Customer Reviews

The Other Ones

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

 

 

If you love The Other Ones pay attention when you click the link to buy an MP3 version of their album. Amazon links you to a completely different band, NOT The Other Ones. I repeat: Amazon's link from this product does not allow you to buy MP3's by "The Other Ones".

I certainly wish they WOULD offer the MP3 version of this album because I would buy it in a heartbeat.

One Saturday morning in 1987 I was sitting in the living room of my apartment (in Summit, NJ) having coffee, fighting off a hangover, and watching a local channel's music video show on TV. All of a sudden I found myself captivated by the video that was playing. It was "We Are What We Are." I fell completely in love with the hypnotic sounds and incredibly emotional vocals from the lovely blonde female who was staring back at me from the television. I waited patiently until the credits came up and found that this incredible song was by THE OTHER ONES. Who?

I couldn't get the song out of my head. I still can't.

A few weeks later I was in Princeton, NJ at "The Princeton Record Exchange" wading through the stacks of $1.00 vinyl (when vinyl was "outdated" and not a "collectible" like it is now!). I almost couldn't believe what I saw. "The Other Ones" self-titled (and as it turned out ONLY) album was right there at my greedy little fingertips. I couldn't believe my good fortune! I bought it, took it home, and listened to it over and over and over - amazed that by the fact that it was just a fluke I even knew they existed... and now I was LOVING each and every song as I listened on and on.

"We Are What We Are" was, and is, my favorite track...

However, every track stands alone and is a gem in a crown of jewels: (The minor radio hit) "Holiday," "All Day, All Night," "Stay With Me (It's Not Forever)," "Losing It," "Moments," "He's A Man," All The Love," "It Makes Me Higher," and "Stranger" are easily some of the most interesting songs produced in the 80's. The songs are interesting, well-crafted, catchy as hell, immaculately produced, and most important - FUN TO LISTEN TO!

THIS IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE ALBUMS OF ALL TIME - IT'S A (NEARLY) LOST & ALMOST FORGOTTEN CLASSIC!

I paid $35 for it a decade ago (which remains the most money I ever shelled out for a single CD!) - and I know it's almost impossible to find. And the prices are steeper now than when I got mine. Double in some cases. However, it's one of the very select few CD's that I'd recommend even at the inflated price.

It's worth the price of admission.

By the way, last year while watching another video show (VH1's "All Request Hour") I finally saw the "We Are What We Are" video again (for only the SECOND time) It was the first time since that Saturday morning in Summit 18 years ago. Amazing!

I've enjoyed this collection by THE OTHER ONES many times since 1987. And it never gets old. IT'S STILL GREAT! - SIX STARS!

I remember back in 1987 hearing "Holiday" played on my local Top 40 station, and I instantly and totally fell in love with it! There's not much more I can say about the album that the previous reviewers haven't already said...except that the track, "All Day, All Night," gives my heart chills like no other song ever has!

[...]I distinctly remember the day I bought The Other Ones' album was the same day I saw "The Lost Boys" at the movie theater! The flick was playing at the cinema inside the mall, and I ran down to Musicland and picked up The Other Ones cassette before it started. Why this memory has stuck with me is a mystery...probably because I love this album so darn much!

[...]

The Other Ones snuck up on the U.S. in 1987. There was this one song that only a couple of the decent DJs in Atlanta would play: "Holiday". It was definitely a song of the era, but it was terribly new and different from the standard U.S. artists' fare: it was slick and had harmony and orchestration and complex arrangement - this wasn't just a one shot wonder!

I ran out and got the album as soon as it was available. I found that not only was "Holiday" an awesome song, but just about every song on the album was great! "We Are What We Are" is almost an anthem for our generation (although I must confess that it has always seemed like a song being sung by vampires [that could be because The Lost Boys came out about the same time, though])! "Stranger" is rich and haunting (as are lots of the songs, due to the rich and odd harmonies that the group manifests). "He's a Man" is a fun song that extoles a women's view of a man. "Strangers" speaks about how two people who know each other can be erotically charged as if strangers.

Apparently The Other Ones were a German group that cranked out this album and then no others. It makes no sense unless Europe had moved away from them before the U.S. got a chance to OR unless the group broke up. I'd love to get any other albums by this fine and well developed group. I've tried to find out what the reason was for their only making one album, but even in this age of the Internet, I've been unsuccessful. If you can find out, let me know!

When it came out "The Other Ones" album was only available as an LP or on cassette. I managed to baby that cassette for years, but then it just couldn't make it any more and I finally had to dispose of it. It took me years to track down a CD version of it - and then I had to get it through a secondary retailer out of Germany.

That it is now available through Amazon is great! Get this album; you'll love it!

I recall hearing 'We Are What We Are' a few times on the radio back in the day. I LOVED that song. But it was only been played on a few occasions. And I never got the name of the artist or title. So buying it was out of the question. The same went for 'Holiday', although I never knew it was by the same artist. I thought of the song on several occasions throughout the years, but could never buy it simply because I didn't know what to look for. But one day about a year ago, I decided to try googling fragments of the lyrics. And lo and behold, I found it! Of course, I didn't imagine that a CD could POSSIBLY be SO expensive. So I opted for used vinyl (MUCH cheaper), and made wave files.

It was SO exciting to hear these songs once again after all these years. But perhaps what was even more surprising is just how good the rest of the album is. With the exception of a couple of songs (All Day, All Night and Moments just don't do it for me), all the other songs are GREAT. They are, for the most part, orchestrated much like other pop/new wave songs of the time. But it is the VERY original songwriting and rather eclectic melodies that really set them apart from everything else of the time. Buy the album and listen for yourself. You'll quickly find out why people are willing to shell out $50+ for a CD. And if you don't want to spend that kind of money, find used vinyl.

One thing I should clear up here. Contrary to what others have said here, The Other Ones have made at least one more album. The album is called 'Learning To Walk', and was made a year or two after this album. It seems to be even more rare, and is hard to find outside of Germany. I have never heard it. So I can't vouch for it. But if it is half as good as this album, it is DEFINITELY worth looking into.

...you wish to re-live your youth then this may be for you.

The production value is high; in the music, and in the male and female vocals.

The lyrics are "light" but most songs have variation within them and have good chorus. Some songs may have charted in the 80's; Holiday, We Are What We Are (not an antheim), He's A Man and All The Love.

Perhaps 1 or 2 of the 10 should have been left off the album, ie. All Day, All Night but the remainder are a good pick up for anyone interested in 80's music or may have heard and liked them when they were young.

This CD is one of the few from the 80's that easily plays today - although not heard much in the US, this had to have been one of the more talented bands of that era...

This was one of my fave 80's bands(at least in 1986-87) - with classics 'Holiday' and 'We are what we are' - most of the songs on this, their debut album are tight, stylish, some fun & zany...others more serious - I must say they certainly have a unique style. They had a video for 'We are what we are' If I recall...and I suppose they may have done one for 'Holiday' which is a true classic. This german synth-pop band has style, individuality, form. I havent heard their second album available only as an import I believe. I dont know if they did anything after the first 2 albums.

paul