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Illinoise
 
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Illinoise

Sufjan StevensMP3 Music
4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (306 customer reviews)

Price: $9.99
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Album Savings: $11.79 compared to buying all songs

  • Original Release Date: July 5, 2005
  • Format - Music: MP3
  • Compatible with MP3 Players (including with iPod®), iTunes, Windows Media Player
 
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  Song Title Time Price  
Play   1. Concerning the UFO sighting near Highland, Illinois 2:09 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   2. The Black Hawk War, or, How To Demolish An Entire Civilization and Still Feel Good About Yourself in the Morning, or, We Apologize for the Inconvenience But You're Going To Have To Leave Now, or, "I H 2:14 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   3. Come On! Feel the Illinoise! Part I: The World's Columbian Exposition Part II: Carl Sandburg Visits Me In A Dream 6:45 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   4. John Wayne Gacy, Jr. 3:19 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   5. Jacksonville 5:24 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   6. A short reprise for Mary Todd, who went insane, but for very good reasons 0:47 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   7. Decatur, or, Round of Applause for Your Step-Mother! 3:03 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   8. One last \Whoo-hoo!\" for the Pullman" 0:06 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play   9. Chicago 6:04 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 10. Casimir Pulaski Day 5:54 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 11. To The Workers of The Rock River Valley Region, I have an idea concerning your predicament, and it involves an inner tube, bath mats, and 21 able-bodied men 1:40 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 12. The Man of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts 6:17 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 13. Prairie Fire That Wanders About 2:11 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 14. A conjunction of drones simulating the way in which Sufjan Stevens has an existential crisis in the Great Godfrey Maze 0:19 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 15. The Predatory Wasp of The Palisades Is Out To Get Us 5:23 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 16. They Are Night Zombies!! They Are Neighbors!! They Have Come Back From the Dead!! Ahhhh! 5:09 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 17. Let's hear that string part again, because I don't think they heard it all the way out in Bushnell 0:40 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 18. In This Temple As in The Hearts of Man For Whom He Saved The Earth 0:35 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 19. The Seer's Tower 3:54 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 20. The Tallest Man, the Broadest Shoulders Part I: The Great Frontier Part II: Come to Me Only With Playthings Now 7:03 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 21. Riffs and Variations on a single note for Jelly Roll, Earl Hines, Louis Armstrong, Baby Dodds, and the King of Swing, to name a few 0:46 $0.99  Buy MP3 
Play 22. Out of Egypt, into the Great Laugh of Mankind, and I shake the dirt from my sandals as I run 4:21 $0.99  Buy MP3 
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Product Details


Customer Reviews

I highly recommend this album if you have taste in music and are opening to musical experiences. Mr. Ryan L. Bates  |  51 reviewers made a similar statement
The first time I listened to this album, I was baffled. Paul J. Kulpa  |  43 reviewers made a similar statement
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
475 of 500 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Quite possibly this year's masterwork July 14, 2005
Format:Audio CD
Sufjan Stevens is a puzzling character; sometimes naive, sometimes sophisticated, somewhat rustic and yet essentially urban in outlook. But there a few things he never seems to exhibit: crassness, boredom, or jaded irony. Instead he appears defenseless and in full flower on "Illinois", an album of remarkable breadth, depth and ambition.

It is precisely his lack of sneering superiority that makes "Illinois" such a treat. These lengthy, wordy poem/songs, these complex instrumental arrangements and daunting pop structures could all be so much ego run amok, like a bad progressive rock album. But that doesn't happen. Instead, we are treated to a song cycle so fresh and honest I hardly know where to start.

From the sweet quietness of the opening number (which turns an actual UFO sighting in 2000 into a revelatory experience) to the nearly presumptuous overture that follows, one gets a glimpse of what will follow. Imagery follows tone follows place follows events both personal and public in a seamless fabric. By the time we are through the title cut on track 3, he has already taken us through a small American symphony of ideas. We have wondered about God and aliens, considered the great icons of the state of Illinois, met with the ghost of Carl Sandburg and wondered if we are being honest with our art in the first place; surely one of the most breathtaking 11 minutes I can recall on CD.

The mood is quietly shattered with "John Wayne Gacy Jr.", probably the most haunted song in recent memory. If this one doesn't make you choke a little, check your pulse. By portraying a serial killer as human after all, he draws our attention to the flaws in every heart. He understands that demons have no souls, but people - even mass murderers - do. Watch out.
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192 of 205 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars I'm looking forward to the rest of this road trip... August 13, 2005
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Is Sufjan Stevens insane?

"Illinois" is only the second stop on a planned collection of 50 state-themed albums. It's the type of project whose sheer scale and mad ambition boggle the mind, calling forth a number of rhetorical questions: Is he really going to spend the bulk of his career on such a huge project? Given the fact that "Michigan" came out two years ago, shouldn't he pick up the pace a bit? Will he really make a separate album for, say, North and South Dakota?

