Everything But The Girl Album Poll

i picked love not money. because it is my favorite everything but the girl album. plus, it's the only everything but the girl album that i know all the words to. which means there are REALLY scary singalong sessions at my house. unless you find the idea of a probably drunk 6 foot tall 220 pound dirtbag from the woods of connecticut singing along to everything but the girl alone and at the top of his lungs somehow endearing.

after that though: (cheating cuz i would pick thorn cherry red ep next) then eden and then baby the stars shine tonight and then idlewild and then the acoustic thing.

There ain't a damn thing here better than the first album. Never will be ever.

A lot of nice things to say about the new style on "Walking Wounded", but "Eden" is too great not to vote for. They never really managed to follow it up though, so a change in style may have been a wise move anyway.

I've never heard Eden! I guess I should.

It occurs to me Eden has a sortof Smiths-ish sound to it. I always had the U.S. version though where they swapped a few tracks with the UK version, which in hindsight is really irritating.

walking wounded or temperamental, innit?

It occurs to me Eden has a sortof Smiths-ish sound to it.

To me, it sounds much like early Aztec Camera, only with a slight jazz element added.

Eden, easily. There were so many good British jazz/pop records in 83/84 (Carmel, early Style Council, etc.) before 80s-style production and synths took over. I listened to Eden and Idlewild back-to-back not too long ago, and the later was painful in its production (except for the fantastic "Apron Strings" at the ened).

I'm very fond of Idlewild despite the production and the nice-but-not-my-thing Danny Whitten cover. Someone on the other EBTG thread rightly complimented Tracy Thorn for writing lyrics to and for other women -- these small but emphatic gestures of solidarity. "Blue Moon Rose" is in that category. And "Oxford Street" is just lovely.

I did like Walking Wounded when it came out, but just got bored of it quickly or something. It was indeed a nice new direction for them.

I mean, I say that, but what really happened was Walking Wounded was the first one I bought of them since Baby The Stars Shine Bright (not sure why it's mistitled in this poll). I heard someone rep for Amplified Heart some years ago, though. God I'd love to hear some of Baby The Stars Shine Bright again. "Don't Leave Me Behind"!!! WOW I forgot about this stuff. I need to hear "Kid" again, too. Shit I've got my work cut out for me.

Amplified Heart has sharp songs.

Oh! Also I ended up reading that Ben Watt book because some friend I had a couple years ago happened to lend it to me. I wasn't really jonesing to read it, but it was a very cool book, I was surprised.

What do you mean by sharp songs?

I am voting for Amplified Heart, though it and Walking Wounded are the only ones I know. I joined the bandwagon with "Missing" (and "Protection"). "25th December" is terrific; Richard Thompson's guitar puts chills up my spine. And "We Walk the Same Line" is excellent too.

Also I didn't mean to discount the jazzy nature of Eden when I said the album was "Smithsian". But I'm a sucker for early Style Council & Sade, so... Hell, I really wish there had been MORE of that kind of stuff going on back then.

amplified heart is close to perfect, from the songs and mood right down to each production element.

"Amplified Heart" is also up there. That is, for me "Eden" is in a league of its own, but the last three were all rather strong.

I have yet to hear #s 2 and 3 though. I would guess they might be good stuff when I love the debut.

There's one album kind of missing here, the self-titled U.S. release, with half the same songs as Eden and half different ones:
http://cover6.cduniverse.com/MuzeAudioArt/100/100702.jpg

I know damnit! Don't I know it! ARRRRGH I pulled it out on LP today but still haven't downloaded the damn Eden original UK LP yet. I used to have it on cassette but never could seem to warm to the tracks on that that were missing from the U.S. release. Also I think it's worth noting that I had this U.S. version on both cassette and LP. In fact, I think I've owned the LP twice now. Just incase anyone were handing out bonus points for stuff like that.

"I have yet to hear #s 2 and 3 though. I would guess they might be good stuff when I love the debut."

wait, you've never heard love not money?????? one of the greatest albums of the 80's, geir!

That's right, Scott! "This Love Not For Sale"! I haven't heard this in fucking EONS. Thanks ILM!!!!!!

