Customer Reviews

When You're A Boy

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Susanna Hoffs was the prettiest and best known Bangle so it was no surprise that she came out with a solo album following the band's abrupt fade-out. For anyone who made mix tapes or programmed Bangles CDs sung by Susanna only, Ms. Hoffs' solo effort is a dream come true, as it is a worthy showcase for her sugary voice.

I will say straight out that there isn't too much Bangles-like sounds on her songs, meaning that she knew that it was time to go on to other things. It's more pop, but made palatable by her unique vocal stylings. The single "My Side Of The Bed" demonstrates that she could hold her own away from her bandmates.
"No Kind Of Love" and "Wishing On Telstar" are solid songs that lead to her cover of Cyndi Lauper's "Unconditional Love," which reminds me why I liked "If She Knew What She Wants."

The upbeat "This Time" could have made it on a Bangles albums with a bit of tinkering. It could also have been used by Belinda Carlisle during her Heaven On Earth phase. "Only Love" in comparison might have ended up on Carlisle's Live Your Life Be Free. Interesting how like Belinda Carlisle, Susanna moved from a rock sound to a more pop-oriented sound. Glad that ace songwriter Diane Warren had something sterling to give to Susanna.

The Doorsy organ and influence is a nice touch on "It's Lonely Out Here." And "Made Of Stone" has an 80's new wave touch in some parts. Finally, the title track is derived from her cover of David Bowie's "Boys Keep Swinging," which she does decently.
Not much filler to speak of, and a more than decent solo effort that deserved to do better.

Her album was produced by David Kahne, who produced the first two Bangles albums. Oh yes. Among the backing vocals is a certain Juliana Hatfield. That name sounds familiar.... Oh yeah, I remember now. Just kidding.

This album is pure magic. It's more pop than Bangles but it's incredibly stylish pop, the production is eclectic and sometimes very pseudo-60's, the song are beautiful (most of them should be N1 hits in the perfect world) and Susanna frankly never sung better than here! This album deserved to sell millions but there's never justice in show-biz. I can't think of a single pop record more criminally underrated than WHEN YOU'RE A BOY.

"when you are a boy" is a fabulous album with very deep going lyrics. The melodies will catch you! The album shows that Susanna and her voice are unique no matter if she sings as the lead singer of the Bangles or solo. Every song is great, my personl fave is "My side of the bed". Check it out, u'll luv it!

This is a not so great release from one of the 80's biggest Icons, Susanna Hoffs. Her first failed attempt as a solo artist,after the break up of the super group Bangles. There are only a tiny handful of note worthy songs on this CD. Most of the songs are kind of Poppy, a sound that clashes with the style of music Susanna's fans associate with her. My Side of the Bed, Unconditional Love, and This Time are probably the best cuts. These songs will be more familiar to the ears of her fans.
I bought this CD knowing this. I'm a big fan and wanted it for my collection. That would be the only logical reason to buy this CD.

I really like this album but it took a bit of time to grow on me. The problem is that each song is so different, we never get a feel for how the album gels as a whole. The strength in this approach is that Susanna tests out different styles. If she started to sound formulaic on her Bangles songs, this CD was a chance to try something different twelve times and see what she liked best. The result is there's probably something in here for everyone--provided you like high-production dated 80's pop as much as I do. There are strengths and weaknesses in her delivery here, sometimes even during the course of the same song. A song by song analysis:

1. My Side of the Bed--is a great song all around. More mellow than her Bangles offerings, and you can just imagine how terrific it would sound backed up by the harmonies of the other three Bangles, but it's similar to their style.

2. No Kind of Love--wow, what a scorching ballad...sort of. The chorus really reaches great heights, but it might be a more interesting song if we could detect some music in it and if Sue actually sang the verses instead of crooning/whispering them. This one's almost great.

3. Wishing on Telstar--understated song with a lovely melody.

4. That's Why Girls Cry--energetic and fun but dated in an awkward way. The bridge to the chorus also needs work because it sounds uninspired.

5. Unconditional Love--rumor has it Susanna loved this song so much when she heard it on Cyndi Lauper's album, she was jealous of it, and the songwriters told her, "Susanna, we're going to write an even better song." The result was "Eternal Flame." Apparently Sue Hoffs loved this one enough to cover it here. Two things can be said about "Unconditional Love": "Eternal Flame" is indeed a better song. And Cyndi Lauper kicks the stuffing out of Susanna's weak cover.

