Guitar & Other Machines [Import]

Durutti Column | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 23, 1999)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: London Import
• ASIN: B000006YDM
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #329,962 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Arpeggiator

2. What Is It to Me (Woman)

3. Red Shoes

4. Jongleur Grey

5. When the World

6. U.S.P.

7. Bordeaux Sequence

8. Pol in B

9. English Landscape Tradition

10. Miss Haymes

11. Don't You Think You're Funny

12. Lfo Mod

13. Dream Topping

14. 28 Oldham Street

15. Otis [Live]

16. English Landscape Tradition [Live]

17. Finding the Sea [Live]

18. Bordeaux [Live]

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A consistant five star favorite., October 28, 2004

By 

R. Finley "Robin the abecedarian" (Berkeley) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Guitar & Other Machines (Audio CD)

I have worked at a record store for 7 years, and not to sound cliche, but this single record wins my "go to pick" time after time. Of all the thousands of bands that I have come to know, this is one of my favorites to turn on to new listeners. This record sparked me to collect every Durutti Column album (over 22) and it is my favorite of thier extensive work. Without fail, everytime I put the record on I get asked with great enthusiasm what it is . I have reviewed no other record on Amazon- This is the one! Also..If you like DC check out Orange Cake Mix and their "Silver Water Lining" release.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I think it's perfect., November 27, 1999

By 

Russell Martin (Salt Lake City, UT) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Guitar & Other Machines (Audio CD)

This was the album that I discovered the Durutti Column with. I purchased it in '90 or '91 (about 2 or 3 years after it came out). The first 11 tracks are really the complete LP, the rest are extras that they put on the CD to entice those of us who had cassettes or vinyl copies to upgrade to CD. To me, this music is the perfect marriage of Jazz, New Age, & Rock. After 6 or 7 years of owning this, I still play it about 1 or twice a month and am in complete amazement at how stunning it remains. I went on to collect most Durutti Column albums, and this and Obey the Time are my two favorites. If asked to compare this to other artists, I would say that it is in league with Talk Talk (last two albums), David Sylvian, Dif Juz, Dead Can Dance, Abecedarians, Michael Brook, or Rain Tree Crow (i.e. David Sylvian again).

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Book of Saturday, March 10, 2000

By 

loteq (Regensburg/Germany) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Guitar & Other Machines (Audio CD)

Coming on the heels of some rather undistinguished and arty neo-classical records, Vini Reilly delivered a definitive masterpiece with this album, his first really pop-oriented outing since 1981's "LC". The newly configured band, including long-time drummer Bruce Mitchell and violinist John Metcalfe as well as Smiths producer Stephen Street and a couple of female singers (Vini's girlfriends, I suppose), sounds very tight and convincing, using New Order-like sequencers and drum machines to expand the signature DC melancholy with some extra drive and rhythmic testosterone. Nowhere is this more evident than in the album-opening "Arpeggiator", which soon became a concert favorite for the band. So, with all these instruments sharing center stage with Vini's guitar and the audio quality being very clear and dynamic, this is easily the most accessible and solid album in the band's discography. For Vini's circumstances, the aforementioned "Arpeggiator" and "When the world" (a s!mall UK hit for the band) feature pretty aggressive guitar solos, while the acoustic ballads "U.S.P.", "Pol in B", and "Miss Haymes" recall the best moments of his early albums. The female singers on "Red shoes", "When the world", and "Bordeaux sequence" (a synthesized version of "Bordeaux", a song which had originally appeared on 1983's "Another setting") are a little too conceited for my taste, but since there aren't a lot of vocals and lyrics here, it doesn't matter. As with many other reissues of Durutti Column albums, this disc contains some excellent and worthwhile bonus tracks: "LFO Mod" is a strange synthy tune with burbling bass and soft jazz-pop licks which act as a counterpoint to the restless "28 Oldham Street", an exciting soundscape with ringing, lightning-speed guitar runs rushing along a relentless sequencer riff. There's an alternative, 7 1/2-minute version of this track available on the rarities collection "Dry". Unsurprisingly, this lineup of the band did no!t only succeed behind the mixing desk, but also quickly established itself as a powerful and virtuous performing unit, so it's a quite nice to hear some other bonus pieces with recordings taken from a gig at WOMAD (World of music and dance), a yearly festival organized by Peter Gabriel. Again, the same tracks can be found on "Dry", but you shouldn't forget that the digital remastering of "The guitar.." tends to bring out the instruments and the guitar playing much clearer, with minimal tape hiss or noise to obscure them. Overall, this album is probably the best place to start for the Durutti Column novice and remains one of the most innovative pop records of the '80s.