Erasure - Other People's Songs

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Music reviews of Other People's Songs

Music Review: a refreshing semi-departure for recent Erasure pt. 2
Rating: 4 Stars

My personal take on the various tracks:

The lead-off, and the first single from the album, Peter Gabriel's "Solsbury Hill" is an excellent song, and the very idea of re-making it into something as or more impressive than the original is suspect. While their version is interesting and appealing, and one of the more recognizable songs for most people, I don't think that it's necessarily better than the original, but it is different, and it's hard to screw up with this tune.

There are a few songs on Other People's Songs which make for good listening, and some not only succeed in repeat listening, but even improve. For me, these would include the next track - The Korgis' "Everybody's Got to Learn Sometime" - as well as both of the Buddy Holly tracks "Everyday" and "True Love Ways," and The Three Degrees' "When Will I See You Again." I'm personally hoping that Erasure will remix Everyday for a third single off this album, as they did with "Moon and the Sky" from Loveboat. That was also a case in which a good song was remixed and released to fabulous effect. Everyday has great potential.

The third track on the album is also the album's second single: "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)." This is easily one of the best tracks Erasure has done in years. For the amazing video (if it's still online when you read this), see Erasure's website ... But this cover is just jaw-droppingly wonderful: bouncy, lively, lovely fun. Insert more happy words there. The more I listen to it, the more I love it; which makes me wary, since this means I'll listen to it so much that I'll get sick of it eventually.

A couple of tracks here are "listenable," which means, if you've got the disc playing in the background somewhere, you'll be happy enough to let them play, but if you're sitting there in your car, one hand ready on the controls of the player, or listening on headphones, you'll probably skip these. For me these were the Ronette's "Walking in the Rain" and the Righteous Brothers' "Ebb Tide," both of which have potential but feel error-laden. Walking in the Rain has a marvelous chorus, but the song in general is rather slow and plodding; a more liberal takeover of the song would have helped. Ebb Tide suffers from this constantly-sweeping synth sound - which feels like it's meant to impress the image of a tide - lending a monotony to a song that seems to lack decent breaks. Andy Bell's voice is cruising non-stop for well over two minutes of this three-minute song. Did he even get to breathe? This track could also benefit greatly from a re-construction.

Unfortunately, Ebb Tide is the lead-in to two more of Other People's Songs more famous songs - "Can't Help Falling in Love" and "You've Lost That Loving Feeling." Neither sound inspired, and are my personal least-favorite tracks on the album. That these are also the songs I've probably heard the most in their original form doesn't help, making their lackings even more glaring; and I never cared for YLTLF anyway. Furthermore, as others have well-said here, if you're thinking of a cover of CHFIL, anyone who's heard UB40's perfect take on that song (which is better than the original, in my opinion) knows how good such a cover can be. So Erasure's version also suffers from that comparison.

The disc is then saved by my other favorite song here: Cliff Eberhardt's "Goodnight." It will certainly not be a single, lacking bouncy pop appeal, and I'm happy to have it remain where it is, feeling like a secret pleasure of which only I and a few others are aware. This is hands-down one of the most beautiful, sad songs you'll hear all year. I've no idea what the original sounds like, but in the hands of Vince Clarke and Andy Bell, it's tender, quiet, and a real tear-jerker; uhm, in a good way. Bell's vocals here are breathtaking, and Clarke's gentle accompaniment perfectly suits and enhances the heartache.

Lastly, Other People's Songs ends on an amusing note, and it's a high one. Not involving Andy Bell at all, the Buggles' classic "Video Killed the Radio Star" features a sophisticated computer-generated voice which sounds, as Bell noted in one interview, "kind of sad." Which is perfect for the song, which still does maintain the fun of the original: Buggles' singer (turned producer/etc.) Trevor Horn in his ridiculous prime really cannot be replaced, and so the idea of trying something very different, vocally, is very clever.

In closing, I'd say this album bodes well for Erasure's near-future. As Clarke has particularly noted in interviews, this odd removal from their usual routine has felt like just what was needed in helping them into their future. It's refreshing for us and for them as musicians. And as another noted here, one can already get a sense of where Erasure is heading, since there are two new original Erasure tracks on the excellent single release for Solsbury Hill. Those two new tracks alone suggest that great things are in store for the next album and, whereas recent albums have been slowly produced once every three years, Erasure has been at work on their new album even while touring for this one. They're plainly rejuvenated, and this album seems to have been just what they needed at this time. So, bravo, and now there's a new half-dozen or so decent songs added to the Erasure catalogue.

Description of Other People's Songs

Alternative Rock CDs

• Music > Styles
• Dance & Electronic
• Pop
• Rock