Customer Reviews

Things We Left Behind

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

 

 

I realize that best album of 2009 is a big claim. One person can only listen to a fraction of the pop, rock and country releases in a given year. But with Amazon, a good public library, and records stores that allow you to listen to CDs, a person can become familiar with hundreds of albums/CDs. After a year of extensive listening and buying, Blue Rodeo's The Things We Left Behind tops my list.

The Things We Left Behind is an amazing album! I picked up the vinyl package (includes 2 CDs as well) at a Blue Rodeo concert in October, 2009. The album has not left my rotation since. Blue Rodeo has been huge in Canada for 25 years and has a large catalog of great albums. Five Days in July (1993) is a masterpiece, but I think this lastest double album is their best work to date. The depth, breadth and overall quality of all 16 songs is amazing! The arrangements are ambitious for some songs, incorporating strings, woodwinds and additional background vocal harmonies, and whether complex or simple, the arrangements and production is just right for every song. I really can't say enough about this album and hope that more people will give it a listen. If they do, Blue Rodeo will finally get the larger US audience that they very much deserve.

Note on the vinyl version: for those that like vinyl and have a turntable, I would highly recommend the vinyl version for it's sound quality and packaging. You also get the CDs that you can use for your car and iPod. Blue Rodeo has said the album was written and produced with four sides of vinyl in mind. Each side has it's own coherency and taking it one side at a time allows one to better familiarize and appreciate the overall album.

blue rodeo improves with every passing year, every new release. their music consistsently embodies heart, soul, passion and compassion. i'm not trying to gush here, but blue rodeo's music makes a person feel, reflect and embrace moments in life. the music is by turns joyous, melancholy and somber. it is always real, and it always resonates. highly recommended.

Canadian folk rock band Blue Rodeo have been around for a long time, but unlike many bands who produce a few great albums early on and then coast on mediocrity, this double CD finds them still reaching for musical nirvana, and achieving it. If you like early acoustic Pink Floyd or the Eagles when they were still hungry, here's your perfect soundtrack. It's the only thing I've heard all summer that keeps finding its way back to my car CD player.

There are lilting 10-minute suites, and perfect 3-minute pop chestnuts. And just try to escape the haunting mantra of "Don't Let the Darkness in Your Head" from, well, haunting your head. It's a chant we all need embrace to escape the bleak moods (or news) we either get stuck in, or find the strength to overcome. This beautiful double album summons that strength.

As Advertised! Buy with Extreme Confidence! Another Great CD from a Great Band!

This is a great (double) CD. Blue Rodeo is a band going back far in the last century. They write great stuff and they also can sing and play very well. To me this latest effort of them is also their best!

If you like the Eagles you will like this too, only I myself think this set is better than the last 2 compact discs that the Eagles brought out.

Am already looking forward to their next outing.

The test of time can result in deep experience. These Canadian muscians who are unherd of to the American ear, have brought in rich textures and inner wevings of psychadelia reminiscent of the Beatles. The sweet lyrics are poignant and mindful allowing the listener to groove or just relax.

In my opinion, all Blue Rodeo CDs contain some very good songs and some rather weak ones. "Things We Left Behind" is no exception, but this CD is pretty good, overall. I have a Best of Blue Rodeo playlist on my iPhone, and 7 of the 19 songs on that list are from "Things We Left Behind," more than from any other CD. My favorites are "Arizona Dust," "Candice" and "Sheba." That said, this is a 2-disc set, and there are a lot of songs on here that I don't care for. If you're a Blue Rodeo fan, I'm sure you'll love it. If you're not familiar with Blue Rodeo, it's not a bad place to start.

I saw them years ago in a small bar, but they were huge. If you have never seen them go now!

If you have been waiting for the last great vocal album of our age-buy this record. Their vocals

compare to none except them Beatle guys. You will feel better immediately and Brinsley will be your

only option. They make Nick Lowe proud with every song they sing.