I bet that song would put goose pimples on Paul Weller's flesh with jealousy.

I voted "Eden," which is slightly different from the S/T american debut. 'easy as sin' on the american version is my favorite song of theirs. love the first two albums in general.

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

Yay Eden! I didn't know this poll was gonna end tonight, but ended up playing Eden on the bus today anyway. I was trying to come to a conclusion about the songs that got left off the US version and vice versa, and I still think the US version does a magnificent job of culling the most memorable tracks on the UK version, aside from "I Must Confess" & "Bittersweet". My only complaint with the US version is the tacking on "Native Land" & "Riverbed Dry" at the end. Not only are they of a lesser quality than the rest of the songs, but they have a different sound to them and feel incongruous on there. And hell, I didn't realize the lovely "Easy As Sin" didn't make it on the UK version, that's terrible! So basically you have to have both of the damn things or make sure you've downloaded all the tracks!

Temperamental -- mmmm

Baby, The Stars Shine Bright is better than I thought

would have voted 1984 s/t or Love Not Money.
favorite song: Easy As Sin

boy, is Worldwide good! It's gotten flak for its 1991-era production, but the melodies are gorgeous, the songs fully written, and Watt has never sung better on record.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1__auymS9OA

1988 Idlewild 0

:|

i turn to walking wounded often, also a GOAT album cover

Br@d, you'd like Worldwide if you love Idlewild: it's a Technicolor representation of that acoustic sound.

EBTG mean so much to me that should anything happen to Thorn or Watt I'd mourn them like I would Madonna or Ferry.

yeah i was gonna say my love of idlewild probably proved that i'm here for ebtg records that've gotten flak for their production, i'll check out worldwide soon

I think we now need a poll for Tracey Thorn’s THREE volumes of memoirs. She’s rivaling Peter Hook at this point

The first one is SO sharp.

i love ebtg, but worldwide is a stinker.

i would've voted idlewild.

worldwide is great. "old friends" is so good

The lack of love for Idlewild is indeed disgraceful, so:

Everything But the Girl - Idlewild (1988)

i love ebtg, but worldwide is a stinker.

i would've voted idlewild.

― Totally different head. Totally. (Austin), Tuesday, August 18, 2020 11:47 AM (two hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

worldwide is great. "old friends" is so good

― Vapor waif (uptown churl), Tuesday, August 18, 2020

Heh. I was wrong:

Everything But The Girl Album Poll

1990 The Language of Life 0

:|

I've had "Frozen River" stuck in my head since August 2020.

can we talk about the language of life though???? perfectly recorded sophistipop

"Driving" and its remixes are fabulous. "The Road," "My Baby Don't Love Me," "Get Back Together" (that solo!), and "Imagining America" too. It's got some dull things that remind me of the Najee and Hiroshima-esque stuff my dad foisted on me in the car.

lol i was just about to bring up

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzY01LLo3lo

i think this is my favorite EBTG album so far but in another way they're all my favorite. this just kinda nails how crisp and sharp the city looks after you walk out of a smoke-filled lounge at night

It's probably because it's the one I imprinted on but the answer is Baby, the Stars Shine Bright.

Same here! “Sugar Finney”, “Don’t Leave Me Behind”, such a fine album. Idlewild is my runner-up.

I’m still team Temperamental.

All-time jam

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0daABTFctDg

I'd not heard the demo version of this before. Ah christ, it's all too much.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4luK3QGa6k4

amplified heart gets played in our house so much. that is one of those albums like baduizm for me that i return to often because there is a sorta zen like quality to the music, like 90% of the time i want to listen to music in general i'm looking for what amplified heart gives me. of course it's also one of the great albums about domestic disquiet, romantic anxiety etc "get me" is prob my fav song by them

shower me with affection and i'll return in kind
i have no hidden motive, i am blind
i'm a stone inside a box
i'm a spring inside a clock
you can wear me on your wrist
and i'll tell you things ten thousand times

but do you ever get me...

