Customer Reviews

Spot the Difference

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

 

 

Indeed, this WAS done in order for Difford and Tilbrook to profit from their great songs. Having signed away way too much of their rights to their original recordings, they've sadly made nothing from greatest hits packages like "Singles--45s and Under" that so many people have bought. That travesty really leaves them little choice, so I wish them well with this effort. As a drummer, though, I still feel Gilson's absence in everything that they've put out since '91. Simon Hanson tries harder than ever here to copy the big man's licks, but I don't know if anyone can do that to my liking. Maybe I'll listen to it on a bigger stereo with a nice subwoofer to see if that helps, but for me Gilson's snappy and smart style was a big part of what made them great and if he's not here for this task then it will always be impossible to pull off completely. I saw Squeeze a few weeks ago and the practice that they went through for this CD definitely showed...they were really tight, and really good, with Simon and everyone playing well and Glenn's voice virtually the same as 30 years ago. Glenn's a tad raspier in places on this CD perhaps, but if you've never heard the original recordings you surely wouldn't know. Buy it for a youngster and show them how the great ones did/do it!

Yes, new material will be great when it comes, but with their musical creativity never in question, Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook had two aims with this brilliant idea. Firstly, to "own" a piece of the many musical gems they have created. They admit to this. Secondly, to prove that they still have all of the technical talent and physical ability to sing, play, and produce a record exactly as they did in their youth on the major record labels. I've always wanted to see if a musical artist could pull something like this off. These aren't just alternate takes from the same day, studio, and producer. These are self-produced versions decades removed from the originals, but so faithful to the originals it scares me. I'm sure it was a painstaking process.
Imagine the Beatles if they were all still with us, going into a studio and attempting to record "A Hard Day's Night" again in 1994 and making it sound like the 1964 original. The result would be quite interesting. How about Rembrandt duplicating one of his early masterpiece paintings thirty years later? Both paintings would still be almost priceless today.
Squeeze fans will think Gilson Lavis is providing the beat on "Another Nail in My Heart", and Jools Holland is doing the piano solo on "Pulling Mussels From the Shell". Difford & Tilbrook surprisingly sound 21 years old on "Cool for Cats" and "Up the Junction" respectively.
Now let's have fun spotting some of those tiny differences. The biggest is that Tilbrook does the lead vocal on "Loving You Tonight", achieving something he could never do on "Tempted": He sings the song every bit as good as (and maybe better than) Paul Carrack. Carrack guests on "Tempted" and sings it straight, but some slight phrasing differences are revealed. In the chorus of "Another Nail...", D & T shorten the vocal note on the words "found" and "tough". "Black Coffee in Bed" has less echo on the guitar solo, and the preaching vocals during the fade out are more soulful and clear. Tilbrook does nearly perfect copies of all the guitar solos, with split seconds of differences here and there making it interesting. John Bentley on bass is at his early 1980s best. I believe I notice a difference in the synth pattern on "Goodbye Girl". Recorded DIY style with updated technology and equipment, I find I prefer the sound profile of many of these cuts slightly over the originals I have loved. This project has pressed the reset button on this band, bringing back the feeling of energetic New Wave freshness, and preparing the current lineup for the time when new material is to be recorded, and supporting tour commenced.

The new recordings prove again that Squeeze songs stand the test of time. The songs sound great and Tilbrook and Difford still sound almost exactly like they did in 1980. One of the best things about this release is having some of their greatest hits recorded with the same players and then mixed/mastered at levels similar to other stuff on my ipod. My only gripe is that some of my favorites ("If I Didn't Love You") were not included. I have always liked Glenn Tilbrook's vocals on "Tempted" as much as Carrack's and wouldn't have minded a good studio recording with his lead but I like the nice change on "Loving You Tonight" just as well. Overall I would highly recommend this album and I can't wait for the next one with all new originals.

This new disc has excellent sound quality which you don't get from the older recordings and yeah, I can spot a lot of differences which sets it apart from the originals. Both the new and the old recordings are great but again, the sound quality from this new release is superior to my old CD's of the same music. I also love Simon's powerful drumming on this recording. They still got it after all these years. New material or not, this band has stood up against the test of time, I think it is worth my small investment to help them keep going and re-gain ownership over their songs. They deserve it!

The re-recording of some of their best songs, is interesting to hear, and some of the songs sound even better. With the technology of the recording process, the new additional band members, and the new arrangements. You can really hear the drums and keyboards, this time around.

Wow. All the classics recorded. Who on earth had the b@ll$ to perform such a feat? And to do it so closely to the originals, and yet show some age - and grace? Squeeze have performed a FEAT - doing so many originals, over such a long period time, and at the same time improving /ever /so /slightly upon the originals that you will replay both to try and spot the differences (and I can cheat and tell you, they have improved with age.) Buy this, enjoy - it's good money spent and if you are remotely a Squeeze fan you will fall in love, and if you are like me, hardcore and in love with their music, you will cry over how wonderful they have aged. As a side note, I met them when the did a concert in Pittsburgh and they shared with me that financially they were slightly screwed, and that they all did it for the love and that they all had side jobs to keep it going. If this is their attempt to cash in just a little, then do it for that cause alone. These are the best of artists and hearing these songs color a world much better than without them; contibrute - make a difference. And for the love of music - let's hope they continue on and make more wonderful songs.

