Everything But The Girl - Eden (1984)

EU import. My jewel case has a "special edition" sticker on the front, but I can't find anything about the contents that would make it special. Your guess is as good as mine.

The debut album from the British (then) folky sophisti-pop duo. They lean heavily on a bossa nova groove throughout and it all goes down easily. Smooth adult contemporary, but not particularly memorable.

This album wasn't released in the US. In their wisdom, the record company executives at Sire thought it would be better to release a self-titled compilation of tracks in North America. That particular release did not chart.

Press of the time:

• Smash Hits (8 out of 10): "Very summery, very smoochy and very well put together. An impressive debut album."
• Record Mirror (★★★★): "If you like to sway, smooch, get mellow'n'soothed while your thoughts are provoked, this is the one for your private moment."
• Eurotipsheet/Music & Media: "a whole album is a bit too much as the material rends to complete anonymity in the long run."
• The Virgin Encyclopedia of Eighties Music (1997): ★★★★

New Musical Express placed Eden at #20 on its Albums of the Year list for 1984.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Not released in the US, #14 in the UK

Tracks: The album kicks off with Each And Every One, which was the only single released from the album and peaked at #28 in the UK. It is the best track and an obvious pick for single release. The rest are along the same lines but with either fewer hooks or in need of further development. Great for relaxed background music (or "smoochy" music) but really doesn't stand up to repeated active listening. I tend to skip the final track, Soft Touch, which just seems out of tune and out of place.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None. I was oblivious to this music in 1984, and I didn't really get into the sophisti-pop genre until Swing Out Sister hit the scene so who knows if I would have been interested in this one back then.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Missing (1995)
Amplified Heart (1994)
Acoustic (1992)
Worldwide (1991)
The Language Of Life (1990)

Everything But The Girl - Worldwide (1991)

More soft pop rock from the first part of EBTG's career before they switched gears to electronica and drum-and-bass releases. It is gorgeous - the production and (mostly) sparse arrangements are impeccable. It is a most pleasant album. Unfortunately, it is completely devoid of hooks. I hear it and can't remember what I've heard nor can I audiate any tunes just from reading the titles. But that's ok, they would regroup and release my all-time favorite EBTG album (and one of my favorite albums of the '90s), Amplified Heart. In the duo's native England, the album peaked at #29 and none of the singles cracked the charts. As the album's Wikipedia entry bluntly states: "the least successful EBTG release, both critically and commercially." No wonder it was an inexpensive find in the used bins.

Press of the time:

• Entertainment Weekly (B): "sometimes sounds like mere wallpaper music, but at least its vibrant colors keep you tuned in"
• Trouser Press: "Thorn again shines as both singer and lyricist"
• Billboard: "well-crafted, poignant, midtempo tunes that grow more endearing with repeated listenings."

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: Did not chart
• CashBox: #108

Tracks: My favorite tracks are Old Friends, Twin Cities, and One Place. The remainder are pleasant enough; EW called it "wallpaper music" and that's on the mark.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Around the turn of the century, my wife and I spent a lot of time with James and Carla, a couple we met at church. You know the drill - similar ages, similar backgrounds, similar interests, same number of children, etc. This couple were big EBTG fans and once excitedly handed me two of their favorite albums to burn to a CD for my own use: Worldwide and Baby The Stars Shine Bright (1986). Even though both families have moved multiple times and the children have all left home, I still have the disc and we're still in touch with James and Carla. We send text messages often and I got to see them briefly last year. But I sure miss sitting on their back porch on 7th Street, enjoying a few vices and chewing the fat.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Missing (1995)
Amplified Heart (1994)
Acoustic (1992)
The Language Of Life (1990)

Everything But The Girl - The Language Of Life (1990)

A few months back, I vowed to check out the early discography of EBTG when, serendipitously, this CD appeared in a used bin. The Rolling Stone ★★★½ review called the album "an exquisitely crafted work of intelligent jazz-inflected pop" and you just know that's right up my alley. Then I see the pièce de résistance: "Produced by Tommy LiPuma." I'm all in, baby! Other guest artists on the album include John Patitucci, Jerry Hey, Kirk Whalum, Russell Ferrante, Omar Hakim, Stan Getz, Joe Sample, and Michael Brecker - that's a helluva line-up.

