Guest Host

Stew

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 12, 2000)
• Original Release Date: September 12, 2000
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Telegraph Media
• ASIN: B00004Y6Q1
• Also Available in: Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #91,970 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Rolling Stone
Tart wit and sunshine-daydream melodicism. Stew is like a spooky morphing of Marvin Gaye and Nick Drake.

Product Description
Stew's unique and compelling view of the world as seen through the strange prism of Los Angeles create soundscapes from the heavy groove and sexual intrigue of tracks like 'She's Really Daddy Feelgood' and 'Into Me' to moving, almost elegaic anthems inspired by urban landscapes like 'Cavity' and 'C'mon Everybody' to beautifully skewed songs like 'Ordinary Love' and 'Sister/Mother', this album, from The Telegraph Company, is a stellar body of work.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best album I bought all year!, October 3, 2001

By	Rob Damm (Brick, NJ USA) - See all my reviews

Ok, It's a 2000 release, but it's the best album I bought in 2001.

It was one of those Cds I just took a chance on... I liked the cover, the blurbs,the songs titles, etc. and just went ahead and bought it. I wound up with a cd that instantly entered my all-time top 20 list. The first track "Cavity" gives you a good idea what this album is all about-- killer melody, intelligent lyrics, passionate singing, interesting arrangements. Some songs may be difficult to decipher---they tend to be loaded with insider-references to everything from the music biz to the Bible--- but even if you aren't into unraveling all the lyrics, you'll still be able to enjoy the tunes. Stew sounds like a hybrid of Van Morrison and Harry Nilsson with Elvis Costello-esque lyrics and a penchant for Brain Wilson-like arrangements. Now, how can that be bad? Ultimately though, Stew is a true original, and thoughtful listeners should really enjoy his odd ruminations on love, innuendo-laced turns-of-phrase, LA-music-scene-name-dropping (playing checkers/with a roadie from Save Ferris) and sometimes heartbreakingly honest delivery.

What if one musical mastermind listened to and digested every blip of music that emerged from America in the last half century and made an album that succesfully blended everything from Fleetwood Mac to Motown to The Beach Boys? Well, "Guest Host" would be a pretty good guess. It's the rare record that is obviously referential and reverent, but never come across as derivative or "clever". Many bands have tried and failed to make this type of album. Stew has suceeded wildly. A landmark album.

11 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A revelation!, November 6, 2000

By A Customer

I use the word deliberately, because Stew's work , while absolutely unique, recalls no one as much as the great Arthur Lee and Love, circa "Forever Changes." Evocative lyrics that demand repeated listening, wedded to memorable pop melodies and harmonies. Soulful and original and definitely fresh, they aren't making too many records like "Guest Host" anymore. That's becuse Stew is an artist who sounds like no one but himself, and yet brings to mind a heyday of songwriting now all but forgotten.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stew -- slow and steady, November 5, 2000

By	Doug Simpson/Graphics Dept. (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews

Mark "Stew" Stewart will probably draw in a new fan base with his first solo album. The tracks form an intoxicating brew that connects with the last few decades of LA pop, an earnest broth that adds a bit of Arthur Lee's Love to Burt Bacharach and everything in between. This is catchy stuff, but the emphasis is on the lyrics and Stew's soulful and intoxicating voice. The LA name-dropping won't mean anything to folks outside of the Smog Belt (including references to Echo Park and LA Weekly music scribes who only seem to like obscure bands), but songs like "Rehab" and "She's Really Daddy Feelgood" are urban and urbane cuts that will appeal to anybody who likes 60's influenced pop.