Customer Reviews

Word Gets Around

5 star:		(52)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I give this album a highly recommended 4 1/2 out of 5 (rounded up to 5) because even though you've heard this type of guitar-heavy pop band at least four times before, you've never heard it this good. The Stereophonics have perfected their genre and are sincerely amazing songwriters.

This Welsh band has been called the "Matchbox Twenty" of Britpop, which can be a good or bad thing depending on how avant garde you claim to be. Unfortunately, the innate talent of this band was overlooked by many critics, because like Matchbox Twenty of american alterative rock, the Stereophonics arrived after the britpop genre had already peaked artistically but record companies were still churning out several interchangeable bands. If you're looking for a band that knows how to construct quality pop songs that are catchy yet poignant, then they're the band for you. If you're looking for a band that sounds completely different than the pop status quo then perhaps you should look elsewhere.

The Stereophonics put together great songs, each with their own pervasive driving beat, and beefy guitar hooks. The raw vocals of Kelly Jones perfectly underscore their tragic, yet beautiful lyrics. Unlike some of their more idyllic contemporary songwriters, the Stereophonics have an uncanny sense of irony in portraying their song subjects. I doubt Matchbox Twenty or Northern Uproar could come up with the staggering metaphorical lyric from "A Thousand Trees" that describes a football coach torn down by rumors: "it takes one tree to make a thousand matches/only takes one match to burn a thousand trees." This first album catches them at their freshest and their songs capture the idealism of youth fading away as it approaches the harsh realities of the real world.

Songs such as "A Thousand Trees," "Looks Like Chaplin," the breathtaking "Traffic," and "Local Boy in the Photograph" all strive to capture the fleeting tragedies that often go unnoticed in small town life. "Last of the Big Time Drinkers" and "Goldfish Bowl" are both songs that lament and celebrate alcohol only as a self-defeating escape to a droll working class existence.

The surge of the Britpop in the mid 90s brought about many interchangeable bands, and the Stereophonics were classified among them. However, this album soars far above the Catatonia, Bows, or Feeder offerings from that same time period, when Britpop was sputtering out. Had the Stereophonics showed up in 1994 when Oasis did, Kelly Jones would be as revered as Noel Gallagher for his superior pop anthems. This is a great band, that is not to be missed. Their first two albums are necessities for connoisseurs of Britpop.

I know it can get dull reading a lot of fans' plugging their fave band of the moment, but this album really does deserve the praise. I haven't tired of it despite over a year of regular listening, and regard it as the best album I've heard in many years. While the Stereophonics have enough similarity in style to other BritRock stars such as the Verve and Oasis to appeal to the same fan-base, they stand out with the quality of their lyrics and the absence of attitude and cynicism in their delivery. The album's production preserves the sharp-edged sound that these guys deliver live, and shows that they have honed their songs on the road before committing them to the studio. If you liked Oasis' 'Morning Glory' but were annoyed by the gratuitous over-production of 'Be Here Now' you will really appreciate this very tight, very sharp album.

My first Stereophonics album was Performance and Cocktails, which I bought in London when it first came out. I'd never heard of them, but the record was getting great reviews so I got it to see what all the fuss was about. I loved it, and bought Just Enough Education to Perform and their newest, You Gotta go There to Come Back as soon as each was released. I read about this album, their first, but didn't bother to get it 'cause most of the reviews said it was raw and unpolished compared to their later albums. It is indeed raw and unpolished compared to the later records, but it also has a power and energy that eclipses the later recordings. I love all of their albums, but to me this is their best. The songs have a ragged, hard edge, whether full-throttle rock like A Thousand Trees and Local Boy in the Photograph, or on the softer songs like Traffic and Billie Davie's Daughter. Kelly Jones writes the best lyrics of any British songwriter of today. Yes, they're gloomy, sad and depressing, but the music is full of life and promise, and there's never a hint of the pathetic, self-absorbed "poor misunderstood me" junk of grunge or modern emo music. Jones writes songs that explore different views of bad times and about carrying on through good or bad times. This is a fantastic album, and one that Oasis probably wished they could've made. They may remind you of Faces, Black Crowes, Oasis, and even Steve Marriot, but their sound is entirely their own; fresh, modern and powerful. Kelly Jones has grown to be an even more thoughtful, mature and polished songwriter, but the energy and drive of their first album captures lightning in a bottle. It's hard to believe this is a debut album. It's that good.

