Customer Reviews

Lullaby

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"Lullaby" is a classic and Book Of Love is timeless. This is a five star album whether it's 1988 or 2009. "Tubular Bells" is still ahead of its time and the 7" mix is unjustly ignored by this reissue. I've read nothing of this being remastered and it doesn't sound any different, IMO, from the original CD. Most remasters choose loudness over dynamic range anyway so I'm not disappointed.
The only problem is the packaging. Cheap and rushed with no quality control at all. The cover art is turned sideways and poorly reproduced. The back art looks scanned from an original cass or LP (complete with markings for side 1 and 2). The bonus tracks are not printed in the original font like the album tracks. Credits are incomplete. I would have purchased my own plane ticket and flown in to work with the art department at no charge rather than see BOL get such shabby treatment.
The fact remains that this purchase is about music and this CD doesn't disappoint. Buy this CD for the memories but enjoy it for the creativity and talent that make Book Of Love great.

Fantastically produced by Erasure/Depeche Mode producer Flood, this is possibly Book of Love's synthpop masterpiece with its combination of electronic dance rhythms and angelic melodies and arrangements. It was drastically overlooked when it came out in 1988, even if it did chart highest of all their albums. Tubular Bells/Pretty Boys and Pretty Girls and Lullaby are just some of the stunning dance highlights of this classic. And here, it gets an excellent sound remastering, with some of their best 12" versions included as bonus tracks. Pretty Boys and Pretty Girls comes in both its extended dance mix and the near 15 minute Regan House Medley (previously available on one of the Sire Just Say CDs). The 12" version of Witchcraft is here (it already appeared on one of the Retro Active compilations), as is one of the short b-side mixes. And finally, and most importantly, the beautiful Justin Strauss Pleasant Dream mix of Lullaby is finally commercially available on CD! Reason enough to rebuy the album even if you already have it.

I'm a little disappointed that the so called 7" mix of tubular bells isn't included, because it's actually longer than the album version that segues into pretty boys pretty girls. A longer, stand alone cut of Tubular Bells was included on the greatest hits CD, but it was still a bit shorter than the original 7" version.

Just note that this cardboard digipak comes with NO booklet. That's right. There is little retrospective of BOL's career on the inside flaps, but if you want a booklet with liner notes, lyrics, etc., you'll have to keep the one that came with the original pressing of the CD...and slide it into the booklet slot that is IN this reissue even though there's no booklet included!

What I like most about Book of Love is their ability to have fun while also maintaining a serious side and their skillful use of an infectious driving beat. Add to that their brilliance as musical artists who write all their own lyrics and help produce their own albums. Lullaby has several of the most poignant and enchanting love, or love lost, songs ever written and produced, and not the typical love songs that wanna make you throw up.

"Melt My Heart" and "With A Little Love" convey the excitement & turmoil caused by a new love. "Sea of Tranquility" is a haunting awareness of love lost and a yearning to hold onto it. "You Look Through Me" vividly portrays the pain felt after the realization of settling for someone who was never really there to begin with. "Witchcraft", hands down, is one of the most fun and charming love songs ever conjured up. But the most remarkable song is a compelling and heartbreaking tribute to a loved one that has passed on--"Lullaby".

This is one of the best album's i've ever heard. I love it! (I listen to EVERY kind of music, from classical to country to hard rock, and everything in between.) It's fun and a bit mysterious....

This one takes me way back..first heard it in 1990 I guess(thought it came out before then). Have played this CD so many times i cannot begin to count.."Lullaby" is still my favorite song here. Definitely a sentimental favorite for me. Can't go wrong with this CD, not a bad song on it. BUY IT!!!

