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Amazon.co.uk Review
The Long Blondes have certainly produced one of the most stylish of indie albums with their debut, Someone to Drive You Home. Sure, they're signed to legendary indie label Rough Trade, but at their heart, the Long Blondes are a great pop band. Even if her voice isn't the strongest, Frontwoman Kate Jackson is one rock's coolest leading ladies since Blondie's Deborah Harry, and she manages to pitch the balance just right between coquettish sex kitten and strong-willed modern woman. It's no mean feat, but just listen to her deliver the chorus "You're only nineteen for god's sake, you don't need a boyfriend," on "Once and Never Again", and you'll be convinced. Of course, much of the credit should go to lyricist Dorian Cox, who wrote all but two of the tracks here, and manages, much like Jarvis Cocker, to sound literate without becoming too pretentious. And the band themselves, who wrote the music and are responsible for keeping things light and catchy, and preventing the songs from turning into a shambolic mess. At its best, Someone to Drive You Home is full of jangly guitars and danceable energy, like on "Lust in the Movies" and the Jackson-penned "Madame Ray". The Long Blondes have written an album for the kids, but one with plenty of depth as well. It's like Pulp have arrived for a whole new generation. --Ted Kord
Product Description
THE LONG BLONDES Someone To Drive You Home (Factory Sealed 2006 UK 12-track CD album debut long-player from the Sheffield 5-piece. Includes the singles Weekend Without Make-Up and Once And Never Again - perfect left-field pop - imagine The Slits playingthe hits of Roxy Music!. Sealed picture sleeve RTRADCD364)
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
This first album from the LBs-longawaited and anticipated-does not disappoint.Kate Jackson,stylish recipient of a coveted Sexiest Woman Award at the NME Shockwaves Awards in February this year,is a star in the making. She preens,sings intelligently,soaringly and with sweet irony on every track listed on this album.
The opener has Kate singing a la Dietrich,fronting a bouncy beat,neurotic jangly guitars and an irresistable chorus featuring three tragic female icons' names shouted/sung loudly and obsessively.These catch the listeners'ears straight away. We feel for Kate in this song,which rattles along at a fast pace,but never really finds a satisfactory conclusion.
A beseeching Kate in the final bars of this song makes it sophisticated art-pop at its best.
There are twelve songs on this album,of which "Once And Never Again" and "Madame Ray"(about Man Ray's muse and lover,Lee Miller)are my favourite tracks.The first-mentioned song starts with Kate giving her worldly advice to a young girl.."Nineteen,you're only nineteen for God's sake-you don't need a boyfriend",and ending "Oh how I'd love to feel a girl your age-your age....once and never again," suprising the listener with this
twist in the last line.We smile at the words.I found myself whistling this irresistably catchy one at odd moments throughout the day.
"I know all about fear and desire",sings Kate knowingly in the aforementioned "Lust In The Movies."
"Only Lovers Left Alive"is delicious to listen to,and will make you smile,like sweet Turkish delight.Listen up!
Shades of The Pipettes in "Giddy Stratospheres"question and answer section,an indie Phil Spectorish touch which works surprisingly well.
The whole album has sensuous,urgent and painful overtones to its songs.
Referring again to "Madame Ray",I believe this is the most emotive song on the album.The last track"A Knife For The Girls",with its last two lines,"My baby doll........don't go to London" contain acidic bitterness to end this remarkable debut album from The Long Blondes.
A must-buy.
The opener has Kate singing a la Dietrich,fronting a bouncy beat,neurotic jangly guitars and an irresistable chorus featuring three tragic female icons' names shouted/sung loudly and obsessively.These catch the listeners'ears straight away. We feel for Kate in this song,which rattles along at a fast pace,but never really finds a satisfactory conclusion.
A beseeching Kate in the final bars of this song makes it sophisticated art-pop at its best.
There are twelve songs on this album,of which "Once And Never Again" and "Madame Ray"(about Man Ray's muse and lover,Lee Miller)are my favourite tracks.The first-mentioned song starts with Kate giving her worldly advice to a young girl.."Nineteen,you're only nineteen for God's sake-you don't need a boyfriend",and ending "Oh how I'd love to feel a girl your age-your age....once and never again," suprising the listener with this
twist in the last line.We smile at the words.I found myself whistling this irresistably catchy one at odd moments throughout the day.
"I know all about fear and desire",sings Kate knowingly in the aforementioned "Lust In The Movies."
"Only Lovers Left Alive"is delicious to listen to,and will make you smile,like sweet Turkish delight.Listen up!
Shades of The Pipettes in "Giddy Stratospheres"question and answer section,an indie Phil Spectorish touch which works surprisingly well.
The whole album has sensuous,urgent and painful overtones to its songs.
