athompsen's album of the day 9/26/03

[athompsen]

Hello everyone!

Here it is...the album for 9/26...

It's The Cars self titled album. IMHO, the one the best new wave/rock bands. Almost every track on this debut album got FM airplay. The band's first album remains, in my eyes, the best...the songwriting and production are top-notch!

1) "Good Times Roll"- The quintessential party tune of the early 80's.

2) "My Best Friend's Girl" - Cool songwriting from Ric Ocasek...very catchy!

3) "Just What I Needed"- For years, "Just What I Needed" was my favorite tune. It was rock, but with an alternative twist to it.

4) "In Touch With Your World"- Not one of my favorites, but it's grown on me.

5) "Don't Cha Stop"- See comments from track 4.

6) "You're All I've Got Tonight"- Nowadays, this and the next track are two of the best songs on the whole album. I love how this song abruptly ends and goes straight into.....

7) "Bye Bye Love"- I can't get enough of this song! I love Ben Orr's voice and lyrics.

8) "Moving In Stereo"- If any of you remember the movie "Fast Times at Ridgemont High", every guy I know loves this scene...there's a killer scene with Phoebe Cates... Then the song slowly changes into...

9) "All Mixed Up"- I've always had a great appreciation for The Cars' lyrics..."she shadows me in the mirror
she never leaves on the light
and some things that I say to her
they just don't seem to bite"...


All in all, a great album!

[djdave]

Woo hoo! One of the best debut albums EVER!

Good times roll-Real great!
My best friend's girl-Another top notch tune!
Just what I needed-What to say? SUPER. Like nothing else of its time.
In touch with your world-Not bad, but one I don't pay much attention to.
Don't cha stop--THIS one radio never plays and I LOVE it!
You're all I've got tonight--I may like it even more than "Roll" as my 3rd fave from the album. This could've been a hit as well.
Bye bye love--Neh, not the Everlys. Warrant's "Down Boys"' intro was a carbon copy of this intro. But a great one nonetheless!
Moving in stereo--Awesome stuff!
All mixed up--Another great one seldom heard on radio.

WOO HOO!!!

[55dodger]

Great debut album for the Cars. Have it vinyl. Love the hits and the great album cuts. Thanks for the review.

[Dawn]

Excellent choice, Andrea!

This was a great debut album for the group, and very solid from start to finish. Everything works together so well on it, and I agree that the songwriting is particularly strong on this one. Some of my favorites cuts from it are 'Moving in Stereo', 'You're All I've Got Tonight', 'Just What I Needed', and 'Good Times Roll'.

[lora]

I didn't recall ever hearing any of these songs before, so I just went to Amazon and listen to a few of the clips. Sounds like a fun album, but it all sounds a lot alike to me too. Of course, they are just playing very brief clips of the songs, so they doesn't give me much room to form a solid opinion about the album. Nice review, though.

[SAT-I need more room!!]

Nice review, Andrea!

Always liked the 3 singles. Then I loved You're All I've Got Tonight so much that I got burned out on it!

I'd say my faves now are Just What I Needed and Bye Bye Love. RIP Ben.

I don't remember that part of Fast Times! For some reason, I remember Phoebe's carrot demo the best. IS that the scene you are talking about??

I have this on used vinyl, and I have that Rhino best of, which is complete, for my money.

[Ken]

Great review Andrea Still sounds fantastic today! One of my all time favorite debut albums. Every song is a winner!

I remember a buddy of mine in grade 6 bringing the album to school and showing it to me and telling me how great it was, not to long after that I bought mine and it still plays great. I also have Rhino's 2 CD anthology. I love Elliot's guitar playing and Dave's drumming is solid.

Yes I seem to remember that scene with Phoebe Cates....

[Pete70s]

I still like to play this album from time to time. It always sounds good!
I like all these songs, but these stand out to me:

Just what I needed & My Best Friend's Girl-My sister had the 45's of these. I liked them both, giving a slight edge to "JWIN".. The intro reminded me of Yummy Yummy Yummy the first time I heard it.
I'm In Touch With Your World- I like it, even though it seems like filler.
You're All I've Got Tonight-DID get FM airplay, but wasn't a single.
Bye Bye Love-Another great one!
Moving in Stereo - Best sounding cut on the album! Great for driving at night!
All Mixed Up-Great closing song..

[KittyKat - RIP Luciano]

Awesome review for one of my favorite albums ever!

[Triple J]

An instant classic!