Customer Reviews

Manic Nirvana

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

It's hard to rate Robert Plant's albums generally. After a period of trial and error and experimentation - Plant generally settled into a more mainstream groove by this album, continuing his success from Now & Zen.

His partnership with Phil Johnstone showcases a snazzier cooler Plant sound, making Manic Nirvana among his best produced albums.

The standout tracks are Tie Die on the Highway; Anniversary; Ma Said You Cried in Your Sleep Last Night; Liars Dance and the majestic Watching You. All the classic Zep overtures are embedded in these tracks, and they are refreshing to hear.

The album's first few tracks are more along standard monster rock riffs and the late 80s kinda stuff. They're well done but not particularly expressive.

The album is worth getting for the last few tracks - otherwise wait for Plant's retrospective...In perspective - it's a real shame that Plant didn't get stick with the same band longer - I think more could have been achieved.

Manic Nirvana is the no surprises, no frills album of Robert Plant's solo career. His first four releases all were considerably diverse musically, but on Manic Nirvana, Plant decides to go back to the basics with an updated Zep approach. Certainly the least adventurous of the lot, Manic still manages a good deal of buoyancy and texture in places. The best selections are where he decides to stretch out a bit from the norm, such as the dramatic snare drum led ballad "Anniversary" and the quiet accoustic "Liar's Dance." Generally, the last half of the album (where both the aforesaid mentioned songs appear) impresses more than side one. The best from that half is the emotional "I Cried," with the majority of the rest being unremarkable radio styled hard rock. Plant seems to be trying to please everyone here, from the Zep fans of old to those who were entertained by the experimentation of Shaken N' Stirred. Problem is, technology got in the way of what could have been some his finest hard rockers since Zep. All said, not bad... just a bit tough to pinpoint.

What a gem. This may be Robert Plant's Rock swansong, but it's a straightforward, no-holds-barred, hard-hitting, solid bang. This is the kind of music one listens to, on the freeway, while driving well beyond the posted speed limit. Most of the songs encourage the listener to turn the music up to levels which, if sustained, would endanger the ears. The pounding, jagged-edged music takes the listener to extreme places indeed.

On closer examination, the ballad "I Cried" is smooth and introspective, worthy of heritage songs Ship Of Fools and Morning Dew. Unlike those two hallmarks, this track contains the dark, rough, rocky undercurrent which permeates the rest of the album. Even this slow, sad ballad is homogenic with the remaining tracks--not a departure from them. Rock, from a true veteran, binds it all together.

After decades of successful performance, the master's voice is craggy and imperfect. Great! If it were mellow and flawless, it just wouldn't ring true.

Part of the thrill of listening to Robert Plant, is hearing his voice venture into the upper registers: He has always sounded dangerous and uncontrolled within higher tones. This album, though, is remarkable for the song "Nirvana": When the artist wails the higher notes on this particular track, he sounds positively unhinged.

Worth every penny, this CD will not disappoint you. After reading the reviews, I almost didn't get it. What a tragic mistake that would have been! I dare you: Just TRY to hold your body still, while listening to these phenomenal tunes.

Here is Plant's last Rock and Roll stand... his voice starting to get a little weary from the amazing display he'd put on for over two decades by this point, his age starting to show enough to where it might be a tad embarrassing to do this sort of thing in the near future, he made extraordinary use of his young band and blasted one final hard rock statement through the gates, just because he could. The production has a bit of the late eighties / early nineties sheen to it, but the performances are very relevant. One other thing that becomes very apparent to the listener is how much fun Plant was having... and only the very uptight or too-hip-to-be-bothered could miss it. Too bad Plant didn't remember the fun when he assembled 66 to Timbuktu... instead of five tracks each from his last two discs, he would've done himself a service to include more than Tie Dye on the Highway from this hearty rock album, perhaps replacing a couple of the more recent tracks with Anniversary or She Said or the huge opening track, Hurting Kind (I've Got My Eyes on You). Holy smokes, mi amigo...