<3<3<3

we listen to 'home movies' (pre-amplified greatest hits album) a lot too, one of our go to tapes. i have an appreciation for the early music but i don't love it the way i do the stuff that came after. i think about mid 90s music on a macro level & just feel like these two people were born to shine in that time period

They benefited from scarcity. After Worldwide bombed, failing to capitalize on The Language of Life, they were reduced to playing and programming the parts themselves. Then Watt had his illness. The songwriting just toughened.

Love that Meet Me demo. The minimal instrumentation allows Tracy’s voice to shine

For now at last I'm down on the street
With the engine running

every time i return to it i'm like... wow amplified heart is perfect

And people say that we're so close
How can there be something that I don't know
Oh but even though I share your bed
Baby, I don't get inside your head
This feeling of some mystery
Do you feel that too?
Do you know what I mean?

And if I should start to cry
And I can't begin to tell you why
And I stumble when I begin
It's cause I don't understand anything

Yes

feeling this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1__auymS9OA

omg I love this song so much

interesting to read the discussion about 'worldwide' in this thread. i think it's another astonishing album of theirs.

some of the lyrics are so earnest and direct that many of the songs would be mawkish in the hands of many. but you just see their taste level and overall mastery of their music really shine through. something like "lift me up" relies a lot on the arrangement and tracey's vocal performance to deliver the emotional punch and prevent the song from being too lovey dovey. and so of course the production is just pitch perfect, all foggy atmospherics and rippling guitars, with tracey's harmonies coasting off that. the churchiness of it reminds me of prefab's "i remember that," tho paddy takes it in a more gospel direction. i feel like he sorta works off tracey & ben's blueprint

"one place" is as expert a stewart matthewman tribute as you'll ever see, that song could be on 'love deluxe' or 'urban hang suite' ... i love how they're kinda talking across each other on "talk to me like the sea" and "one place" about what they want out of life. ben daydreams about putting roots down in some isolated coastal town whereas tracey writes a paean to the life of a touring musician. the way "one place" unfolds, with tracey considering the pleasures of stable family life leading into the almost fake-out chorus and into essentially the rejection of the premise of the song, all set against a supremely lush and ultimately forgiving arrangement, is really beautiful.

the layering of instruments and vocals and the interplay between those two elements really stands out across this album. the way tracey's vocals dance w/ the keyboards on "old friends"; how "politics aside" blossoms into a textural masterpiece; the misty sophistipop perfection of alfred's beloved "frozen river" building to tracey & ben's vocals darting playfully around each other. the second half of the album is really incredible honestly

btw listen to the first 20 seconds of "talk to me like the sea" in the context of "birds of a feather" ... pretty funny

:)

there is a disturbing lack of live recordings of these songs online

i'm not sure how accurate some of these setlist/tour archive sites are, but it looks like they didn't tour much at all in 1992 or 1993, only playing a handful of shows in certain markets. i guess this was when ben was seriously ill ... i'm reading that they planned to do an acoustic tour of the US in 92 but had to cancel it. by 94 they are back out on the road consistently, it looks like they were doing acoustic shows in certain cities while out on a full amplified heart tour. looking at the some of the (alleged) setlists, it looks like "one place" is the only song from 'worldwide' that got consistently played. "talk to me like the sea" pops up a bit. but this era is really poorly documented so it's hard to say ... there's many more setlists from the acoustic shows they were playing.

there are a bunch of live recordings attached to the 'amplified heart' remaster/reissue (at least on streaming) but none w/ the 'worldwide' remaster/reissue, which only gets remixes, instrumentals and demos. i guess this aligns w/ the album just being maligned overall even by the band ... i really need to read tracey's memoir but it seems like even she somewhat disowns it? a misunderstood classic! i need to hear a live recording of "one place" at some point in my life!!!

“troubled mind,” “get me,” and “25th december” made it onto the walking wounded setlist but ‘worldwide’ was banished

a very nice revive and more motivation for me to get into the discography, which will all be new to me, aside from the newest album and a few tracey thorn tracks.

oh well get ready to have a new favorite band of all time

Rereading Austin's comments upthread, I'm struck by his repeated use of "overproduced" as a pejorative. Where are The Language of Life and Worldwide overproduced? The latter in particular sounds like a series of recorded demos. "Old Friends," "Talk to Me Like the Sea," "Understanding" -- some keyboards, guitar embellishments, drum programs, that's it.

