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Bandwagonesque [CD]

Teenage Fanclub | Format: Audio CD
4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
Price: £3.87 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
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Bandwagonesque + Grand Prix + Songs From Northern Britain
Price For All Three: £14.81

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  • In stock.
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  • Grand Prix ~ Teenage Fanclub Audio CD £5.47

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  • Songs From Northern Britain ~ Teenage Fanclub Audio CD £5.47

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Product details

  • Audio CD (15 Jan 2001)
  • Number of Discs: 1
  • Format: CD
  • Label: Sony Music CMG
  • ASIN: B000024TV6
  • Other Editions: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  Mini-Disc  |  MP3 Download
  • Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 6,687 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

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1. The concept
2. Satan
3. December
4. What you do to me
5. I don't know
6. Star sign
7. Metal baby
8. Pet rock
9. Sidewinder
10. Alcoholiday
11. Guiding star
12. Is this music?

Product Description

Amazon.co.uk Review

Before this astonishing album, Teenage Fanclub had released a couple of pleasant singles and a whole load of generic, indie dishwater. In the middle of 1991, they went into a Liverpool studio, with Don Fleming producing, and emerged with a masterpiece. Bandwagonesque is, of course, hugely derivative--difficult to make a record with two guitars, a bass and drums that isn't. More than a few reviews at the time suggested that Bandwagonesque had gone a step further, into the realm of pastiche and plagiarism, especially in regard to Big Star. Given time, however, it became clear that Bandwagonesque wasn't a problem even on those terms--it was at least as good a Big Star album as Big Star ever made. And on its own merits, Bandwagonesque is so near perfect as to make no odds. It contains stackheeled glam stomps that Slade would have been proud of ("What You Do To Me"), exquisitely lachrymose ballads ("December"), endlessly quotable lyrical couplets ("There's a side of me unknown/Big deal", from "Starsign") and gorgeous, ringing electric guitars and still more gorgeous Byrds-esque vocal harmonies (the whole album). Bandwagonesque is the sort of album that makes you wish you owned a convertible. Utterly unimpeachable, work of genius, etc, and Teenage Fanclub have since made at least three albums which are even better. --Andrew Mueller

BBC Review

The pop-quiz fact everyone seems to know about the Glaswegians’ 1991 album is that Spin magazine anointed it the best of the year, ahead of Nirvana’s Nevermind, My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless, Primal Scream’s Screamadelica and REM’s Out of Time. That was a shock at the time. Two decades on, it’s safe to say that this blast of jangly-fuzzy, shoegaze-tinted power-pop hasn’t since dominated the discourse of rock critics as much as other contenders from that interesting year. Yet it was always unaffected and likeable, and remaining the perennial underdog only makes it more so.

It may be odd to describe as "unaffected" an album which sees four Scotsmen all but replicating the sound of Big Star, with nods to other American icons such as The Byrds, The Beach Boys and Raspberries. Yet TFC committed to their passions unapologetically. If 1990’s tentative debut album A Catholic Education had hinted at what was to come only in Everything Flows, and follow-up The King had been a thrashy mess, their third was where they honed their riffs, galvanised their harmonies, and landed on a few hooks. Sure, many of these were borrowed from Alex Chilton, but Big Star was then a neglected entity. Creation (in the UK) and Geffen (in the US) ensured Bandwagonesque got heard, and as a by-product Big Star’s, er, star, rose again. TFC enjoyed US hits with Star Sign (more Swervedriver than Dinosaur Jr), the simplistic What You Do to Me and The Concept – and their California dreamin’ was a brief, blazing reality.

They never matched this for impact and deceptively cohesive punch. The Concept is an arresting opener, a twist of feedback drooping with practised sloppiness into a quirky, unforgettable couplet about a Status Quo fan and a dumb, delightful refrain broken by wailing guitar solos and near-choral harmonising. It makes virtues of its naivety and retro-stylings, charming you onside. There’s a curveball in the eighty seconds of faux-metal thrashing which constitutes Satan, but the pop chops return for the likes of December, Metal Baby and Sidewinder.

They were only reinventing the wheel, but Bandwagonesque keeps on spinning.

--Chris Roberts

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
As a Joy Division and Nick Cave fan, this isn't the kind of album I'm meant to like. However, this album simply contains more perfect pop songs than any other album. It is highly derivative of the Beatles, Byrds, Big Star, Faces, Slade, Stone Roses, but it actually adds to all to its sources to produce the perfect retrospective of all that has been good about pop over the previous 30 years (now 40 years !). In particular, The Concept must have the best opening lines of any song "She wears denim whereever she goes, says she's going to buy a record by the Status Quo". "What you do to me" is one of the simplest 3-line songs endlessly repeated but endlessly catchy - it puts an ear-to-ear grin on my face and makes me remember the joy of falling in love for the first (and second, and third ...) time.