With a name like Robert Plant, you can afford to hire the best musicians for your solo albums. Plant recruited them for "Manic Nirvana," big hair and all (check out their pics in the CD sleeve). Doug Boyle plays a mean guitar with a flaunting style that would make Jimmy Page proud. As for Plant, his voice is strong and this album has a vibrant, modern feel that gives it a leg up, in some respects, when compared to certain Led Zeppelin albums (see Led Zeppelin 1 and Led Zeppelin II).

If you like larger-than-life Zeppelin riffs, they're featured on "Manic Nirvana." "Hurting Kind," "Big Love," "She Said," Nirvana" and "Tie Dye on the Highway" (perhaps the album's highlight, guitar-wise). "Big Love" even contains a Def Leppard-like "Hey!" parts in the chorus to give the song a bit of a 1980s flavor. "Hurting Kind," with its made-for-air-guitar riff and gosh-we-luv-hot-girls lyrics, has a definte Zeppelin and '80s vibe as well.

One gets the sense that Plant was having fun during this time period, writing arena-rock music, catchy choruses and, in some instances, frivolous lyrics. The more interesting tunes on this CD might be the toned-down ones such as "I Cried," "Your Ma Said You Cried...," "Anniversary" and especially "Liars Dance," a beautiful song with some angular acoustic guitar and affecting lyrics. The following tune, "Watching You," though much different, is as equally impressive. Tribal drums, tuned-down guitars, a prominent synth sound and desperately sung lyrics by Plant make "Watching You" the perfect song to close out the CD.

"Manic Nirvana" isn't the most important album that Robert Plant has been involved with in his career, but it does have some very good moments. Interestingly, this CD sits at the outer fringes of the '80s metal music frenzy that preceded it, and there's a tinge of that era within it. However, Plant was astute enough to look in both a forward and backward musical direction, and was therefore able to offer a fresh coat of paint to some rough-edged '70's riffage, mixed with a newer-sounding, more layered production that was actually frowned upon by 1991 due to another musical nirvana.

Ah, this one, is pure fire, it rocks and rocks and still rocks! Only Hurting Kind is a dated track, but all the others are masterpieces, even if the lot-of-hair-hard-rock-attitude from the 80's is still present. A must have.

This is a very solid effort from Robert Plant. Many of the songs here totally rock out while at the same time maintaining their own individuality. No two songs sound the same - a great quality to be sure.

My least favorite song is the opener "Hurting Kind (I've Got My Eyes On You)." It's pretty much a straight-up rocker, which is fine, but not so interesting. If you love "Tall Cool One" or, say, "Radar Love" then you'll love this one. The next two are more interesting. "Big Love" has a swinging swagger and "S S S & Q" rocks hard with attitude and pleading sexuality. You might not want to play either in front of your girlfriend if she's a die-hard feminist, know what I mean?

From there we hear a beautiful, mostly acoustic number "I Cried" which also rocks out at one point. "She Said," "Nirvana" and "Tie Dye on the Highway" are all excellent, sophisticated rockers. "Your Ma Said You Cried in Your Sleep Last Night" sounds like it might be a slight nod to Elvis, another with plenty of attitude and swagger. "Anniversary" is a slower, synth-propelled song that soon builds with a drum march and guitar solo - very compelling. The acoustic "Liars Dance" is one of the best on the album and recalls Led Zeppelin (certainly more than anything else on this album at least). The last song, "Watching You" is quite intense with heavy synth, guitars, a forboding, steady drum pattern and Middle Eastern influences.

Plant's singing is awesome throughout and his trademark sounds (righteous guitars, synths and female background vocals) are in full effect. Excellent production, with not one misplaced note. May be one of his best.

Robert Plant's fifth full-length album, 1990's Manic Nirvana, is made up of 11 tracks. The songwriting is gratifying, the musicianship is skillful, and the sound quality is pleasing. The material is in a pop rock musical direction. Plant does well with the vocals. The guitar work is more prevalent than the keyboard playing. Chris Blackwell does a tight, conspicuous job with the drumming. Female background vocals are included. Even though I find all of the songs to be worthy, the two that I consider to be favorites are "Tie Dye on the Highway" and "I Cried." The spirited "Tie Dye on the Highway" provides nice harmony vocals; there is also some harmonica playing. "I Cried" starts off with soft guitar playing that melds into serene harmony vocals. Other examples of tunes that I like are "Anniversary" and "Liars Dance." "Anniversary," a somber, stately-sounding ballad, supplies attractive and ambient keyboard work from Phil Johnstone, melancholy singing from Plant, and taut, marching-style drumming from Blackwell. "Liars Dance" is composed of only vocals from Plant and acoustic guitar work. The CD insert does not contain the lyrics but does display a separate black-and-white photo of Plant and the rest of his group. The CD is almost 50 minutes. Manic Nirvana is a good disc.

