Customer Reviews

Meet Danny Wilson

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

When this debut album was released back in 1987, they were often compared to Steely Dan from many aspects, mostly because of Gary Clark's vocal. But, of many new groups that made their debut that year, Danny Wilson stood out artistically, and their music's quality is not even comparison to today's disposal music scene. Took their name and album title from a Frank Sinatra's movie, and the entire album flows smoothly just like a good movie. Mary's Prayer, perhaps the most known single by Danny Wilson, is a masterpiece, and pleasant to listen even after 13 years after the song is released. Broken China is poured with emotions. Spencer-Tracy is an incredible instrumental tune that sounds as if it's telling a tale without a word. Aberdeen and A Girl I Used To Know is a rare uptempo songs. Overall, the group sticks to simple, acoustic sound, yet create most profound sound with a great melodies backed up by Gary's vocals. Davy, Ruby's Golden Wedding and I Won't Be Here When You Get Home are such examples. Five Friendly Aliens is a fun song. Only after 3 albums, the group split, but Danny Wilson's sound is as fresh as always, and it's definately one of a kind, and my personal all time favorite album as other Danny Wilson's albums.

Seductive, pure pleasure -- excellent pop music! I loved my cassette version of this album back in the 80s and just located it here on CD -- thank God. Mary's Prayer remains one of the most beautiful and wistful pop songs of the entire 80s decade, but there are so many more treasures on this album -- my favorites are Davy and the wonderfully percussive Aberdeen. Expertly crafted and intelligent to boot -- one of the most iconoclastic bands of the 80s, and one of the most missed.

For 15 years since the release, this album have remained my most favorite pop album. This Scottish band may be mostly known for the smash hit "Mary's Prayer", but every song on this album is a classic. Please listen to the sample sound clips. I'm sure you know why. Sound is smooth like silk, music is so gentle, warm and melodic, arrangements are so stylish and sophisticated. My personal favorite is bosa nova-esque "Nothing Ever Goes To Plan". Also such songs as "Davy", "Lorraine Parade", "Steamtrains to The Milky Way", "You Remain An Angel" and "I Wont't Be Here When You Get Home" are truly beautiful, dreamy and sophisiticated. No band compares to Danny Wilson in the field of stylish pop, and this album is the best. They should have got more attention. They also released one more studio album, and lead singer Gary Clark went on to solo to release one album. I like these albums, too, but not as good as Meet Danny Wilson. If you are a fan of sophisticated pop music, you should never miss this one.

When the original "Meet Danny Wilson" album was released back in the late 80's, I remember searching every record store in Philadelphia for a CD copy. I believe that I may have bought one of the few CD copies in the city, though vinyl was still in abundance. If I had been forced to keep my vinyl copy, it would have worn out by now. "Mary's Prayer" is on my top ten list of the greatest songs ever written. The first three words, "Everything is wonderful. . ." are sung with heart-shattering emotion. Buy this album just for this song. Or, alternatively, invest in the "Something About Mary" soundtrack, which also recently gave the song a new lease on life.

Of all my hundreds of cd's, this would be the
one I take to a desert island. Every song is
good, singable, fun. I can't say I know what
they all mean, but I can sing every word with
them. Danny Wilson please come back.

In the days of vinyl, this record was always on my turntable! I have since bought the CD and keep it in my car to play at a moment's notice. This pop/jazz/rock album is hard to categorize except for the constant reflections of Steely Dan in the voice
and music. "Mary's Prayer" and "A Girl I used to Know" are the standout tracks, but "Aberdeen" is my personal favorite. The music is smooth, hook-laden and the lyrics are insightful. Enjoy!

Fifteen years from the release of this debut album, it is still one of my favorite albums of all-time. Most people are most familiar with "Mary's Prayer", which is clearly a beautiful single. However, there are so many well-crafted songs on this album that I tend to forget that there was just this ONE hit. "Steamtrains to the Milky Way" and "Girl I Used To Know" are definite highlights. The sad, but strong-willed "I Won't Be Here When You Get Home" closes this album quite beautifully. I have yet to come across a better debut album from ANY artist.

Danny Wilson is quite an oddity in the world of pop music. Almost no one knows who they are today, and not many people knew who they were in 1987, when this album was released. There were plenty of here-today-gone-tomorrow pop bands at the time: Anyone remember T'Pau? Bourgeous Tagg? Johnny Hates Jazz? Well, you're not alone if you have no idea what I'm talking about. For the most part these synth-heavy, lyrically pretentious groups are best forgotten.

But not so with the trio called Danny Wilson.

As has been stated by others, the music of Danny Wilson is basically intelligent, well-played, adult pop music. The Steely Dan comparisons are inevitable, and fairly accurate. Both feature complex, jazz-infused instrumentation, thoughtful and sometime puzzling lyrics, and passionate vocal performances.

I won't take time here to discuss each track separately, because they are all basically well-made and hold up to repeat listening. If you're not familiar with the band, the only track you might know is the single "Mary's Prayer," as pure and perfect a pop confection as you're likely to ever hear. But it's also just the jumping-off point for an album's worth of expertly crafted songs.

Highly recommended.

Some of the best music I've ever heard. Mary's Prayer was a huge hit in the U.S., but there are 4-5 other songs on this CD that are just as good. Buy it!

This is one of the best, and most suprising albums from the 80's and 90's. Most of the songs on the cd could've been a hit anywhere if they would've been pushed properly. Mary's Prayer is one of those rare songs that actually make me stop what I'm doing and really listen, not just to the vocals, but the backround itself. The members of the band are truely musicians in their own right.