Referring again to "Madame Ray",I believe this is the most emotive song on the album.The last track"A Knife For The Girls",with its last two lines,"My baby doll........don't go to London" contain acidic bitterness to end this remarkable debut album from The Long Blondes.
A must-buy.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD
a sparkling jewel in a music sceen full of drabness, manifactured bands,
and quasi dirty hippy music
and quasi dirty hippy music
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase
They sound a lot like a female version of Lloyd Cole and the Commotions - a Smiths influenced 80s band who used lots of pop cultural name drops in their lyrics.
It's very immediate and jangly poppy which makes me doubt I'll be listening to them for years to come, but for now they're one of my favourites.
The stand out track is "Once and Never Again," which is a plea to a 19 year girl not to waste her time getting a boyfriend (there's a lesbian subtext but I think you're reaching if you believe it).
If lyrics are important to you, then I fully recommend this band. Strangely most of the lyrics were written by a man, which makes them even more impressive than they already are, as they're very female centric.
If you enjoyed this then you should get Lloyd Cole and the Commotions excellent album "Rattlesnakes" as a male companion piece to the Long Blondes. And then turn it into a trilogy by buying Matthew Sweet's "Girlfriend" album.
NOTE 15/7/08: I've had this album for about a year now, and I'm still listening to it about once or twice a month. It has held up well over time. I'm no closer to getting bored of it than I was the day I first heard it.
NOTE 24/11/11: I'm still listening to it their full discography. A great band who sound as good today as they did all those years ago.
It's very immediate and jangly poppy which makes me doubt I'll be listening to them for years to come, but for now they're one of my favourites.
The stand out track is "Once and Never Again," which is a plea to a 19 year girl not to waste her time getting a boyfriend (there's a lesbian subtext but I think you're reaching if you believe it).
If lyrics are important to you, then I fully recommend this band. Strangely most of the lyrics were written by a man, which makes them even more impressive than they already are, as they're very female centric.
If you enjoyed this then you should get Lloyd Cole and the Commotions excellent album "Rattlesnakes" as a male companion piece to the Long Blondes. And then turn it into a trilogy by buying Matthew Sweet's "Girlfriend" album.
NOTE 15/7/08: I've had this album for about a year now, and I'm still listening to it about once or twice a month. It has held up well over time. I'm no closer to getting bored of it than I was the day I first heard it.
NOTE 24/11/11: I'm still listening to it their full discography. A great band who sound as good today as they did all those years ago.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
THE LONG BLONDES 'Someone To Drive You Home'
First discovered this band during the summer of 2006 in Rome via the video of 'Giddy Stratospheres' (regularly shown on some dedicated indie music video tv station there) but was... Read more
Published on 20 Sep 2009 by R. Cooper
Original.. They sure are
I agree this band are very original within their own right. OK there's nothing new under the sun as they say, but this album has been written from a unique concept of feminine... Read more
Published on 28 Oct 2007 by Steph
A refreshing change
I disagree with those reviews that describe The Long Blondes as unoriginal. I'm a fan of Indie music in general, but there are an awful lot of similar-sounding bands around at the... Read more
Published on 30 April 2007 by Rebeki
bland....
As one of the reviewers said, you listen to the opening bars and it sets the tone for the rest of the album. Reason, there is no difference between any of the songs. Read more
Published on 22 Feb 2007 by Mr. Dan Reuter
Great - but it won't change the world
This is definately an album that will appeal to anyone who likes their Indie with a Girly twist. The song all have strong tunes and the lyrics, vignettes of everyday life, are... Read more
Published on 6 Feb 2007 by M. Clarke
Pure pop brilliance from 2006, eventually...
"Edie Sedgwick! Anna Karenina! Arlene Dahl!" If that's not a great chorus, then I don't know what is. Read more
Published on 14 Jan 2007 by Mr. N. J. W. Turnbull
Lyrics which you can relate to.
From the moment this album starts out it sets the standard for EVERY other song.
There isnt a bad song on the entire album! Read more
There isnt a bad song on the entire album! Read more
Published on 20 Dec 2006 by L. Taylor
Music For Sweethearts
Edie Sedgwick!Anna Karenina!Arlene Dahl! I just want to be a sweetheart!
The second you hear the first chorus of opener "Lust In The Movies", you can tell that The Long... Read more
The second you hear the first chorus of opener "Lust In The Movies", you can tell that The Long... Read more
Published on 26 Nov 2006 by Mr. J. Milton
Sheffield's latest purveyors of kitchen sink glam
The Long Blondes' debut "Someone To Take You Home" owes loads to Pulp lyrically, with each song a kitchen sink drama about lost youth, failed romances and uncaring boyfriends. Read more
Published on 15 Nov 2006 by Matt
Didn't disappoint one bit!!
I've seen this band a few times live now and they've never failed to disappoint. I'm already familiar with a lot of the songs on here. Read more
Published on 7 Nov 2006 by P. Smith
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