Plant welcomed the 1990's in with a solid effort, "MANIC NIRVANA". HURTING KIND is full of power cord action, but, Robert's vocal cords cannot meet the song's demands. A solid song, it's just that Robert sounds 62 instead of 42. BIG LOVE is a jokey throw away. Plant's vocals still are strained. SSS & Q starts off with a blistering Doug Boyle solo and then does not really go anywhere from there. Plant sounds slightly better and there is a cool, brief James Brown sample. Also, note the Prince influence in the latter part of the song. I CRIED is a nice production. It is built on angelic Plantisms over Boyle's strumming and features Robert's best vocal effort on the LP. A nice tune. SHE SAID starts with a synthesized Wayne and Garth flashback sound and then an awful Plant vocal croak. Fortunately, he gives an ambitious vocal performance from that point, over driving guitar (at times U2ish) and drum work. Boyle is very creative here. There is a very nice break 2/3rd's of the way through with Phil Johnstone's synthesizer getting some room to breathe. One of Plant's best (and underrated) rock songs. NIRVANA picks up where SHE SAID left off. Another of Plant's best solo rock songs. Very 90's and quite progressive, you are never sure where it is going on the 1st listen. Boyle shines again, with a nod to The Edge. TIE DIE ON THE HIGHWAY was the 1st or 2nd single as I recall. Complete with Woodstock samples to set the mood. More power cord rock with some nice breaks. This song would have fit nicely on Plant's 1st solo effort. A solid song. YOUR MA SAID YOU CRIED LAST NIGHT is Robert doing "Froggy went a Courting". Junk. ANNIVERSARY is "Chariot's of Fire" with lyrics and a guitar solo. OK fodder I suppose. LIAR'S DANCE is Robert accompanied with only an amped acoustic guitar and is very quirky and pleasing. His vocals are as pure and unfiltered as they get on this LP. Here is Led Zeppelin III. WATCHING YOU closes out the album with a drum driven, mood piece full of "Over the Mountain, Over the Sea" type cliches. Plant throws in his Indian influences (How could he resist?) to neat effect. Heavy on production and vocal manipulations, this LP is Plant's last opportunity to really rock. It's a good listen.

Robert Plant - Manic Nirvana (1990)

This is a very solid effort from Robert Plant. Many of the songs here totally rock out while at the same time maintaining their own individuality. No two songs sound the same - a great quality to be sure.

My least favorite track is the opener "Hurting Kind (I've Got My Eyes On You)." It's pretty much a straight-up rocker, which is fine, but not so interesting. If you love "Tall Cool One" or, say, "Radar Love" then you'll love this one. The next two are more interesting. "Big Love" has a swinging swagger and "S S S & Q" rocks hard with attitude and pleading sexuality. You might not want to play either in front of your girlfriend if she's a die-hard feminist, know what I mean?

From there we hear the beautiful, mostly acoustic "I Cried" which also bursts into full-on rocking out at one point. "She Said," "Nirvana" and "Tie Dye on the Highway" are all excellent, sophisticated rockers. "Your Ma Said You Cried in Your Sleep Last Night" sounds like it might be a slight nod to Elvis, another singer with plenty of attitude and swagger. "Anniversary" is a slower, synth-propelled song that soon builds with a drum march and guitar solo - it's very compelling. The acoustic "Liars Dance" is one of the best on the album and recalls Led Zeppelin more than anything else on MANIC NIRVANA. The last song, "Watching You," is quite intense with heavy synth, guitars, Middle Eastern influences and a forboding, steady drum pattern.

Plant's singing is awesome throughout and his trademark solo sounds (righteous guitars, synths and female background vocals) are in full effect. Excellent production, with not one misplaced note. May in fact be one of his best despite being one of his least popular releases.