hurts to see you down Darlinghurst tonight
(from 'Darling it Hurts' about a guy who finds out his (ex?)girlfriend is stuck on the prostitution/drug addiction merry-go-round) You can hear the sadness and frustration pouring out in this song

I was down at Baker's Hall
I heard somebody talking
That's the last thing I recall
Then my mind went walking
I woke up with a heavy head
On a hard bed trying to believe
These stories of me
(from 'Stories of Me' marks a man's decline into alcoholism after his partner leaves him) Sad and rather depressing but so true as well and the music is subdued and moody perfectly fitting the lyrics.

Maralinga is a haunting song that provides a sort of testimonial from the aboriginie's who suffered the effects of nuclear testing by the British in the '50's. And there are plenty of other great songs on this double album.

I truly believe Paul Kelly is one of the best singer/songwriters around - anywhere - and I recommend either Gossip or Under the Sun as a great way of introducing yourself to his work.

Paul Kelly has made some great albums. This is his best. The quality of song writing is from the top drawer and the 17 tracks are stylistically diverse. And yet the album is fluent and coherent. The playing is simple and crisp, enhancing the songs in a rare and oganic fashion. Lyrically, it is the album in which he came of age. There had been hints at this depth but not this consistency.

For fans of rock music, the mid-Eighties were like being stuck in a dark cloud of hair-bands, cheesy sythesisers & drum machines. Here in America, it seemed that all was indeed lost. But, in the Southern Hemisphere, this great record was released (in 86) without our knowledge. What a loss that is for all of us, we missed out on something great: "Gossip" by Paul Kelly.

This was the second record from Paul. I first heard this record way back in the winter of 93 (July) during a holiday in Sydney (after: "Under The Sun"). This one turned my ear sideways with the very first listen. This artist is a major talent, and it's all right here. This was a double Lp (remember those?), 21 tracks, 72 minutes of fantastic music.

The Opener: "Last Train To Heaven" is like a chant from a bayou. It's very dreamlike and hypnotic. "Leaps and Bounds" must have been a hit single as it's too good not to have been one. Also, the great rocker: "Before Too Long", which I had already heard on the car radio while driving through Kansas.

Paul's songs tell stories: "Before The Old Man Died" "White Train" and "Randwick Bells" seem right outta little incidents that he experienced. There are flat-out rockers: "Down On My Speedway" "Darling,It Hurts" mixed right in with more reflective pieces: "Somebody's Forgetting Somebody" "Maralinga" (Rainy Land) that feature Paul's, acoustic playing very nicely. The amount of musical styles presented vary with a touch of rockabilly,folk-rock and down right pop (and that can be a good thing!) to traces of reggae, jazz and country music. Paul, took his place in the Oz music scene as this record became big down under and he is STILL a major force in music in his home country to this day.

I have purchased many more of his great records, since buying this gem, and I still feel lucky to have stumbled across this wonderful artist by chance way back in that record store on another Continent way back in that other century. Start here, listen to Paul Kelly, you won't be sorry.
This is Great Music!
Four Stars!

this is a really good bit of music and brings back a lot of memories of when radio wasn't afraid to play obscure talent!

Top to bottom probably my favorite PK&M record. I have been a long time fan (since 1988) and find myself returning to these older recordings more and more. His new stuff is good, don't get me wrong, but I prefer the somewhat less polished and more raw stuff he did in his earlier years.

I will always buy everything he releases, because of loyality and because he is so damn good. What i wouldn't give for a new PK&M record (with the remaining members). One can hold out hope...can't one.

I'm a New Zealander, so take it from me, this guy is good. He's not in danger of toppling Neil Finn from his antipodean throne, but this is a truly evocative and strangely catchy little album.
It is quintessentially Australian. The anthem "Adelaide" is this collection's brilliant cornerstone, and elsewhere it boasts little rippers like "Before The Old Man Died", "I Won't Be Torn Apart" and "Leaps And Bounds".
Just buy it if you think you might like it. You can always give it away. Go on, it's good, I promise.

I think the recording is over 30 years old now, but it still sounds fresh. Definitely worth picking up.