In her first memoir, singer Tracey Thorn writes that LiPuma produced "a fully realised, immaculately performed and produced modern American soul-pop record." A bit of hyperbole, for sure, but there's some good stuff here, although a bit generic at times. It's a CD I wish I'd found in 1990. And, to be honest, since I enjoyed Amplified Heart so much in the mid-'90s, there's really no excuse for why I didn't go diving into the duo's back catalog at that time.

Press of the time:

• CashBox: "works on many levels, depending on how much the listener is willing to invest."
• Billboard: "Sultry shades of sound from coed duo fall squarely in the AC/contemporary jazz vein"
• Stereo Review: "the duo has wound up with a purely superficial coat of polish and little substance"
• Entertainment Weekly: "Too bad that, toward the end, the songs start sounding routine. The first few make you hope for just a little more than you get."

Album chart peaks:

• US Billboard 200: #77
• Billboard Pop CD chart: #26

Tracks: Nothing here to skip - it's a very easy listen of sophisti-pop/soft rock from top-to-bottom, clocking in at 41 minutes. The album's lead single and a lead track, Driving, features sax work from Brecker and hooks galore, but only managed to reach #23 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart and #54 on the UK charts. The follow-up, a cover of Womack & Womack's Take Me, reached #30 on the AC chart. I was familiar with Me And Bobby D - with lyrics about Bob Dylan - from its inclusion on the Acoustic album and it's one of the better songs here and Whalum's solo takes it up a notch.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: None

Exclusive CD longbox photo courtesy of
Dirk Digglinator of the Hambonian Archives.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Missing (1995)
Amplified Heart (1994)
Acoustic (1992)

Everything But The Girl - Amplified Heart (1994)

I don't remember ever sitting down and figuring out a top ten list of albums from the 1990s, but should I ever do that, I'm fairly confident this album would make the list. This is a nice collection of laid back, self-pitying songs that sound like your favorite soft rock of the '70s. However, if these songs had been released in the '70s, one of them would have appeared in a Wes Anderson movie by now. The simple instrumentation relying mainly on acoustic instruments with understated production appeals to me. This was the first EBTG album I ever heard and it remains my favorite even though it is only 36½ minutes long.

Billboard, July 23, 1994, p. 58

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: #46

Tracks: I like all 10 and never skip any of 'em. The big hit was a Todd Terry remix of Missing, but that's not really representative of the songs here, although the original mix of Missing is one of the better tracks here.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: I purchased this CD when it was released based on the strength of Missing. Soon after buying it, I listened to this CD constantly one weekend as I painted my living room. This is one of those rare CDs that after you give it a first listen, you immediately listen to it again. In fact, I think that's what I'm going to do today.

Previously revisited for the blog:
Missing (1995)
Acoustic (1992)

Everything But The Girl - Missing (1995)

European import CD single

Pop/folk duo Everything But The Girl handed over a track from their 1994 album, Amplified Heart, to house music producer Todd Terry. He remixed the cut and it not only became a huge international dance hit for the band, it changed the direction of their music. Following the success of this single, the duo started releasing only house music.

Tracks: The Todd Terry Club mixes are all good. I'm not a fan of the Rockin' Blue or Full On Club Mixes. Even though I like most of the dance tracks, my favorite version of the song still remains the relaxed, mellow album version, which is also included here.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: This CD reminds me how I gave up on the group when they changed styles. I bought the follow-up to this single, but quickly sold it back to a used CD place. As far as new music, I was done with EBTG. And, after listening to 6 versions of the same song, I'm reminded why I no longer purchase CD remix singles. What am I? A club DJ?

Everything But The Girl - Acoustic (1992)

Really two EPs. The first 5 tracks are acoustic covers of songs by Springsteen, Costello, Tom Waits, etc. The last 6 tracks are acoustic re-dos of the duo's own music. Put together, they make for a nice, relaxing album. For the most part, it's simply two voices, a guitar, and a piano. This was around the time that acoustic concerts were becoming increasingly popular due to MTV's Unplugged series. Tracey Thorn doesn't have the greatest voice, but it is well-suited to the group's calm style. A few years after this album, they completely abandoned that calm style for drum-and-bass thumping dance remixes. That's when they lost me, but I can still enjoy this.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did not chart

Tracks: The covers of Love Is Strange and Elvis Costello's Alison are top notch. The other covers are just average. I've never liked the Cyndi Lauper song Time After Time and the version included here does nothing to change that opinion. Of the group's originals, I like the songs Driving and Come On Home.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: Nothing comes to mind for this particular CD, but when I listen to EBTG, I think of Carla and James because they're big fans of the group.