"Overproduced" often means "I don't like '80s keyboard presets." Fair! I'd rather one just said it. But the word reminds me of "dated," a word never used about a particular Rickenbacker guitar sound from the mid '60s or, well, Ben Watt's jungle choices in those late '90s EBTG records we revere.

Doesn't Tracey mention in one of her books that Worldwide felt "been there, done that" to them, just going through the motions of making a new record?

map, don't miss the collaborations (https://traceythorn.com/collaborations/). "Hotwire the Ferris Wheel" is particularly nice.

She does, and she has guarded appreciation for the professionalism of TLOL while acknowledging the sound was Not For Them.

oh well get ready to have a new favorite band of all time

― ivy., Saturday, November 16, 2024 8:42 PM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

:)

I have big love for TLOL due to listening to Julia Fordham at that time. Mellow albums, such singing talent.

Doesn't Tracey mention in one of her books that Worldwide felt "been there, done that" to them, just going through the motions of making a new record?

what's fascinating to me about the album is that you really can catch a whiff of boredom from some of the songwriting, if you position yourself a certain way. for instance "twin cities" is about how "we are the twin cities, we are the river" and then the next song is "frozen river" which concludes with them repeating "you're like a frozen river." i'm not even sure the metaphoric thru line of "frozen river," in which various concepts and people are compared to frozen rivers, even totally makes sense. but the chorus is this wonderful interplay between ben & tracey's vocals, culminating w/ a meditative outro where where tracey is nailing all these emotive vocal runs atop ben's harmonies -- her gliding gracefully across his glassy ice -- and it just feels completely undeniable to me from a songcraft perspective. so i'm like, ok they were just going thru the motions while... tapping directly into the bleeding heart of sophistipop... predicting neo-soul... cool

I’m in the same position as Map. I know the big singles and loved “Nothing More to Lose” but I haven’t heard the albums — and just started exploring. I didn’t love TT’s solo records and that put me off a little. But Tenperamental is fantastic so far.

i can't believe this poll only got 20 votes! bunch of 2009 savages. i'm glad i got my one vote in for Love Not Money. love that album so much.

Curious how the genre changing hits those listening retroactively. Jumped aboard with their first US album, and each shift was an adventure, particularly the Walking Wounded change. Would think going backwards relatively quickly would make the shifts easier to absorb, with less investment and/or wait time between albums.

i still need to spend so much more time with everything pre-‘worldwide’ u_u

as it is i wish i was listening to ‘amplified heart’ every day of my life

the drum fills on “one place” … what a perfect song. insane that isn’t considered a lite FM classic

a very nice revive and more motivation for me to get into the discography, which will all be new to me, aside from the newest album and a few tracey thorn tracks.

― he/him hoo-hah (map), Saturday, November 16, 2024 3:24 PM

oh well get ready to have a new favorite band of all time

― ivy., Saturday, November 16, 2024 3:42 PM

I've also been on a deep dive through their discography, and actually Worldwide was the 1 album where it was just a bit too adult contemporary for me (though i still haven't gotten a copy of Language of Life). Anyway, it's good to see all the Worldwide love here, because this is prompting me to go listen to that album with new ears.

Of the ones I do own, my current ranking is: Love Not Money > Amplified Heart > Baby The Stars Shine Bright > Eden > Fuse > Walking Wounded > Idlewild > Acoustic > Worldwide

I’m like a few of the posters itt. Don’t know their discography very well. Was irritated by the ubiquity of Missing and dismissed them at the time. Until Five Fathoms severely blew my mind. I’ve tried getting into their 80s output since but never managed to. Love the first solo Ben Wats album though