I may be biased since I'm a die-hard BOL fan, but "Lullaby" turns out some really great music! The danceable "Tubular Bells/Pretty Boys and Pretty Girls" is uplifting and if you can get your hands on the OOP remixes, you'll enjoy their "Safe Sex" edits! "Witchcraft" is catchy and fun to sing along with, what with all those ingredients! Overall, the songs are fun and full of terrific melody, you'll be singing them in your head before you know it. A must-have for anyone who is remotely a fan of Book of Love!

No better ballad than "With a Little Love" - I love Ted's "voice". There is another version on the CD mix of "Alice Everyday". Pretty Boys and PG is one of the all time best dance/club songs ever crafted. Witchcraft and the mixes associated are so much FUN! POOF goes all my toils and troubles! Yours will go away too if you listen to this CD. Some of it is pure poptart music, but who doesn't like that too?

The best CD from Book of Love,even the re-mixes taken from this album are great.Ican't wait until the Greatest hits collection comes out.Susan Ottiviano says late spring,early summer.They really know how to put on a good show.too bad they broke up.

This New York City synthpop quartet's second album opens with a hyperkinetic reworking of Mike Oldfield's hit "Tubular Bells," with a thumping beat that made it a dance floor favorite, and a seamless segue into the AIDS-themed "Pretty Boys and Pretty Girls." Susan Ottaviano continued to provide most of the lead vocals, though Ted Ottaviano (no relation) steps to the microphone on the throbbing, slow-building grand production of "With a Little Love." Having spent the two previous years on the road touring in support of their debut, the band didn't push their sound or compositions forward on this second outing. Those who liked the debut will enjoy this second helping, augmented here with four alternate/extended mixes and the non-LP "Enchantra." The disc is stuffed into a three-panel cardboard slip-sleeve (no plastic bed for the disc) with liner note by Michael Paoletta and a front cover that's sloppily rotated 90-degrees to the left. [©2009 hyperbolium dot com]

Wow. Although I subscribe to several alt music magazines and get my weekly EW, I was not aware of these releases until quite recently when BOL sent out an email flyer about their NY gig to promote the reissues. Any re-release is a "good" release in my opinion; it brings awareness to new collecters and music enthusiasts. Not to mention the material is re-mastered; 'loud' isn't always for the better; plus most 80's material was recorded in analog and/or early digital and can only be mastered so much; but it passes the test, I don't have to turn the music level on my iPod higher when listening to these newer BOL releases.

I do agree with some reviewers, the packaging could have been better, with a booklet showcasing all of the LP artwork; singles; etcetera. I should also note, that the track listings in Amazon's listing is INCORRECT, there are 15 tracks on the disc; track 11 is "PB&PG" (Extended) and track 12 is "Tubular Bells/PB&PG" (Regan's House Medley). What a treat the 2 Witchcraft songs are, previously only found on vinyl... this right there is worth the price of the CD.

For the second BOL album, highest on the charts, and the first album I had heard at the under 21 clubs in 1988, minus "Boy" from their first album, long run-on-sentence later, should have received a second supplement disc for the reissue release as the first album did. I have waited for so long to finally have the "Witchcraft" (Extended) [Medusa!] that I danced to all those years ago on CD format... what is a progressive/alternative/industrial/goth kid to do? It's also a shame that the "With A Little Love" (1990 Version) did not find a place on the reissue album, although, the mix let me down by dropping the "Love, love, love" background vocals.

Had I been in charge of this reissue and disc compilation, here's what the extended track listing or additional disc listing would have been; maybe iTunes Playlists, although some are still only found on vinyl:

Disc 2:

01. Lullaby (7" Remix)
02. PB&PG (7" Mix) [not the same as the 2001 Best Of album]
03. Tubular Bells (7" Mix) [not the same as the 2001 Best Of album]
04. Witchcraft (7" Mix)
05. With A Little Love (1990 Version)
06. Lullaby (Insomnia Mix)
07. Witchcraft (Enchantra Chanting)
08. Lullaby (Dub Somnia)
09. Witchcraft (Dub)

Extremely excited about these reissues and ANY BOL release.