A-Z (Reis)

Colin Newman | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 5, 1998)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Beggars UK - Ada
• ASIN: B000006NTQ
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #54,743 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Time went slow, August 19, 2000

By 

loteq (Regensburg/Germany) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A-Z (Reis) (Audio CD)

Originally planned as Wire's fourth proper album, their former record company refused to release "A-Z" and dropped the band, so Colin decided to put it out under his name and settled down at Beggars Banquet, one of U.K.'s premier independent labels of the late-'70s/early-'80s. With band members Bruce Gilbert and Graham Lewis out of the picture -- they were working on their 'Dome' project and explored the leading edge of noise -- "A-Z" is less caustic and arty than the preceding "154" and relies more on conventional songcraft than on sonic extravaganzas. Surprisingly, the guitars rarely sound like rock guitars, and Mike Thorne's gentle, pointed electronics and effects add much to the album's drive. Colin remained a gifted songwriter with tastes in progressive rock, power pop, new wave, and even neo-classical ("Alone on piano"), and there are a couple of tracks here which match the best on Wire's classics "Pink flag" and "Chairs missing". The bouncy "&jury", the moody "Alone", as well as "Inventory" and "Don't bring.." are among the highlights. "Not me" was later covered by 4AD band This Mortal Coil for the album "It'll end in tears", and the instrumental "B" is more eccentric than any Wire song. There are a few tracks I always have to skip because Colin's singing is overdone and pathetic at times, distracting from the music's quality. But on the strength of all these great songs here, "A-Z" is absolutely worthwhile and stands out as Colin's most satisfying solo album.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The 4th WIRE album??????, December 1, 2002

By 

Warren BONES (Sydney) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: A-Z (Reis) (Audio CD)

Colin Newman's strongest solo effort is very reminiscent of the 3rd WIRE album, 154, possibly because he used several of that album's collaborators [WIRE's drummer and 154's producer]. The songs are catchy, off-centre pop-rock in the main with eerie interludes like Alone, featured in Silence of the Lambs, rounding out the collection. If you're a fan of early WIRE you will really love this album.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wire's 4th Album?, March 12, 2005

By 

David Rutherford "Smelsch" (Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A-Z (Reis) (Audio CD)

Very much a progression from '154' - perhaps more guitar driven and conventiomal than 'document & eyewitness' but well worth the purchase if you even remotely dig Wire.

Best songs: 'Alone', 'Inventory' (tho' I have a weakness for the 'S-s-s-star Eyes' wig out) and 'But No'.

Undoubtably Colin's best LP!!!