Exile on Coldharbour Lane

A3, Maxi Priest

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 2, 1998)
• Original Release Date: November 11, 1997
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Fontana Geffen
• ASIN: B000005ZL1
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (70 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #131,905 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

This London exponent of "sweet, pretty country-acid house music"--formerly Alabama 3, until someone remembered the similarly named country-pop group--makes its hybrid work on this debut album. In fact, Exile on Coldharbour Lane sounds like the record U2 wanted Pop to be. Fronted by one Reverend Dr. D. Wayne Love, A3 prove their seriousness about roots music with a mournful version of John Prine's "Speed of the Sound of Loneliness" while sprinkling the rest of the disc with blues harp and acoustic guitars. Dr. Love's schtick is a bit silly, but his commitment to saying something about the utopian rave culture's potential for waste is obvious in songs like "You Don't Dance to Techno Anymore"--in which a DJ watches a girl overdose in front of his booth. --Rickey Wright

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fughettabouit! A Great Techno Rock Album, July 26, 2002

By	Brian D. Rubendall (Oakton, VA) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Those who like the theme song for The Sopranos but that are hesitant to purchase this CD thinking that the band is nothing but a one trick pony can put your fears to rest. "Exile on Coldharbor Lane" contains at least a half a dozen songs that are the equal to "Woke Up This Morning." The album is, in fact, the best techno rock album released in the 1990s by anyone not named Trent Reznor. Combining elements of rock, country, blues and yes, even gospel into their funky beats, these guys know how shake your booty while also challenging your frontal lobes. They also get the prize for managing to turn a John Prine song ("Speed and the Sound of Lonliness") into a house dancefloor number.

With lyrics ranging from fundamentalism to Marxism, all firmly tongue-in-cheek, the other great performances here include the truly funny "U Don't Dans 2 Techo Anymore," which sounds like Big Audio Dynamite meets Merle Haggard. Also terrific are the socialist rant "Bourgeoiusie Blues," "Ain't Goin' to Goa," and the closing hilarity of "Peace in the Valley." They are even adventureous enough to risk a number with a name like "Mao Tse Tung Said," and succeed! Only a couple of clunkers late in the proceedings keeps the album out of five star territory.

Overall, a hip, funny and engaging album that belies the notion that A3 are merely a one song wonder.

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars There is intelligent life in rock, April 26, 2000

By	Shannon G. Carreiro (Hawaii) - See all my reviews

I can't sleep so I'm flipping through the channels at 3am and I come to MTV and there's this song, "Woke Up This Morning." I don't have HBO, I don't know about the Sopranos track. I just know I have to find out who is finally singing something on MTV that moooooves me. I go to my nearest music store next day and buy Exile on Cold Harbour Lane. It's my first-ever Parental Advisory CD. I can't get enough of this thing. I sing along in my car. It's my favorite CD since Tom Waits Mule Variations. I'm a 50-year-old woman. Good tunes is good tunes.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Record of the 90's, May 15, 2006

By	S. McAvoy - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Exile on Coldharbour Lane (Audio CD)

This may be the most cohesive nonclassical album I own. Every song segues into the next to produce a number of tracks that are both different yet thematic. The subtleties of expression and nuance hidden in each track will ensure that you will listen to this album for years and still find new things in it. Not as moody or depressed as La Peste, nor chaotic as Power in the Blood, this album is this band at their height (not that their other efforts aren't good in their own right). This is practically a concept album, and it works fantastically, producing a unique sound that still hasn't been replicated. The dirt cheap prices being offered for a used copy make it almost criminal not to pick this up. If you can, try to get a copy with the bonus second disc of remixes, including drawn-out "Ain't Goin' to Goa" that's worth the price of finding such a rare copy.