Customer Reviews

Toyboattoyboattoyboat [Vinyl]

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

 

 

Major label debut from one of the overlords of the Boston rock scene from late 80s to ealry 90s. Best live act of their day. Longtime fans know most of the material is solid here, though more muscular and magical live- "innernational" and "hope the boat" the 2 standout chestnuts.
Thanks for the music Dave Herlihey & Co

I am surprised noone else has reviewed this masterpiece. O Positive never really made the transition from local to national celebrities. But this album was where they gave it their best shot. O Positive had a sound crafted similar to the cutting edge new wave of the late 80's. But deep down, this was a party band! Lyrically, their songs never meant anything too discernably deep. But, they worked and they rocked. On this record, there is not a single bum cut! This was their first full length album following two fine E.P.s. And it was a major label release. Unfortunately, after this record, the label dropped them. They made one more record independently that was not quite the powerhouse that Toyboat was. Then perhaps a year later they decided to call it quits. O Positive was a phenomenal live band that had a faithful cult following. Buy this record!

Another example of a good Boston band that was not quite ready for primetime. This was their major label released by Epic in 1990. While listening to this, I could almost feel my feet sticking to the floor at The Rat. Most of this album is decent but there are three exceptional songs that could have put them over the top nationally..."Back Of My Mind", "International" (with a surprisingly good trumpet solo) and "Hope The Boat" which sounds very much like REM with a violin.

This was one of the few bands from the late eighties/early nineties that I was sure would make it big. I had a cd with a couple of tracks from the Only Breathing/cloudfactory album. Up, With You, etc. and loved it. When I heard Toyboat (in 1990)I was blown away. Because every song on here is enjoyable and different from the other ones, I rate this as one of my favorite cd's. I recommend getting your hands (and ears) on anything you can get that O-positive has out there. They haven't put out much but what they have is very good. Enjoy!

I agree with other reviewers that this band just never got enough time in the spotlight. The closest they got to the big time was the video for "Imagine That" (great song) being played on 120 Minutes, as well as an opening gig for Sinead O'Connor at the Tweeter Center (back when it was still known as Great Woods). O Positive made great post-REM jangle pop that deserved much wider dissemination.