Customer Reviews

My Own Prison

5 star:		(393)
4 star:		(72)
3 star:		(24)
2 star:		(14)
1 star:		(22)

 

 

When toad the wet sprocket broke up, I was looking for bands that were as good. With the possible exception of Collective Soul, none were. Toad had a lyrical depth and a realness and an emotional intensity that no one had.

Until I heard Creed.

This album is amazing. Creed is a tier above the rest of the music industry. I get so sick of "artists" worshipping at the altar of money and popularity. Creed has a strong thread of reality and wholeness that I haven't heard in a long time. They tell stories, they write philosophy, they address issues, they offer hope. "My Own Prison" is a powerful piece of art.

If you aren't a fan of grunge/hard rock music, their edginess may turn you off. Personally, I think they have it just right. Scott Stapp's voice conveys anger, hurt, or hope very well and the band is very professional in its playing.

Obviously they can be compared in sound to Pearl Jam, and other groups. But certainly not in quality. They have actual messages. They are a group that can write, can sing, can play, and can really inspire.

Creed is fueled by the band members' own passions and beliefs, and that shows through in this great CD. They aren't "wannabes"; it's the rest of the music industry that is!

Creed-a quartet out of Florida who like every other band out there dreamed of becoming stars. With hard work and determination, Creed began their rise with this debut My Own Prison. Scott Stapp may sound a bit like Eddie Vedder(Pearl Jam) but his deep voice calls for unity in "One" discusses a friend's suicide "What's This Life For" and relates an episode of him drinking too much 'shroom juice with the line "should've been dead on a Sunday morning" in "my Own Prison." Mark Tremonti-a truly gifted guitarist successfully backs up Stapp with his rhythmic riffs and his back-up sultry voice. Brian Marshall's pulsating bass provides rhythm throughout and Scott Phillip's pounding of the skins provides a memorable beat for all. For everyone who has never heard Creed, come out from hiding and check this remarkable CD out. You will truly be blown away by the songwriting of Stapp and Tremonti as well as the deeper meaning behind each and every song.

Some hard music fans despaired in the late 1990's worried that their style of music would be overrun by pseudo-skacore pretenders and teeny-bop boy-wonder bands that made sugar-pop for pre-teens (I was going to try and get in a few more hyphenated words there, but ....). Then along came Creed. They covered no new ground musically, but they did revisit the well traveled roads of hard music and made a name for themselves in the process. Needless to say, they were welcomed with open arms, ears, and wallets.

You know this album is going to rock when Mark Tremonti's guitar starts to kick-in right as Scott Stapp sings "Lies are what they tell me" in "Torn". "Ode" takes the rock one step higher and harder before things tone down some for "My Own Prison". We kind of tolerate "Pity For a Dime", "In America", and "Illusion" before "Unforgiven" explodes confidently from the first note. "Sister" is a fun and sentimental rocker. "What's This Life For" asks an emotional question that really gets no answer (beware of one naughty word sung three times). Finally, "One" visits social frustrations as it punctuates an energetic departure.

Although we can celebrate the sound of edgy hard rock all day long, the amazing thing about "My Own Prison" is the lyrics themselves. Creed incorporates a great deal of religious imagery, angst, frustration, and anger in to the song writing, but isn't that how so many of us feel? ... and possibly that is why the foursome became so popular. We heard songs about us.

All-in-all, "My Own Prison" plays very well in any CD player. Parents may object to hearing profanity (God's name in vain coupled with "damn") on track number 9, but Creed definitely puts pop music on its gluteus maximus with this release. It is a strong debut.

This is by far the best that Creed has offered. Since breaking up late last year, I can now better fully appreciate this album which gives an insight to the beginnings of this doomed band. The song lyrics are beautifully constructed and created by Stapp himself. In no way is Creed 'a Christian rock band', they don't preach conversion in their songs, what they do sing about is things we can all relate to in our lives.
'My Own Prison' is a masterpiece with two helluva great songs in 'Illusion' and 'Unforgiven'. I have the Australian CD release version where a bonus track 'Bound and Tied' was included. This album is 'tour de force' of Creed's best.

WOW. What can I say. As someone (I'm 37) who grew up on Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath, Dokken, etc. and heard their message, CREED gives us GREAT MUSIC with a message that's POSITIVE. I honestly believe life sucks, but at least I don't feel like blowing my brains out (I had a friend that did that). GOD is PARAMOUNT with CREED and they do give a message of FAITH. I like their dark songs, too, for that's great at times...CREED still taps into WHITE ANGST. Keep it up.

Despite some negative reviews, Creed's 'My Own Prison', is an excellant CD. Sure sounds are similar to Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Days of the New etc., but ultimately all music resembles a predecessor. It's not ripping off it's called inspiration. Creed's first album has many stirring lyrics that cut through the materialism in life and get to a point that everyone, whether Christian or not, can relate to. in addition they have an excellent sense of musical style that combines spectacular accoustic guitar with good the ol' plugged in sound. Creed deserves a serious listen by everyone.

