Packed with incredible stories, Telling Stories is a frank and vivid memoir that describes the mad life of a rock star. |
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Amazon.co.uk Review
Always the bridesmaid? The Gallagher brothers make Oasis the biggest band in the world overnight with a handful of half-decent tunes and few inebriated right hooks, while The Charlatans live a veritably epic Greek tragedy in tracksuits and yet somehow remain 90s Manchester's supporting actor nominees. History is indeed written by the winners. Which is why you probably never had The Charlatans down as a singles band – a mere single band perhaps, down to the resurgent versatility of their Hammond-drenched 1990 indie disco classic "The Only One I Know" - but little more. But it is hard to argue in the face of irrefutable facts, and to hear all their singles lined up, one after another, is to have your expectations as a casual observer immediately confounded. Collecting together for the first time their singles output from all three record labels and periods of their 16-year existence, Forever: The Singles, stands as testament to the fact that they’ve never once stopped rising to the occasion. Even as their career ambles latterly through suspect tundra between Bob Dylan and Curtis Mayfield they pull a corker like "Love Is The Key" out of the ill-fitting Stetson, with a remarkable falsetto from Tim Burgess. And next to the surging piano-stomp of "One To Another", the weightless twinkle of "Telling Stories" and the numb, underrated Beck-via-The-Verve bliss of "My Beautiful Friend", "The Only One I Know" even begins to sound a bit flat-pack. --James Berry
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
I agree with the other reviewer re. this single cd edition being less than ideally comprehensive - maybe because their earlier albums were on another label (Beggars Banquet) and partly represented by the earlier 'Melting Pot' compilation? - but for the songs that ARE on here, five stars! The Charlies are hugely undervalued but everyone one of these is a classic pop/rock/indie/who cares! tune'n'spirit packed glory.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
It's nigh on impossible to condense a near 17 year career into the 80 minutes that can fit onto one CD, but whilst this may not give the whole story it offers up proof that when they were good, The Charlatans were very special indeed.
Another chronologically ordered singles compilation, this takes us from their debut single Indian Rope (surprisingly they don't start with The Only One I Know) to 2006 single Blackened Blue Eyes. If neither track is essential, a lot of what lies in between is.
The Only One I Know is the baggy Manchester sound at it's best whilst Weirdo brings a kind of gothic northern sould to the party. The soul of this particular party though has to be the cuts from the Charlatan's best album Telling Stories. Four songs are taken from it (One To Another, North Country Boy, How High and Tellin' Stories) and even they only hint at the majesty of the album as a whole.
Even though it didn't seem to appeal to fans of that album, I always found Wonderland a great album too. It only produced two top 40 singles and both make it onto this collection, the sublime Love Is The Key and A Man Needs To Be Told.
Sadly from there, the collection does noticeably dip in quality. The last two studio albums (2004's Up At The Lake and the afformentioned Simpicato) were disappointing and even cherry-picking the "best" from those two doesn't leave much excitement. The new track is also a lesson in pointlessness. You're So Pretty We're So Pretty was a good song to start with, and was scheduled to be a single once upon a time, but the disco tinged remix does nothing for the song, or for the the collection as a whole.
Whilst this is undoubtedly a compilation that tails off to the end, it serves as a great reminder of how good the Charlatans were at their peak. Who knows, it may even serve as a reminder to the group themselves after the last two disappointments.
Another chronologically ordered singles compilation, this takes us from their debut single Indian Rope (surprisingly they don't start with The Only One I Know) to 2006 single Blackened Blue Eyes. If neither track is essential, a lot of what lies in between is.
The Only One I Know is the baggy Manchester sound at it's best whilst Weirdo brings a kind of gothic northern sould to the party. The soul of this particular party though has to be the cuts from the Charlatan's best album Telling Stories. Four songs are taken from it (One To Another, North Country Boy, How High and Tellin' Stories) and even they only hint at the majesty of the album as a whole.
Even though it didn't seem to appeal to fans of that album, I always found Wonderland a great album too. It only produced two top 40 singles and both make it onto this collection, the sublime Love Is The Key and A Man Needs To Be Told.
Sadly from there, the collection does noticeably dip in quality. The last two studio albums (2004's Up At The Lake and the afformentioned Simpicato) were disappointing and even cherry-picking the "best" from those two doesn't leave much excitement. The new track is also a lesson in pointlessness. You're So Pretty We're So Pretty was a good song to start with, and was scheduled to be a single once upon a time, but the disco tinged remix does nothing for the song, or for the the collection as a whole.
Whilst this is undoubtedly a compilation that tails off to the end, it serves as a great reminder of how good the Charlatans were at their peak. Who knows, it may even serve as a reminder to the group themselves after the last two disappointments.
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
Why oh why are they so light on the early period - OK 'Then' is no classic but no 'Over Rising', 'Jesus Hairdo' or 'Just Lookin''???? What's that about??? And yet - we get all the singles from 97 in order, even 2 songs from the very poor album (by their standards) 'Up At The Lake'?
Go out and buy 'Between 10th and 11th' instead - an underrated CLASSIC.
Go out and buy 'Between 10th and 11th' instead - an underrated CLASSIC.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A blast from the past
Sometimes, you remember a chorus or a hook and it keeps playing through your head. Then it gradually comes back. So the best thing to do is buy a greatest hits. Read more
Published 2 months ago by RMcc
A new melting pot of classics
The release of an initial Best Of collection often unfortunately signals the beginning of the end of the creative prime of an act. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Greg Farefield-Rose
The E Generation
Since I bought this album in July 2010, I must hear it at least twice or three times a week - it really is an excellent album. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Kit Havlin
Under-rated band
A great collection of The Charlatans singles, under rated compared to the Stone Roses etc.
Great in the car!
Great in the car!
Published 20 months ago by S. FREEMAN
OK compilation, nice bonusdisc, but why withdraw it on the day of...
This is the first compilation I bought of the Charlatans, only because it adds this bonusdisc.
But why withdraw the limited edition on the day of release? Read more
But why withdraw the limited edition on the day of release? Read more
Published on 1 Jun 2007 by fonzie9
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