Squeeze has occupied an off-and-on place in my affections for over 30 years. My parents came back to LA from a trip to England with "Cool for Cats" in the late Seventies and, though it was a little too syntho-pop for me, I couldn't stop playing "Up the Junction," which seemed like a great song to me then (and now). I was working at a record store when "Argybargy" came out, and I played the first side over and over in the store until everyone had to either admit it was a great record or that they wanted to strangle me. By "East Side Story," Squeeze were no longer my little secret.

I kind of lost track of them after that version of the band broke up, but bought "Babylon and On" on a hunch when it first came out some years later and loved it. That was the last new music I heard from Squeeze for awhile (over 20 years!) until I was trolling around Youtube a couple of weeks ago and found "Some Fantastic Place" which struck me, somewhat unbelievably, as the best song of theirs I'd ever heard. Clearly, I had some catching up to do.

I immediately looked for a greatest hits package that spanned their whole career and came across the curious case of "Spot the Difference." Having inadvertently bought disappointing re-recorded best hits packages in the past, I was skeptical. But the first clip I listened to was the great guitar solo from "Another Nail in My Heart," and I was stunned. It was practically perfect in every way - Glenn Tilbrook is the Mary Poppins of Rock and Roll! Needless to say I immediately ordered the CD.

Having listened to the record several times now, it is really amazing how good it is. Sure, there are some differences, but really, I have absolutely no regrets that I bought these versions of the songs rather than the originals. I LOVE the idea that Difford amd Tilbrook can sell these versions of the songs to commercials now instead of some big studio conglomerate; nicely done guys!

I think every song is a worthwhile version of the original to the point of not missing the originals at all EXCEPT for "Some Fantastic Place." The reworked version is still great, though the guitar solo has lost some of its urgency; the original is preferable in some sublime way.

Allow me to digress here for this beautiful song. Difford and Tilbrook are often compared to Lennon and McCartney, but their work reminds me of the Kinks and Ray Davies at his best; "Some Fantastic Place" is Squeeze's "Days." I can imagine Glenn's feelings when Chris Difford first handed him these lyrics for their fallen friend. I can imagine Chris's thrill the first time Glenn played him the music he wrote. I can easily understand how this is, for both of them, their favorite song that they've ever composed; they have much to be proud of. The lyrics are simple, moving, and beautiful. The melody moves seamlessly from "My Sweet Lord" to "I Can See Clearly Now" to a sublime concoction of Beach Boys and Turtles instrumentation and harmonies. Glenn's vocal performance is stunning and his guitar solo is primal. The song moves from acoustic to electric to gospel to magic. If you have not heard this song, you must do something about that.

Back to the business at hand. So should you buy "Spot the Difference?" Yes. Will I end up buying the original version of "Some Fantastic Place," too? Already have. Any regrets? Only that I lost track of Squeeze for so long.

Obviously released to cash in on the extensive American tour, and the Winter trek around the UK, Spot The Difference is possibly the most bizarre record Squeeze have ever released. Basically a collection of their better known singles re-recorded during 2010 featuring the current band line-up and with a guest vocal from Paul Carrack on Tempted.
Quite why messers Difford & Tilbrook wanted to mess with the sublime originals is a mystery, one suspects licensing deals and copywrite might have something to do with it, but whatever the reasons this is for die hard fans only.
In all fairness trying to re-create the recording techniques, the sounds of wobbly antique synths, 70's drum machines and sequencers must have been a nightmare. No Gilson, no Holland and, for the later tracks no 'bendy' bass from Keith Wilkenson. It's also worth noting that both Tilbrook's and Difford's voices have changed and matured over the years.
Some of the tracks work really well - Pulling Muscles From A Shell, Goodbye Girl and Black Coffee In Bed (replete with much tighter backing vocals). Others such as the Tilbrook sung 'Loving You Tonight' pales against the Paul Carrack original and Some Fantastic Place loses much of the emotion and beauty of the sublime original.
The problem is that everything is a little TOO perfect - the energy, the odd mistake, the excitement of knowing just how good they really were is missing.
BIG SQUEEZE is still the best way to enjoy the Deptford boys back catlogue - plus you get all the great B-Sides.
Next time round lets have a new collection of Difford & Tilbrook originals. Thats what we all really want.

The Live CD is just superb and reflects the many strengths of this latest talented line-up.
Spotting the difference enables you to consider just how great these tracks are - do you prefer the originals, what makes them better or worse than these offerings? Whatever you decide, the brilliance shines through.
If you like Squeeze, you'll love these.
Cgris and Glenn = national treasures bestowing good karma to us all.
Thank you both.

I didn't like it much.I really liked Squeeze growing up, I had cosi fan tutti frutti, but I guess my tastes have changed.