The Wildhearts

Hi there.

To me, MH is a magnificent collection of songs and styles, even though I'm of the opinion that the songs themselves aren't always among Ginger's best. I love How Hard Can You Make It, Prodigal and Overeasy as 'stand-alone' songs, and there are more very good songs, but then I don't care much for Casino Bay, Couple Trouble and some others. The mid 8's of most songs are hardly imaginative, just the same basic chords and some soloing. Pretty dull actually, and not at all Ginger's original style. Apart from the three songs I mentioned first, I don't feel there are any true classics on there. Yet, miraculously, as an album, MH really shines.

So, as an added bonus, at last I feel I really get what people mean about the album being more than the sum of its parts, an oft-used phrase in reviews of classic albums like Pet Sounds and Sgt. Pepper's.

Actually, as far as the variety in instrumentation and styles goes, it probably is Ginger's Sgt Pepper's. Or his White Album. Although the interludes and segues suggest Abbey Road. I think it's his Sgt. Abbey White. Whatever. I know I could sit here all day (at work, I might add) and yet wouldn't be able to write an adequate review, so suffice to say that MH is by far my fave Ginger solo album.

It brings together so many influences and I had so many associations that I'm curious if my fellow fans hear the same.

So, from the top of my head, here goes:

Soap Hammer: Starts like U2 (until the drums set in) and ends like Trail of Dead... with a Kersal Massive sample amidst... in one and a half minutes. Respect!

House of Moths: Eels! I wonder how anyone cannot associate them, from the second verse at least. Unless you don't know Eels. Which you should.

How Hard Can You Make It: That guitar sounds just like Chili Peppers to me, with maybe a dash of Hendrix.

Awareness: Pink Floyd.

Regret.com: Bowie, Bowie and Bowie for inspiration. The voice sounds almost like the superb Bernard Fowler, background singer for the Stones, who in his project Nicklebag with Stevie Salas sang a song penned for them by Bowie. Just by the way.

Couple Trouble: FNM's Easy, while the chords are a standard progression just like Sky Chaser High, as has been stated before. Good singer, slightly boring song.

Burden of Prodigal Oblivion: A Better Man from the Singles Club. Beautiful, beautiful, massive female backing vocals like these are rarely heard.

Malibu: Would guess it's not a direct influence, but reminds me of the Eagles' Take It Easy

Overeasy: Silver Ginger 5. After Bulb, the second post-BLM Ginger song that clearly would've been SG5 material from my point of view.

Shatterproof: Trail Of Dead again, no question

i see what you mean about "how hard can you make it" sounding like RHCP, but i think the chorus parts sound like feeder's softer songs, stuff like "child in you," "piece by piece," and "tinseltown" etc.

and "queen of leaving" if it were a little heavier could be an SG5 song.

"couple trouble" sounds almost identical to "vanity fair" by mr. bungle.

still, despite (and maybe also because of) these things, i still thing it's some of the g-man's best work yet.

Well two of the songs keep reminding me of previous Wildhearts tracks:

"The Queen Of Leaving" chorus "down on my knees" then guitar riff/slide sounds so much like "So Into You" in timing and key(?)

"Couple Trouble" do-wop reminds me of "Skychaser High", especially the rise in the middle being similar

IceMan wrote:Well two of the songs keep reminding me of previous Wildhearts tracks:

"The Queen Of Leaving" chorus "down on my knees" then guitar riff/slide sounds so much like "So Into You" in timing and key(?)

"Couple Trouble" do-wop reminds me of "Skychaser High", especially the rise in the middle being similar

Quoted for Truth.

I am sure I'll think of more later, but these are two obvious similarities.

Just figure out something that was bugging me. In 'Couple Trouble', the line...

"The days in the memory, and the nights spent in the doubt"

...is almost a direct lift of ...

"Days stuck in the memory and the nights in doubt"

...from Someone That Won't Let Me Go.

Nice to see Ginger doing some recycling.

Batesy

I hear nods to a gazillion songs and bands. I dont think that there's any value in listing them all.....but I will say that every time I listen to the intro of "Soap Hammer" I start singing Rush's "Red Barchetta".

also from couple trouble, the line "life is what hits you when youre busy making plans" is from the John Lennon song Beautiful Boy

Lord Iffy Boatrace wrote:also from couple trouble, the line "life is what hits you when youre busy making plans" is from the John Lennon song Beautiful Boy

Well, I'm not surprised about that at all, because Ginger is John Lennon's illegitimate son. I can't believe he hasn't figured it out yet, since even I did.

Think about it:
1) They look exactly the same.
2) That kind of songwriting talent in two people a generation apart who look that similar cannot be a coincidence.
3) The timeline works too. Ginger was born in 1964, when Beatlemania was huge and Lennon may have been partaking in some extracurricular activities.

Soundog wrote:Hi there.
House of Moths: Eels! I wonder how anyone cannot associate them, from the second verse at least. Unless you don't know Eels. Which you should.

There is actually quite a few tracks i noticed sounded vaguely Eels like.

DangerousBeans wrote:

Soundog wrote:Hi there.
House of Moths: Eels! I wonder how anyone cannot associate them, from the second verse at least. Unless you don't know Eels. Which you should.

There is actually quite a few tracks i noticed sounded vaguely Eels like.

oddly, i've been listening to a lot of eels tracks recently and i know what you mean

Keith Richard wrote:I hear nods to a gazillion songs and bands. I dont think that there's any value in listing them all...

Depends - since I love the record, I like most of the bands that I am reminded of by those tracks. If anyone else has different associations that might lead me to discovering new bands, that'd make it valuable information for me.

If anyone knows of a band that can craft songs like Overeasy for example, please tell me!

Tenants is pure Go! Team - which is abso-fucking-lootley fine with me.

Same goes for the beginning of I Knew You before the vocals kick in.

How Hard Can You Make It? sounds like what John Lennon would have written had Mark Chapman not been a twat.

Shatterproof has got a bit of the post-Richey Manics feel to it.

and I'm sure I can hear the ghost of George Harrison on The Perilous....