Holiday Man

The Flys | Format: MP3 Download

Product Details

• Original Release Date: August 25, 1998
• Label: Kirtland Records
• Copyright: 1998 Kirtland Records
• Genres: Alternative Rock/American Alternative, Rap & Hip-Hop/Pop Rap, Rock/Rap Rock
• ASIN: B00126SXDC
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (55 customer reviews)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Outta the dresser and into the rotation, April 20, 2005

By 

wellwellwell (bog) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Holiday Man (Audio CD)

When "Got You (Where I Want You)" hit the airwaves, a lot of people went out and bought Holiday Man, listened to it maybe twice (at best) and put it in their bedroom drawer to forever be forgotten. That's understandable; "Got You" is by far the best song on here, and the lead singer's vocals sound like they are continuously being put through a synthesizer. So I'll admit it, even though I found "She's So Huge" to be a not-so-close-behind but respectable second best to their hit single, I pretty much forget about this album. But recently, on a 'remembering one-hit wonders' binge, I gave this album another try. And although I didn't fall in love with it by any means, I was able to find a couple more notable tracks to talk about.

Sadly, even after a number of listens recently, there are still some really bad songs on Holiday Man: "Give You My Car" and "Superfly". Nothing just seems to flow in either track, and no lyrics really jump out at you. "Girls Are The Cruelest" is a rather boring track as well, with lyrics that are hardly a step up from tragically cliché. Next there are two songs that are vastly different from anything else on the album: "The Family" and "Sexual Sandwich". If you don't like Paskowitz's voice in the other ten songs, you might love it here (or, possibly, hate it even more). I like "Sexual Sandwich" as a sexy, almost laughable closer that starts with a Marvin Gaye-like 'this one's for the ladies' quote and carries on with 'do what you do / when you do' chants. "The Family" uses the same type of voice to give thanks to everybody involved with making The Flys so infamous. Neither "Take U There", with its weird, rapping choruses, nor "Afraid", with its catawampus catchiness are really that bad. But on the other hand, they aren't that great either. Take 'em or leave 'em, I guess. "Gods Of Basketball" is a song I have come to enjoy more this time around. The heavy guitars and shouts of 'they'll be sorry when you're gone' are actually quite good; and might actually make the song a hidden gem. But the true, *timeless* gems are "Holiday Man" and "Groove Is Where You Find It". I love the way "Holiday Man" jumps right into things with 'everybody wants to be seen / everybody's eyes are all all-agleam'. If there's a track where the synthesized voice works wonders, it is certainly the title track. The way it finishes is equally as impressive. So if you've shoved this album aside, I do suggest you put it back in your CD-player for three minutes for that song alone (if nothing else). "Groove Is Where You Find It" is in the same vein as "Got You", with a slow groovyness and nostalgic buildup that doesn't exactly get you excited, but keeps you listening.

At long last, Holiday Man is still not a great CD. But it's not as bad as everyone makes it out to be. However, there is about a 40% chance you might actually hate most or all of the album, even if you absolutely loved "Got You (Where I Want You)". After all, before this week, "Got You" was my 41st favorite song of all-time, while at the same time this CD sat-whether gracelessly or not--in my dresser, covered by unpaid bills and basketball cards. But after a new found liking and respect for such treasures as "Holiday Man", "She's So Huge", "Groove Is Where You Find It", "The Gods Of Basketball" and even "Sexual Sandwich", I was able to find a place for The Flys (between Finger Eleven and Ben Folds) within my discriminatorily-chosen CDs in my CD tower.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Outta the dresser and into the rotation, April 20, 2005

By 

wellwellwell (bog) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Holiday Man (Audio CD)

When "Got You (Where I Want You)" hit the airwaves, a lot of people went out and bought Holiday Man, listened to it maybe twice (at best) and put it in their bedroom drawer to forever be forgotten. That's understandable; "Got You" is by far the best song on here, and the lead singer's vocals sound like they are continuously being put through a synthesizer. So I'll admit it, even though I found "She's So Huge" to be a not-so-close-behind but respectable second best to their hit single, I pretty much forget about this album. But recently, on a 'remembering one-hit wonders' binge, I gave this album another try. And although I didn't fall in love with it by any means, I was able to find a couple more notable tracks to talk about.

Sadly, even after a number of listens recently, there are still some really bad songs on Holiday Man: "Give You My Car" and "Superfly". Nothing just seems to flow in either track, and no lyrics really jump out at you. "Girls Are The Cruelest" is a rather boring track as well, with lyrics that are hardly a step up from tragically cliché. Next there are two songs that are vastly different from anything else on the album: "The Family" and "Sexual Sandwich". If you don't like Paskowitz's voice in the other ten songs, you might love it here (or, possibly, hate it even more). I like "Sexual Sandwich" as a sexy, almost laughable closer that starts with a Marvin Gaye-like 'this one's for the ladies' quote and carries on with 'do what you do / when you do' chants. "The Family" uses the same type of voice to give thanks to everybody involved with making The Flys so infamous. Neither "Take U There", with its weird, rapping choruses, nor "Afraid", with its catawampus catchiness are really that bad. But on the other hand, they aren't that great either. Take 'em or leave 'em, I guess. "Gods Of Basketball" is a song I have come to enjoy more this time around. The heavy guitars and shouts of 'they'll be sorry when you're gone' are actually quite good; and might actually make the song a hidden gem. But the true, *timeless* gems are "Holiday Man" and "Groove Is Where You Find It". I love the way "Holiday Man" jumps right into things with 'everybody wants to be seen / everybody's eyes are all all-agleam'. If there's a track where the synthesized voice works wonders, it is certainly the title track. The way it finishes is equally as impressive. So if you've shoved this album aside, I do suggest you put it back in your CD-player for three minutes for that song alone (if nothing else). "Groove Is Where You Find It" is in the same vein as "Got You", with a slow groovyness and nostalgic buildup that doesn't exactly get you excited, but keeps you listening.

At long last, Holiday Man is still not a great CD. But it's not as bad as everyone makes it out to be. However, there is about a 40% chance you might actually hate most or all of the album, even if you absolutely loved "Got You (Where I Want You)". After all, before this week, "Got You" was my 41st favorite song of all-time, while at the same time this CD sat-whether gracelessly or not--in my dresser, covered by unpaid bills and basketball cards. But after a new found liking and respect for such treasures as "Holiday Man", "She's So Huge", "Groove Is Where You Find It", "The Gods Of Basketball" and even "Sexual Sandwich", I was able to find a place for The Flys (between Finger Eleven and Ben Folds) within my discriminatorily-chosen CDs in my CD tower.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Surfers Paradise, October 28, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Holiday Man (Audio CD)

"Got You" was the song I obviously bought the album for, and to my surprise, it ended up being one of the top five best albums of 1999. This album is absolutely RAW! "Holiday Man" has the "Rage Against the Machine" feel to it, and it works. "She's so Huge" is super bobbin' your head material, and "Gods of Basketball" can't really be that good of a song - but it is!

Buy it - open your mind - and enjoy!