Lloyd Cole and the Commotions, 1984-1989

Lloyd Cole | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (June 9, 1989)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Capitol
• ASIN: B000007O1D
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #144,908 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a gift for pop songcraft, March 10, 2000

By 

"cre8orjvs" (washington, d.c.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lloyd Cole and the Commotions, 1984-1989 (Audio CD)

i don't throw around the word "genius" too often, but it's absolutely fitting in this case. lloyd cole, in addition to being a terrific guitarist, is a master lyricist: wry, humorous, sardonic, melancholy, and above all keenly intelligent. the commotions, also, prove themselves a stellar supporting cast.

chock-full of pop gems, this CD is great for newcomers and long-time fans alike. you'd be hard-pressed to find a bad song on here. perfect for whiling away a rainy day indoors, driving at the seaside with the top down, or whenever you're in the mood for literate, introspective music that rocks (in its own subdued way).

highlights: "forest fire" (#3), "perfect blue" (#6), "brand new friend" (#7) and the quintessential anthem to lost love, "jennifer she said" (#13).

i simply can't recommend this album highly enough.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Too much class to mention, October 19, 2005

By 

Paul Kendall "Paul" (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lloyd Cole and the Commotions, 1984-1989 (Audio CD)

Catchy, intelligent guitar pop from back when. Unfortunately, too intelligent to ever become wildly popular.

Another CD that brings back memories of the time when alternative music just seemed to matter, distinctly different without trying to be so. Chock full of sparkling gems like "Cut Me Down", "Rattlesnakes", "Lost Weekend", "Perfect Blue", my favorite track "Perfect Skin" and the famous "Brand New Friend".

Things definitely sound as good today as they did back then.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If Only All Hits Packages Were This Great and This Accurate!, January 10, 2005

By 

T. Norton "still learning..." (key west) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Lloyd Cole and the Commotions, 1984-1989 (Audio CD)

Beautifully packaged retrospective brilliantly and succinctly captures the brief career (three studio albums) of this seminal band. One can witness the "rock and roll" process in action by following the tracks chronologically; bigger budgets and better musicianship and a healthy dose of self-indulgence have all developed by the time of the "Mainstream" album (sooo well-titled and humorously so!). Truth be told, this band was just too damn good to ever be mainstream. It sounds snobbish to say that intelligent listeners are attracted to this music, but it's true. It's nothing to do with book-learning: it's just a wider grasp of human nature, one's own ridiculous presence in the world, and the need to express one's self in spite of such awareness. I can't even recommend individual songs, this package really plays as one sweeping observation, and wonderfully so. This was my very first personal c.d. purchase back in 1989 when it came out. I had gone to the record store with the intent of blowing some money on the then-ridiculously priced (they still are, but not as noticiably as then...) digital wonder discs that sounded crisp and clean and didn't pop and skip (or so we thought). LCATC 1984-89 RIP was on the new release shelf and that was that . I still treasure it, and, oh, they got the sound just right first time out on this one, it's still fantastic to listen to!! The only flaw for me was the totally unnecessary and downright lazy remix of "Forest Fire" on which the "mixer"runs the guitar solo verbatem twice! Why??? It's still a great song, mind you... The "recut" of "Perfect Blue" with producer Paul Hardiman was the most pleasant surprise and is well worth the price of the whole damn thing- it's that exquisite! Gorgeous photo studies of each guy are the ultimate complement to Lloyd's written lyric and the somewhat esoteric cover shot (it's gorgeous and just fits the music somehow, someone had a good eye on that one!). BUY IT NOW!! Also, get thyself the DELUXE edition of "Rattlesnakes" next!