Customer Reviews

Happy Blue

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The year was 1981. Somehow, Ronald Reagan was President. The economy was terrible but, we didn't notice because we were in middle or high school. Then "Don't Say No" came out. Billy Squier had created hard rock guitar perfection! AC/DC's "Back In Black" could finally be put back in it's record sleeve. We all bought cassette copies of "Don't Say No" and played it usually literally to tape death. "In the Dark", "The Stroke", "My Kinda Lover", it was high school heaven! Then we graduated, CDs came along, the Web appeared, we sort of grew up, got hitched, had kids, started liking other music, and well, here we are. Then recently, someone asked if you had heard that Billy Squier put out an album in 1998. "Really? Is it any good?"

Well, I can tell you this from someone who has mostly lived the life as above. But still killer! I bought the CD recently used simply because it brought back memories of old and it intrigued me. When I first played it, expecting berserk guitar and crashing drums, I couldn't have been more surprised! It was definitely Billy, but all else I ever heard was a six-string. Acoustic! I looked at the credits and saw that Billy wrote them all except for "River" by Joni Mitchell. All were new, too, except for a revised "Stroke" in "Stroke Me Blues".

Billy Squier has apparently "sort of grown up" just like us! This album is basically a labor of love project Billy did after a VH1 taping in the summer of 1997. The blues and lots of wisdom have infused themselves into our former hard rocker since 1981. "Happy Blue" is the result.

Standouts on this CD include "The Pursuit of Happiness", "Grasping for Oblivion", "More Than Words Can Say", "Inferno (Everybody Cries Sometimes)", "Long Way to Fall", and "Two". He adds three or four sentences to explain the inspiration for each song in the liner notes (lyrics also included).

The bottom line: If you still dig Billy Squier, but have also expanded your musical horizons somewhat since high school, then definitely buy this disc. You will be surprised, and VERY pleased.

I must say that when I heard Billy Squier on a local radio show discussing this CD, I didnt give it a second thought. That is until he played two tracks from the CD (i.e "Inferno" and "River") Not only did I like the songs but both musically and lyrically, I was struck by how mature they sounded. By mature I dont mean wimpy, however, I do think that this album will move in ways that you don't expect. His lyrics are intelligent and the music is simple but dont let the fact that it is an acoustical CD fool you. I am about as skeptical as one can get when it comes to purchasing CD's that I'm unsure about but I am glad that I gave this one a shot. This is an excellent effort by Billy and I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys quality music.

I have always loved Billy Squier's music, and when this album came out, we were fortunate enough to find out about a performance he was doing at a "Borders Books" of all places, right down the street by our house. We went down and saw the show from about 5 feet away from Billy--we were immediately captivated by his new project.

I instantly fell in love with "Grasping for Oblivion" and this is one of my favorite Billy albums. His melodies and distinctive vocal texture are a delight when captured in this acoustic forum, and he seemed much happier playing these stripped down tunes that were more reflective of his true nature.

If you are a fan of Billy this album is a must buy! Delightfully under-produced, it truly showcases how talented this man is in every apect of his performance--writing, singing, and guitar playing.

Side note:
We had the pleasure of meeting with Billy and talking with him after the show, he is a wonderful person--he even sat and talked with our then 8 year old daughter.

When this album was first released, I was more than delighted at the turn Billy had taken in his music. Having been quiet for so long, and being known for his trademark guitars-&-drums rock, this album was quite a departure for him. I have always considered Billy as one of the better rock guitarists right from his earlier days in the local clubs (yeh, THAT far back!) and in this album he shows his skill in blues and jazz. He has written songs that seem to come right from his soul, and he shares them with the listener. It is a very intimate recording, as if you're in a room together & he's playing for you alone. No gimmicks, no bells & whistles, nothin' but the man and his guitar. Billy has also added brief comments about each track, & gives a more personal glimpse of himself than ever before. This album is more of a gift to his listeners than any other he has done. Even after 5 years, I still can hear new layers. Oh, I'm sure there will be those who will say Billy should stay with rock (and anyone who got to see his performance on tour in 2001 would have to agree he's better than ever!), but everyone grows, and everyone needs to reach in other directions. This album more than proves that Billy Squier will always be one of our premier musicians, and I thank him for that.

HAPPY BLUE is pure Billy Squier: lush guitar work, ethereal lyrics and, of course, the seductive voice.

Time has ripened the ever-poetic soul of this man, and it is an effort that suggests an understanding hard-won through life experience--especially in love. Even his lamentation is haunting and luminous. The gentler, more intimate songs are to be listened to with a resigned heart because one such spirit is delivering them.

You will recognize the genius that summoned something deep inside you decades ago in his earlier recordings. It burns hot and can still stir every emotion with ease. But, it comes more quietly.

I fell in love with this music after a single session. HAPPY BLUE belongs in the collection of all Billy Squier devotees.

I've been a huge fan of Billy's since the old "Stroke Me" days, so I was very excited to see he had a new cd. When I first listened to this disk, my first response was "what the hell is this?" I put it away and didn't pick it up again for weeks. When I finally gave it another chance, I totally fell in love with it. It's not the Billy Squier you know and love, but in some ways it's better. A few months later, I still listen to it constantly. This is great acoustic music and Billy has shown us all exactly how talented he is! Try it, you won't regret it.

All at once bluesy and nostalgic, gritty and somewhat sentimental, Billy Squier's first release of new material in years is a pleasant surprise. Consisting of self-penned songs (except a modified cover of Joni Mitchell's "River") performed by himself on nothing but an acoustic guitar, Happy Blue is remarkable in that it doesn't smack at all of the trite "I'm nearly 50 and a reformed, enlightened individual" message that seems to hammer many aging rock musicians' comeback efforts after long periods of hiatus. With his sparse melodies matching lyrics that maintain the integrity of his trademark Everyman's woes about life and love and ordinary things in between, Squier indicates that he's not phased by the media's and public's opinions of him as Billy Squier the '80s rock star coming back with a folk album...and that alone is refreshing. Squier is clearly an accomplished musician, alternating between classic blues riffs and discordant folk notes waxing nostalgia on his acoustic guitar while crooning in his Robert Plant-esque tenor without intending to rip off Zeppelin. His latest release is almost reminiscent of Bob Mould's solo comeback following a long break after his punkish Husker Du days; Squier, like Mould, doesn't wish to return to his past roots, but also doesn't want to use his first solo effort sans band (and following the tragic death of his longtime drummer Bobby Chouinard) to trumpet his comeback loudly a la "I'm Still Standing" (no offence to Elton John, whom I think STILL rocks). Hats off to a pleasing and admirable effort by a highly underrated musician of our times, of Everytime.

Although different from what you might expect from Billy, this acoustic CD from Squire is quite excellent, showing off his songwriting and guitar playing abilities, this bluesy acoustic CD which consists of Just Billy Squire and his acoustic guitar is well worth getting

I never really liked Billy Squier much. I have his first couple of albums...vinyl albums, not CD's. I was interested in this project so bought the CD.

It's brilliant. I know it won't be for everyone...but I would definitely see him in concert now, if I were given the chance. I didn't know he had this depth.

Vastly different from his other CD's - solo acoustic guitar - but I expected that from reading other reviewers. What I did not expect was his voice. The songs themselves weren't bad, but they were totally ruined for me by his screechy, off-key singing. Fingernails on a chalkboard is not too unkind of a description. It's a shame, b/c some of the tunes were quite nice, and the guitar playing was good.