I hope so.

Illinois is a great album, almost certainly the best of the year so far. It opens with a delicate and beautiful piano track entitled "Concerning the UFO Sighting Near Highland, Illinois." From there, Stevens criss-crosses the state, heading to Jacksonville, Decatur and Chicago, creating a musical travelogue as thorough as any Rand McNally guidebook.

Importantly, Stevens doesn't spend all his time going from point A to point B; he also stops to get to know people, writing about everyone from John Wayne Gacy to Superman to Abraham Lincoln to Carl Sandburg. Some of the references amount to little more than name-dropping, but the beautiful Superman song and the haunting Gacy track show that, most of the time, Stevens is really trying to understand how a place could be embodied by such disparate characters.

Thematically, too, he covers a lot of ground. "Oh, God of progress, have you degraded or forgot us? Where have your walls gone? I think about it now," he asks in what is probably the only song that will ever be written about the Columbian Exposition of 1893. For good measure, he throws in a little religious imagery later in the album; though his observations here feel a little self-centered and angry, you have to give him credit for honesty and candor.
... Read more ›
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32 of 33 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Thinking outragiously, I'll review in cursef November 26, 2005
Format:Audio CD
I'll admit it, I'm a corporate tool. I bought this album for the sole reason that Amazon named it the top album of 2005. I've been aching to find something new and interesting (my Flogging Molly and Phillip Glass albums were getting worn out). Since I hadn't seen anyone named Sufjan on American Idol, and the album wasn't getting shoved down the throats of us consumers I thought that Amazon may be trying to make a statement for the betterment of music.

Thank Goodness!!

I played it first when leaving town for a 20 hour Thankgiving round trip, I didn't know that it would be the only thing played on the radio the whole trip. While previous review rant about the first couple of tracks, I think they bouced over the truely great tracks. I found "The Predatory Wasp Of The Palisades Is Out To Get Us!" as a beautifully contradiction on itself. I told a friend about htis track, and he was shocked I used terms like innocent & lovely on something named after a bug. I love the way "The Man Of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts" transitions between tempos. But my favorite track is by far "Cashmir Pulaski Day". When I fully understood what Cashmir Pulasky Day was about, I was bought to tears.

Most of the time, music shoved at us doesn't deserve our well earned money. This album is worth a listen. This artist deserves our support. This 50 state concept is a pipedream, but I am glad there are still dreamers in the music industry and if this is the result of dreams then I will keep buying.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Timeless but innovative sounds
This album is an absolute work of art. The flow of the track list is phenomenal, and each song tells a story unlike the rest. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Miguel Ley
5.0 out of 5 stars LOVELOVELOVE
This was packaged so well and arrived to my house so quickly. The cover is a LOT of fun, too. I haven't opened it because it's for my boyfriend for his birthday, but I'm really... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Naomi Steva
5.0 out of 5 stars Diverse ...
I read a lot of the reviews about this recording and ..... I have had this recording for a long time and ..... there are few artists that can dream up stuff like this and.... Read more
Published 5 months ago by musiclover
5.0 out of 5 stars Sufjaneurysm!!!
Fun with words ... I can do it too! So I totally almost had one when I listened to it!!! I'm not sure if it was "A Conjunction Of Drones Simulating The Way In Which Sufjan Stevens... Read more
Published 6 months ago by J. C. Fox
5.0 out of 5 stars Beauty
Sufjan Stevens has created a diverse, thoughtful, creative album that you will want to listen to again and again. Well done, Sufjan, well done.
Published 6 months ago by Chloe
5.0 out of 5 stars Indie Folk Epic
Great album, with a interesting theme: A thinking man's look at the pop culture of Illinois. Reminds me of the Decemberists with a touch of Steve Reich. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Plantagenet Son
5.0 out of 5 stars yes, it's a masterpiece
Come on Feel the Illinoise lives up to the incredible amount of hype and THEN some! As someone who normally prefers the music of the 60's and 70's, I went in hoping this album was... Read more
Published 16 months ago by B. E Jackson
5.0 out of 5 stars This was made to be heard on Vinyl
This is easily one of the best records I have ever had the pleasure of listening to, and having it on vinyl enhances everything! Best $20 I've spent in a while
Published 17 months ago by SRAL
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic..
The cover art looks like high quality print, it comes with 2 vinyls and all the lyrics are printed on a cool looking handout. Read more
Published 17 months ago by KSbored
2.0 out of 5 stars See all the other 2 star reviews...
Pretty much agree with the others who gave it two stars. Overrated, forced and bit too dull. And I'm from "Illinoise", so I oughtta know what dull is...
Published 19 months ago by puma
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Is he really Cat stevens son
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Nov 18, 2006 by Humbert Humbert |  See all 3 posts
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