been going back and forth between 'the language of life' & 'worldwide' ... i can clearly see why someone would prefer TLOL and/or why it's generally considered a more "successful" album. the songwriting is tight and punchy -- the first three songs are real pop records, the "take me" cover was a great choice and is well done, FM pop in its pure form. that said, i think for me i prefer the different textures that 'worldwide' provides ... the vocal and instrumental interplay on the outros of "you lift me up" and "frozen river", all of "politics aside." the way "take me" and "one place" are slotted on both albums make them feel a bit like sister songs to me and even there the drum fills on "one place" bring a slightly unexpected feel to that song, it's like some shards of aluminum briefly pass thru the song's perfectly rendered gloss. whereas "take me" really goes for that true radio smoothness the whole time. it's funny thinking about the albums thru the prism of 'worldwide' being one where their creative inspiration was at a low ebb, because to me w/ 'worldwide' i hear a loosening of some of the restraints musicians must impose on themselves when they're writing for a pop audience. and that's not a diss at TLOL because it is a really good album & again i can absolutely understand, even just in general, why someone would prefer the pop album to the more idiosyncratic follow up, but in this case for me it goes the other way

i'm starting with 'amplified heart' and i'm about halfway through. 'i don't understand anything' is my favorite so far. i'm feeling spiritual things lately so i understand if this sounds like a very left-field point of comparison but the open-hearted seeking feeling reminds me of judee sill. maybe the colors in the strings too. what a beautiful string arrangement.

good comparison

what do you think of the strings on "Troubled Mind"? I hear Brazilian music.

“the road” — the final song on ‘the language of life’ — is a really wonderful closer, i love the warmth of the flugelhorn, how relaxed it sounds, yet tinged slightly with mournfulness. it mirrors the song perfectly

there is a sentimentality & optimism to a lot of the songs on this album. “i’ll come driving just as fast as wheels can turn”, “meet me in the morning, i’ll have the motor running,” “i’ll keep a good thought for you,” all of “get back together.” even “my baby don’t love me” is upbeat, it almost sounds like christmas music. it feels to me like they mostly break from this perspective from this moment forward? not that there aren’t optimistic happy songs on their subsequent albums, but they start to delve a lot more into themes of domestic disquiet, what constitutes contentment etc almost conversing with each other at times as albums unfold. ‘worldwide’ feels like a far more personal album to me & then they sort of perfect the whole idea on ‘amplified heart.’ i rate TLOL very highly nonetheless, but i think i really connect with the perspective shift that happens after

i can't believe this poll only got 20 votes! bunch of 2009 savages. i'm glad i got my one vote in for Love Not Money. love that album so much.

― scott seward, Sunday, November 17, 2024 12:58 AM (one week ago) bookmarkflaglink

Me too, Scott! A guy I had a crush on in college brought it to the newspaper office and I was hooked (I pined after him for years; I'm pretty sure he knew I was alive). I didn't hear their other music for years and was disappointed when I did. Re-trying AH tx to this thread.

announced their first shows since they walked off the stage in switzerland 25 years ago....

Got super excited by the announcement, but I have more chance winning the lottery than getting a ticket. Hopefully it will lead to a full tour down the line.

to quote the mailer

Thorn also says that "If it goes well we hope to do more."

"Full tour to follow in 2050"

just finished reading tracey's memoir and a burst of activity following a long period off wouldn't be that unusual for her/them so i take them at their word that they might actually play more shows. i don't know if they'd ever do more than this sort of acoustic drum machine thing in small clubs tho unless something really changed

The Moth Club shows sound like they were great. Opening with "Night and Day"!

We’re back at the MOTH Club for THREE nights in June. Tickets on sale this Thursday 17 April. Get the upfront ticket link now.

After two instant sell-outs in April, we’re returning to the MOTH Club in Hackney for THREE more intimate shows on SUN JUNE 8, MON JUNE 9 and TUE JUNE 10. We’ll perform again as a part-acoustic part-electronic duo accompanied by Rex Horan (double bass) and Family Stereo’s Blake Watt (guitar, vocals), playing songs from our 40-year careers as both a duo and solo artists.

The evening will consist of two sets and an interval. We will be on stage at 8pm. There is no support. The venue will be mostly seated with some additional standing. Seats allocated on first come first served basis. Doors 7pm.

Tickets (max 2) go on sale at 6pm BST this Thursday 17

really interesting to see which EBTG songs made it onto the set list -- if i went night two and didn't see "i don't understand anything" i would be....

anywho i'm going to be in london in early july so crossing all appendages that this continues

oh god

if I didn't have a wedding during that time I might've flown to London just for the show