Jubilee Offer: Patriotic Classics for £2.50 |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
Track Listings
| 1. Before You Were Young |
| 2. Before You Were Young |
Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Our obsession with the weather has long been entrenched in the national psyche, but rarely--if ever--has it had so very much influence over the fortunes of one music career. But in the same way that it supposedly informs our resolute British demeanour (and capacity for standing hail-lashed in queues), seldom have we seen a band quite as stoic in the face of diminishing interest. Travis' existence, in spite of a decent smattering of personable successes, begins and ends with the enduring popularity of "Why Does It Always Rain on Me?" and those festival sets at the turn of the century that celebrated career-defining downpours. Everything before and after, with a couple of brief exceptions, became mere footnotes. Agreeable albums hung off an agreeable single or two continue to come and go, but sixth album Ode to J. Smith is a rarity for Travis in that it wholeheartedly answers their original manifesto--namely "All I Wanna Do Is Rock". Well and truly plugged back in after a decade of polite acoustic dalliances "J. Smith" condenses a fit of prog-rock audacity down to a surprisingly effective three minute pop song and "Something Anything" thrashes out a guitar solo to conduct the lightening. The banjo-waltz of "Last Words" and piano lament of "Before We Were Young" may tip their hat at the pocket-sized Travis of old, but even those songs burst with certainty from beneath their beige woollens before they're done. No longer should they be considered musical "Driftwood", then. --James Berry
Product Description
TRAVIS Ode To J Smith (2008 UK 11-track CD album - Recorded in Londons RAK Studios in just 2 weeks during February & March 2008 Travis present their loudest edgiest and most arresting album since their debut; Ode To J. Smith includes the singles J. Smith and Something Anything. With picture and lyric booklet PHONE004)
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
Having been a fan of Travis since their debut, Good Feeling, I was caught out by this album. Partly because I didn't know it existed until long after release, and partly because the first listen was like a breath of fresh air.
Previous albums had become a bit predictable, to the extent that The Man Who, The Invisible Band, and The Boy With No Name blur in my mind. All good albums, they weren't that different from each other (see the band Embrace for similar history).
Fran Healy appears to have rediscovered his electric guitars and pedals, and this is like a souped-up, hi-def version of the debut, with strong riffs, epic choruses and catchy melodies.
The underlying tones are still there, but the volume has finally been turned back up!
Previous albums had become a bit predictable, to the extent that The Man Who, The Invisible Band, and The Boy With No Name blur in my mind. All good albums, they weren't that different from each other (see the band Embrace for similar history).
Fran Healy appears to have rediscovered his electric guitars and pedals, and this is like a souped-up, hi-def version of the debut, with strong riffs, epic choruses and catchy melodies.
The underlying tones are still there, but the volume has finally been turned back up!
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
For me, this is their best album since THE MAN WHO,without a shadow of a doubt.It's raw,it's edgy and it's poignant.
Chinese Blues,J Smith,Something Anything,Friends,Song to Self and Before You Were Young are right up there with the best songs they have ever done whereas Broken Mirror,Last Words and Get Up are lesser tracks in my opinion,hence only 4 stars.
I also particularly enjoy the whole concept of the album and its cohesiveness.
What i'm annoyed with and perplexed about though is Travis's seemingly fall out of favour with the British public.For whatever reason they have gone a bit below the radar and not regarded as one of the best bands in the country such as the beginning of the millenium.
This album is miles better that any other commercial rubbish out there and yet it barely scraped the top20, which is a real shame because it deserved a lot better and it would have changed a lot of peoples' opinion about Travis.
I definitely think this album suffered from a distinctive lack of promotion,indeed ,most of the poeple I know have not even heard of it.I only stumbled upon it by accident a few weeks after its release,even though i'm a long time Travis fan.
This album should have deserved a wider audience.It will be interesting to see where they will go from here.Cannot wait!
Chinese Blues,J Smith,Something Anything,Friends,Song to Self and Before You Were Young are right up there with the best songs they have ever done whereas Broken Mirror,Last Words and Get Up are lesser tracks in my opinion,hence only 4 stars.
I also particularly enjoy the whole concept of the album and its cohesiveness.
What i'm annoyed with and perplexed about though is Travis's seemingly fall out of favour with the British public.For whatever reason they have gone a bit below the radar and not regarded as one of the best bands in the country such as the beginning of the millenium.
This album is miles better that any other commercial rubbish out there and yet it barely scraped the top20, which is a real shame because it deserved a lot better and it would have changed a lot of peoples' opinion about Travis.
I definitely think this album suffered from a distinctive lack of promotion,indeed ,most of the poeple I know have not even heard of it.I only stumbled upon it by accident a few weeks after its release,even though i'm a long time Travis fan.
This album should have deserved a wider audience.It will be interesting to see where they will go from here.Cannot wait!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
four 1/2 stars. Although the last offering from Travis was more mellow and 'commercial' apparently although I don't think it sold especially well. I love this new (new to me as I didn't realise they had released another album so quickly) album and it has a bit more 'edge' to it. However for whatever reason it doesn't feel as rounded as an album. is it the last? If you like travis you will like this. If you like the mellow travis you won't like it as much, but if you like the more edgy stuff then you will love it too.
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Deserves repeated listening
The Boy With No Name was a fantastic 'comeback' album after four years without releasing a CD. Some amazing tracks like Eyes Wide Open (a great rocker), My Eyes (a song from Fran... Read more
Published on 22 Nov 2009 by furiouszed
Wow!
After waiting four years for their "The Boy...", hearing Travis had released another so soon after caught me by surprise. Read more
Published on 1 May 2009 by The Red Menace
Love it...
I don't say this lightly, but this is Travis's best album yet. Quite Free, I could listen to again and again. Love it. Well done guys.
Published on 1 Mar 2009 by RogMc
Just love it
Travis are a relatively recent discovery for me - it's my age, you know - but I've loved everything I've heard from them, and this CD is no exception. Read more
Published on 26 Jan 2009 by Mr Happy
Travis' Best One Yet
I actually got this for my sister as a Christmas present - oh how I regret that! I borrowed it and I was blown away by it. Read more
Published on 9 Jan 2009 by MDD
Pleasant surprise
This album is a pleasant surprise! Having spent many, many happy years listening to Travis on recording and live I thought that there time had been and gone but seems there is life... Read more
Published on 3 Dec 2008 by Muso
the edgier side of Travis
I have to admit Travis has never totally sold me. The music has been very easy-listening and not particularly exciting...sort of like Take That. Read more
Published on 30 Oct 2008 by Janis Schacht
Rather different from the last one
This album has been given 4 stars mainly because I do not find it as "instant" as their last album The Boy With No Name, which in my opinion is their best to date. Read more
Published on 8 Oct 2008 by G. Basford
New sound, but suceeded with style!
For me this album has been longly awaited! The 3 singles (J. Smith, Something Anything, and Song to Self) set this album up to be amazing, and the lads from Travis have certainly... Read more
Published on 7 Oct 2008 by SJ Hitchcock
It would be a Travis-ty if you didn't love this long-awaited album.
I shall begin with a summary of each song.
Chinese Blues is very catchy and sounds very commercial and upbeat and would be great on the radio but this vibe masks a more... Read more
Chinese Blues is very catchy and sounds very commercial and upbeat and would be great on the radio but this vibe masks a more... Read more
Published on 29 Sep 2008 by Guitar Heroine
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