This albulm is the best album by a british band in the last 10 years, other than possibly "performance and cocktails" the 'phonics 2nd album.
The best song is "Local Boy in the Photograph" a song about a guy he knows who kills himself by juping in front of a train. With lyrics like "He'll always be 23 but the train runs on and on or" and "and all his friends lay down the flowers, sit on the banks and drink for hours, talk of the way they saw him last, the local boy in the photograph"
"something blocks the line and the train runs late for the first time today" is the best line. Why does it matter if the train's late, a man has just killed himself!
The rest of the album's good especially "A thousand trees", "Too many sandwiches" and "billy davies daughter"
despite the way many songs are about subjects such as suicide many of them are in an upbeat mood. Too many sandwiches is a hilarious story about a wedding thats going wrong "grandpa's drunk a drop or two, and his head's still sunk in the Portaloo," and so on
A great albulm

I discovered the Stereophonics back in '98, after seeing their Cardiff concert on TV. A phew weeks later I decided to buy their second album 'Performance & Cocktails', which was amazing. This album made me want to check out their debut as well.

This debut, 'Word Gets Around', turned out to be one of the best debut albums I had ever heard. It consists of incredible tunes such as 'A Thousand Trees', 'Looks Like Chaplin', 'Local Boy In The Photograph', 'Not Up To You', 'Too Many Sandwiches', 'Billy Daveys Daughter' and my absolute favorite 'Traffic'.

Too bad the Phonics kind of lost this 'magic' with their 3rd album 'Just Enough Education To Perform', which seems to miss out on the rocky edge. Word Gets Around will always be my favorite Phonics album, no matter what. To anyone who'd like to check out a Phonics album... don't look further. You found it!

Word Gets Around is special. Sure the word special can be thrown around a lot, but the impact of this album cannot be over-dramatized. It is special and quite frankly my favorite CD in a collection of more than 1000. Local Boy in a Photograph is one of the best songs ever written, and Jones' vocals are perfect for it. Word Gets Around is not a brand new album in terms of release dates, but it seems fresh and new to me every time I hear it. I love their new album Performance and Cocktails, but Word Gets Around trumps it by a longshot. Buy it now. You won't regret it.

Stereophonics are just waiting to be discovered by Americans who appreciate BritPop (though I guess it would be WelshPop in this case). If you like Travis, Richard Ashcroft or Oasis, I'm confidant you'll like Stereophonics. It's not that they sound like the British bands mentioned above--they have a unique sound. Kelly Jones' voice is harsh but in the best possible sense of the term--it gets to you. The melodies are great both fast and slow. 'Traffic', 'Not Up to You' 'Local Boy in the Photograph' are just examples of the strength of this album. I can't believe that more people in America don't appreciate them; I guess it's a testament to the state of Rock enjoyment these days in America--in shambles.

Simply put the first time around for The Stereophonics was definately the best in their case. If you've read any of my other reviews, you'd know that I discovered these guys from the track Maybe Tomorrow, off Wicker Park. That made me buy the fourth album, "You Got to Go there to Come Back". I loved that album so I went out and bought their fifth and newest album at the time,"Language,Sex,Violence,Other". Loved that one too so I picked up "Live at Dakota". Loved it, especially some of the old songs that I had never heard before, especially A Thousand Trees and Too Many Sandwiches. This prompted me to get the album that those tracks were from, "Word Gets Around". All in all, this album is one that can be listened to and enjoyed in its entirety. All of the tracks, except for maybe More Life in a Tramps Vest are awesome. Including the great tracks mentioned before from "Live at Dakota", other stellar cuts include Local Boy in a Photograph,Check my Eyelids for Holes, and Goldfish Bowl. A tremendous performance both musically, and especially in Kelly's vocals, are heard on the beautiful Traffic. The best is saved for last with the title track. For such a sad song, it is the perfect ending for a nearly flawless album. Buy it.

I get the feeling that some take this album too seriously. As the artists say themselves, It's simply about drinking, skrewing and smoking.

This record is so great. Where do I begin? 'A Thousand Trees' is a growling three-minute rocker that begins with one of my favourite song lyrics...'Standing at the bus stop with my shopping in my hands, when I'm overhearing elderly ladies...' How can you not sit up and take notice with an opening like that? 'Local Boy In The Photograph' is a heart-sinking tale of a young life lost, but instead of being sombre and black, it's a tuneful song that you won't be able to keep still to. 'Word Gets Around' stays with you long after you've turned your stereo off. This young Welsh band is often criticised for being too bland and formulaic. Rubbish, I say. There's nothing like a good rock song that you can shout along to. I gave only three stars for the Stereophonics second album, Performance and Cocktails'. For their debut disc, they get the whole five - and they deserve each one of them.