Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The magic of Lennox and Stewart, 8 Jan 2006
Back to the early 80s for the incomparable Lennox and Stewart, the duo of that decade! The synth-pop classic Touch has been reissued with extra tracks in deluxe packaging with new photographs and an informative booklet. And the music has stood the test of time surprisingly well. Not quite on the level of Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This), Touch nevertheless contains brilliant songs like the atmospheric Here Comes The Rain Again with its evocative lyric, the compelling Right By Your Side with its riveting reggae beat and the soulful Who's That Girl. The arrangements are innovative throughout and lend merit even to the lesser songs like Regrets with its frisky trumpets. Another favorite of mine is Paint A Rumour with its skittering beat and subtle synth flourishes - it really grows on you. On Touch, Eurythmics consolidated the synth-pop sound they introduced on Sweet Dreams, before they veered off into new directions with 1985's Be Yourself Tonight (Soul/R&B) and the following year's Revenge (Pop/Rock). My favorites amongst the additional tracks include the live acoustic Here Comes The Rain Again, the extended version of Paint A Rumor and their interesting take on David Bowie's Fame.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not quite on a par with Sweet Dreams - but close!, 27 Aug 2006
Being a fan of Dave and Annie's electronic ventures more than their rock/acoustic tinged affairs, "Touch" has a lot going for it (as do the subliminal "Sweet Dreams" and tensely quirky "Savage"). However it was very much their intention to move away from icy electonica and hence several of the tracks on here feature a lot of bass guitar played at breakneck speed! The end result includes classics such as "Who's that Girl" and "Here Comes The Rain Again" along with rather dark experimentation such as "Aqua" (about a gangland style killing, recalling Annie's radio interviews at the time) and the kraftwerk tinged disco-fest of "Paint A Rumour". "Regrets", "Cool Blue" and "First Cut" are all quite samey, but her voice is faultless throughout. "Right By Your Side" was a hit, but sounds rather dated now with it's mock sambas and handclaps. Sound quality is excellent on the remaster, although it does reveal some vocal distortion here and there, and there are some nice new pics/liner notes too. The bonus tracks are somewhat varied - why include the 'long version' of "Rumour" when it's almost identical to the album version (30 sec longer and slightly punchier eq-ing - but exactly the same material) instead of "Who's That Girl" extended mix? The live tracks and "Fame" cover are nice curios though, and round off a generally strong and well-presented reissue.
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7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
I could tell you something..., 23 Sep 2006
Before 1983 ended, Eurythmics released their 3rd album 'Touch'. Continuing with the transitional sound of the previous album 'Sweet Dreams', it sounds like a sister album, though with stronger material.
"Here comes the rain" again was a well deserved hit. It continued with the electronic sound of the 'Sweet Dreams' album, though classed up with the addition of a beautiful string section and catchy arrangement.
"Regrets" is struggling between herky jerky electronics and soulful blandness, which keeps it an interesting battle.
"Right by your side" is crass commercialism with a soulful Jamaican feel, added to banal lyrics about love. This kind of vomit-inducing dullness would eventually swallow Eurythmics whole.
Thankfully "Cool Blue" gets back to the high quality song writing with a strong beat and a catchy hook.
"Who's that girl" was the second single released in the U.S., and a real pleaser. A beautiful song about a woman scorned by a cheating boyfriend.
"No fear, no hate, no pain, (no broken hearts)" has always been one of those beautiful, moody songs that I like to play when I'm feeling a bit somber. I have a lot of memories tied to this classic.
The album highlight for me is the oddball "Paint a rumour". A driving beat accompanied by some bouncy keyboards notes and an appealing bass backbeat keep it an interesting combination of upbeat fun with a sinister side. "It's a secret, secret, it's a secret".
The bonus material leaves a bit to be desired. I have no idea why they would include tedious, experimental doodles like "You take some lentils and you take some rice" and "Abc (freeform)", yet exclude the excellent 12" extended version of "Who's that girl".
I was glad to see the inclusion of the "Paint a rumour" long version, though the only difference from the album version is it does not fade out 7:30, and continues to 8:00. They could have simply put it in place of the album version and I don't think anyone would have noticed.
"Plus something else" is nothing more than a dub mix of "Regrets", and it would have been more suited as a bonus track for a 'Touch Dance' reissue.
The remastering of this new reissue sounds very good. Unlike the two previous reissues, I didn't really hear any of the occasional stereo fluctuations, so it's very satisfying in that respect. All of the bonus material also appears to be from original master tapes.
Unlike the two previous reissues, the deluxe booklet does not appear to stick to period photos. Some of them look to be from the 'Revenge' era, which was several years later.
'Touch' was the last bit of greatness by Eurythmics, at least as far as this reviewer is concerned. Though I do enjoy the song "Sexcrime" from 1984, and the surprising brief return to form "Beethoven" from 1987, the rest of what they produced was horrible white soul music. They took on all of the excesses that most bands did after success, i.e. irritating horn sections and heavy set backup singers, eventually just becoming middle of the road Muzak. The first three albums will always have a place in my music collection.
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