The second half of the album is simply flawless - Starsign, Metal Baby, Pet Rock, Sindwinder, Alcoholiday, Guiding Star and Is this music is probably the greatest sequence of songs ever put together by any band - there simply isn't a flaw in any of them. Alcoholiday encapsulates the enjoyment of completely losing control and responsibility, and getting f***ed by some complete stranger. Guiding Star sums up the feeling of hero-worship that all of us have at some point felt, and felt half-ashamed of, but still succumbed to. No matter that the object of Norman Blake's hero worship (Alex Chilton) was not a very nice man.

What really stands out over the whole album is the Norman Blake's raw vocals, the jangling and slightly delayed chords, the quality of the lyrics, subject matter (there's simply no substitute for teenage kicks when it comes to pop song lyrics), and the fact that it sounds like the kind of album the Beatles should have made, but never did.

If they have school discos in heaven, then Bandwagonesque is the first disc on God's playlist.

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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Shivers down the spine 6 April 2006
Format:Audio CD
I got this album in 1991 on a pre-release. Listening to it then I couldn't believe that a band had made such a gorgeous timeless collection of music. I have had to buy this FIVE times now due to wearing it out or giving it away in moments of elated altruism. Live, the band still pull a few of these songs out, and despite making about six albums since, they have not bettered it, well maybe close with Grand Prix, but THIS IS THE ONE. Stop reading and buy it... or come and see me and I'll give you mine!
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By Mr. Nicholas Davies VINE™ VOICE
Format:Audio CD
I got this album about eighteen months ago, and while I will admit that I don't play it anywhere near as much as I should I am always completely destroyed by it everytime I hear it. the warm fuzzy rock that the fannies have produced here is such a leap on from their first album and still sounds like their most vital piece of work (even though it is probably not their best). The three songwriters (messsers blake, mcginley and love) are all present and offer superb tunes. Blakes glorious "concept" is joy and a brilliant album opener and descends into a heavenly cascade of guitars "ahhh's" and noise..mmmm. he also contributes the excellent alcoholiday which must rank up their with the best fannies tunes and comes complete with more wonderul backup vocals (you know the bit). But this album really seems to be Gerry love's. He contributes four stone cold fannies classics in "december", "is this music?", "guiding star" and the stupendous "starsign". The last mentioned song builds up to a heavenly climax of guitars before exploding into the bands most explosive condensed five minutes of brilliance. I am running out of superlatives really, but this album is a must for beatles, byrds, travis, weezer fans so make sure that you buy this, and the rest of their albums. Oh yeah, never listen to anyone telling you that thirteen isn't any good cause it might even be better than this...but that's another story.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Get it. Listen to it. Adore it.
Scotland's Teenage Fanclub is one of those bands that you simply have to love. They're adorable. Their songs are like warm sweaters that never go bad. Read more
Published 2 months ago by reviewsahoy
Misfire
Can't bring myself to enjoy this one bit. I was very much looking forward to giving this a spin once I'd bought it for I'm always on the lookout for timeless guitar pop records,... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Robin
random noise
Bought a previous album (Howdy) of this band and thought it was quite good.
This album, on the other hand, contains a mess of random noise and is just not very good. Read more
Published 12 months ago by G. Nugent
Buy the two later albums first
Songs from Northern Britain and Grand Prix are classics. This isn't ... so buy the others first then if you want to fill in the gaps, get this one. Read more
Published on 25 Jun 2009 by Frids
A masterpiece
Loads of people maintain that Grand Prix is better, and as far as a collection of songs by a fine British band at their peak goes, you can see why - "Sparky's Dream" and "Niel... Read more
Published on 28 Mar 2008 by Benjamin D. Sumner
Need yer tunes like
I bought this album after a mate recommended it to me and it truly is a classic. Definitely an album u can play from start to finish. Read more
Published on 4 Sep 2007 by King of Carrots
grungetastic, 60's/70's throwback pop. Amazing
I first heard this in '93. I am ashamed to say I was listening to chart music at the time and couldn't really understand the concept of "grunge". Read more
Published on 1 Mar 2002 by "willie66"
The Greatest British Band of the Nineties
I was highly suspicious of Teenage Fanclub when I bought this, for reasons I can't remember. I only really fell in love with them when they released Grand Prix. Read more
Published on 19 Dec 2001
This album will make you seriously happy
Teenage Fanclub have made a better album than this in the form of Grand Prix, but the emotional vitality and warmth at the heart of these songs make Bandwagonesque an essential... Read more
Published on 16 Nov 2000
This record can make you seriously happy
Teenage Fanclub have made a better record than this in the form of Grand Prix, but what makes this an essential album is the emotional vitality at the heart of the songs. Read more
Published on 15 Nov 2000
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