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28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Zig Zag., March 20, 2000
Like John Mellencamp and Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan, The Hooters made the type of music that was the heart of the nation. Nervous Night was an excellent beginning to a career that should have gone much farther. All ten tracks are very well produced. The music is still fresh 15 years later. It contains the hits "All You Zombies", "Day By Day", "And We Danced" and "Where Do The Children Go" as well as great album tracks like "Don't Take My Car Out Tonight", "Nervous Night", "Hanging On A Heartbeat", "South Ferry Road" and "Blood From A Stone." I think their 1987 cd, One Way Home, is a more mature effort but it lacked the solidity of Nervous Night. However, their 1989 cd, Zig Zag, was just as exceptional as Nervous Night, and if you can find it, it's worth owning. Their 1993 cd, Out of Body, lacked the originality of their first three cds, but is good just the same. What came next surprised me. They changed their name and reformed the band and called themselves Largo. In 1998 they released their self-titled debut. Excellent. See my review on it. Definitely worth having. In fact, all four Hooters cds and the one Largo cd are worth owning. But, if you've only got time and money for one, then Nervous Night is a must have.
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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Powerful Debut - how didn't they become Superstars?, January 18, 2005
Back in 1985 and 1986, a band called "The Hooters" appeared on the music scene that seemed to have the promise of a great future. They had a debut album, "Nervous Night" that was garnering a lot of attention in the music industry. Although it wasn't a Top 10 album and didn't produce a #1 single, most were in agreement that The Hooters were destined for Superstardom. In fact, many people believed that 20 years later - the name Hooters could be associated as one of the legendary bands in music history. It's sad to say that Hooters is more known for being a restaurant and bar chain as opposed to a music band. Many things would go wrong for the band following "Nervous Night" - they were never able to capture the commercial success or critical acclaim they had back in 85 and 86. Yes the band is beginning to have a bit of a renaissance in Europe, but nothing that would approach what they saw when "Nervous Night" was released.
The Hooters seemed to have arrived at the perfect time. At the time "Nervous Night" had been released, the 80s music landscape was beginning to change. It was during the time of 1985 when the 80s music landscape began to move away from Synth-Pop toward a more guitar laden sound. Artists such as Bruce Springsteen and John Cougar Mellencamp were leading this charge. "Nervous Night" - while it did have its share of strong keyboard work by co-founder Rob Hyman was still an album that captured this guitar laden sound. It is kind of ironic that The Hooters were in the middle of this transformation. Co-founders Rob Hyman and Eric Bazilian were involved in one of the most celebrated albums that is seems to be associated with the Synth-Pop sound - Cyndi Lauper's "She's So Unusual" album. On "She's So Unusual", Hyman was a co-writer with Lauper on one of the most critically acclaimed songs "Time After Time". Both Hyman and Bazilian contributed background vocals and instrumentation (Hyman: Keyboards and Hooter; Bazilian: Guitar, Bass, and Saxaphone). With a solid body of work on "She's So Unusual", Hyman and Bazilian took the next step in launching a debut album for their band.
The biggest hit song on the collection was "And We Danced". This is a very catchy song, but I think there is more than just a catchy song when you crack the surface of this track. There is almost a "retro/throwback" like quality to this track - something that was a popular thing to do during this period. This sound was also heard in artists such as John Caffertyand John Eddie. Lyrics such as "She was a be-bop baby on a hard day's night; She was hangin' on Johnny" is a great example of this. The whole song has a reminiscent quality to it - and it is very enjoyable. "Day by Day" in a lot of ways is the perfect song to follow "And We Danced". It has a similar type of "feel good dance feel to it". "Day by Day" doesn't have a reminiscent quality to it. This song looks more to the future. There is some terrific mandolin by Bazilian as well as as some strong guitar work.
While those first two tracks are very nice songs, the powerful songwriting that Hyman demonstrated on Lauper's "Time After Time" isn't heard until the third track, "All You Zombies".. When I first heard this track, - this really made me a fan of the band. The song has one of the great instrumental openings I ever heard in any song. The opening is dominated by some terrific guitar work that also contains keyboards. The nearly 1+ minute intro does great to create a setting to sing about the Old Testament's Moses and Noah. There also is another terrific instrumental bridge about 4 minutes into the song that features some more powerful guitar work - as well as some stellar drumming by an unsung hero of the album, David Uosikkien. This song drew some criticism from the Christian sector, but I do think this is one of the most powerful tracks of the collection.
The seventh track, "Where Do the Children Go" did get some airplay and also is an example of some terrific lyrics. This song deals with youth - and how youth is often misunderstood and led down the wrong path. This song features some outstanding guest vocals by Patty Smyth of Scandal. It's Patty's vocals that give this song a very special quality.
Although the other tracks might not have gotten airplay, there is some terrific stuff. "Don't Take My Car Out Tonight". This song has much more of a Synth-Pop feel - but it is still a good track. This might not have the strong lyrics of "All You Zombies" or "Where Do the Children Go", but it has some terrific instrumentation. Uosikkien has some nice drum work and Bazilian has some of his best saxaphone work at the end of the song. Also worth noting is the title track "Nervous Night". This track takes a little to grow on you. While not a blues song, this song almost gives you a feel of a song you would hear on a Mississippi River Riverboat. "Blood From a Stone" is the collection's finale. It features more Mandolin work that give this song an "up tempo folksy feel" - even a Bob Dylan feel to some extent. The song describes the expression "You can't get blood from a stone" There are also some lyrics not published in the liner notes that do use some mildly strong language.
Most of the lyrics to the songs are included (as the exception in "Blood From a Stone" is noted). This is a fabolous debut album. This should have been the start of something special for Hyman, Bazilian and company. It's a shame they failed to recapture the magic of this album. I'd highly recommend it.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of the 10 Best All-Time Rock Albums EVER !!, April 26, 1999
By A Customer
This one should be on anyone's list. Unique sound, and a rare album that has not a single throw-away song in the bunch! Best songs: And We Danced (kicks the CD off right), South Ferry Road (from the opening yell to the closing wistfulness, has more meaning than entire books I've read), Where Do the Children Go? (pensive and deep, but fun and a great sound too), Blood From a Stone (this one rocks, what else can I say). Wow, that was a painful experience, picking a best song on this one! Every song is flawless! Buy this CD immediately, and you won't be disappointed. You may also want to pick up One Way Home, if only for the superb Karla With a K. Rob
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