Of note are 'In America', 'What's This Life For?', and 'Pity for a Dime'.

ok, i bought the human clay cd first and i liked it a lot. then i bought this cd and i was blown away. musically, it's not as developed as human clay (still good tho), but lyrically, it's great. it's darker than human clay, so the lyrics are darker and more meaningful, if you know what i mean. all the songs on this cd are Creed's classic songs. all of them are good. all of them. i'll tell you a bit about each of the songs:

1. Torn- the cd starts off with this great track. good lyrics and instrument parts. great intro song. song rating: 5

2. Ode- this is one of Creed's pretty heavy, fast songs. good guitar playing and lyrics. i'm still trying to figure out what their saying in the backround in the middle of the song. Song rating: 5

3. My Own Prison- this IS THE best Creed song EVER. it's also the song that started them off. everything is perfect, guitar, bass, drums, lyrics. awesome. Scott Stapp should be a poet, cause the words of this song are deep. he wrote it while he was living on his own in an empty appartment after being kicked out of college. everything is perfect. song rating: i'd give it higher if i could but: 5

4. Pity for a Dime- this a song was voted Mark Tremonti's (guitarist) best song that he plays. it really is. he really shines throughout the whole song. great solo. everything else is also good. it's nice and slow and calming. good song. song rating: 5

5. In America- pretty good song. talks about America's different sides and stuff. to me, it doesn't stand out as much as the other songs, but it's good, that's just me. song rating: 4 1/2

6. Illusion- here it picks up. starts off with a bass solo, then the guitar comes in and sounds raunchy and stuff (kinda like the music for like strippers or something, i wouldn't know tho, i'm not that old) good song all around. i'm trying to learn how to play it cause it's pretty easy. song rating: 5

7. Unforgiven- here it really picks up. i think this is one of Creed's fastest songs. it's good. gets you pumped up. Mark Tremonti (who i forgot to mention was voted best rock guitarist by Guitar World) says that this is probably his favorite song to play live. rightfully so. song rating: 5

8. Sister- this is probably the song that Creed plays the least. i've never heard of it being played live. it's a good song tho. catchy, to me atleast. i could see how people could say it's like corny and all that but only you could be the judge. song rating: 4 1/2

9. What's This Life For- awsome, great song. deep meaning. instant Creed classic. everything is great. the acoustic version is cool. but you'd have to get the single i think. song rating: 5

10. One- another instant classic. you should hear this live. the crowd really gets into this song, as with all other songs. great meaning. good all around. song rating: 5

Bottom line: buy this album or you will find a bomb in your pants tommorow and blue monkeys will take their red hover crafts and throw rotten mangos at you.

Creed seems to have a way with words that reach inside of all of us. My own prison is a perfect title to this album because I'm sure we have all felt that way on some level. If you take the time to listen to the lyrics of all of the songs in this album, theyall have some type of meaning that we all can relate to. The music is wonderful and full of lifes meaning and you can tell that this band has experienced alot in there lifes, which comes out in this album. I say buy it and enjoy , you want be disappointed. Music is one of lifes great gifts.

My Own Prison, Creed's 1997 release, is definitely a gem and, in my own opinion, their best. This album captures the true emotion, art and greatness of the band.

Singer Scott Stapp pours his heart and soul into the personal lyrics he has written (ranging from suicide to self-pity) and even more than that into his singing. The other standout in this band and especially on this album is the guitar work of Mark Tremonti. His guitar style is something different, compared to the other guitarists around today. The hard riffs are great but the softer parts are the ones that show that he is a truly wonderful guitarist. Bringing up the rear on rhythm are bassist Brian Marshall (who left the band in 2000-2001) and drummer Scott Phillips. The bass is not very evident on this album but Phillips provide some strong and consistent drumming on the ten tracks.

Each song is great, all musically and artistically done to the limit. The four singles from the album (Torn, My Own Prison, What's This Life For, And One) are all good but Ode, Pity For A Dime, In America and Illusion appeal more to me.

Creed is one of the best rock bands around right now and this album sets that statement in stone. This is for hard rock fans and even the all around music listener. Pick it up sometime. You'd be doing yourself a favor.

I got this album about a year ago exactly. I only heard "My Own Prison" a few times on MTV and Muchmusic, but I really loved it. I got the album and I wasn't sure what the other nine songs would be like. After I listened to that album, every track was great sounding to me. It is rare for me to like every song on the album first off, because some may need time to grow on me. It is great to see them get all this airplay, because guys who work this hard should get that reward. They may sound like a combination of Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Alice In Chains, and Seven Marty Three. There is nothing wrong with that, since those are great bands. The most distinctive thing about this band is that the lyrics are so powerful. They can make a person go out to do something that will do them a lot of good. When I looked at the lyrics I was at awe at how much they saw in this world that may be corrupt and Creed really can be role models for young people. Parents think rock is bad, but Creed is one of the most positive groups of people to ever come out this decade. A great thing is they help out some people with problems, but they do that with a sound that can really pump you up. Tallahassee should be blessed to have such an amazing talent as one of the best bands named Creed.