6. Something New--suffers from the same lack of music and whispery singing as "No Kind of Love," but it's a nice acoustic. 3/5

7. So Much For Love--Susanna shines here. It's a quirky melody, a strange balance of lightheartedness and regret. Is she really singing about love, or is she perhaps singing about the Bangles' breakup?

8. This Time--what a thumping, gorgeous, catchy song! The melody soars, the voice soars, it doesn't matter one bit that we don't have a verse or chorus, that we don't even have a bridge. It works, doesn't it?

9. Only Love--a little cartoony but in a good way. Have you ever secretly wished that Jem and the Holograms were a real group in the 80's, imagined how amazing they'd sound with real music instead of the cartoon ditties, and been disappointed with Britta Phillips for whispering on the Dean & Britta albums, and generally not sounding like Jem? This is your song.

10. It's Lonely Out Here--a rock/pop fusion in the best sense. This song has real power and Susanna's voice is strong yet fragile at the same time. I only wish it continued beyond the barely heard, "I can't see you...no, I can't hear you...oh, where are you" fadeout at the end. It seems like this is when the song is really taking off. What a power rock-out it could've been then.

11. Made of Stone--a very beautiful and soft melody with Susanna's voice wringing every emotion out of it. This song reminds me that she can sing whenever I hear too much of her whispering or breathy delivery.

12. Boys Keep Swinging--I love Susanna Hoffs. I love David Bowie. Maybe they don't belong in the same song. What on earth were you thinking, Sue? It's completely jarring with the soft feel of the rest of the album, a cacophony of thumping synth beats to a raucous rock song. And what's with the complete turnaround from emotionally honest, vulnerable female to extolling the perks of being a boy? Susanna delivers this in deadpan too, no wink, no irony that she's singing this song as one of the girliest girls to grace the planet. Are we really supposed to take you seriously when you sing, "Life is the pop of a cherry when you're a boy" in your cute little girl voice? Ouch, this one's painful.

The good songs outweigh the missteps here, but it's easy to wish the whole album could have been better. Part of it can be blamed on producers, part on songwriters, and part, regrettably, on Susanna Hoffs herself. Her voice seems oddly to be getting thinner with age and it's very noticeable for the first time on this record. Her delivery seems more sugary, weaker and watered down than anything she did on a Bangles record. Compare "Unconditional Love" to songs like "Hero Takes a Fall," "Dover Beach" or "Manic Monday." It's just not the same and this record exhibits a lack of enthusiasm in her delivery.

This CD makes no pretentions at being anything other than a middle of the road pop album. In that respect, Susanna Hoffs is in fine voice, and while this type of album often tends to be overproduced, I really enjoy listening to almost every song here. I can assure one of the other reviewers that Susanna Hoffs, indeed, can sing. You may not like her song choices on this project, but the lady has a lovely voice.

This CD is one of my guilty pleasures. I loved the Bangles, and I love this collection of Susanna's pop songs.

This is one of those albums that you'll either love or hate. The songs ARE heavily produced with a wall of sound flavor, and yeah, it's sugary lightweight pop songs about love. If you're looking for heavy artsy stuff, look elsewhere. But this is five-star pop music, and it's gotten so much play on my iPod that I had to zero out the play count because it was taking over my Top 25 playlist like kudzu.

The cover of Cyndi Lauper's "Unconditional Love" was better than the original, because Susanna could hit the high notes. I'd have a hard time picking out a favorite song off the album; I usually just play the whole thing, anyway.

I liked this one much better than her follow up self-titled CD, since her voice didn't sound as good on that one. She was back in fine form in 2006's collaboration with Matthew Sweet, "Under the Covers, Vol. 1"

I bought this CD only for the title song, which I like the best. But I did find one or two other songs I enjoyed. The rest didn't even make it onto my iPod. Since it wasn't too pricey, I was satisfied with the purchase. Nice to hear some new music (to me anyway) that hasn't been overplayed on the radio, but has that distinctive catchy sound.

Her sugary sweet voice resulted in many hits for the Bangles, and the quality of it certainly doesn't diminish here. However, much of the material here is bland and soulless; someone like Susanna Hoffs deserves better songs to work with. The track "Only Love" isn't bad.

This is Susanna's first solo effort after the Bangles.While the second one has a more alt-pop edge,this one is pure pop.The lyrics and vocals are simply beautiful.I recamend this to any Bangles fan who loves great pop music.Stand out tracks are "My Side Of The Bed","Wishing On A Telstar",and "Somthing New".A definate must have.