ROXY MUSIC

If Roxy Music had proved that they could produce an interesting progressive-glam amalgam without Brian Eno on Stranded, they perfected it on Country Life. Bryan Ferry goes full crooner more often than on any previous Roxy Music album, but thanks to Eddie Jobson's more prominent contributions the band's art rock credentials never take a dent. And with the combination of tight compositions and genuine emotional resonance taking the place of the cool detachment of preceding albums, the band were clearly going places. Plus despite all, the band can still get weird; check out Prairie Rose, the album closer, for a perfect mix of new Roxy cool and old Roxy neurosis.

When I was a teenager, Roxy Music was all the rage. Most of my "art rock" friends were into them and they were on E.G. Records out of England...the same label as King Crimson...so they had to be great, right? Unfortunately for me, I started with their later stuff first . "Avalon" (1982) had a great reputation and it was apparent from the cover that "Flesh + Blood"(1980) should have boasted some interesting cover songs in the form of the Byrd's "Eight Miles High" and Wilson Pickett's "In the Midnight Hour".

What this listener found while exploring these albums, along with "Manifesto" (1979), was pleasant soft rock with a flamboyant, dramatic lead singer and a disco beat. Ughhh! Not to be dissuaded, this listener eventually dug further back into RM's catalogue and hit the jackpot with "Country Life". The album was filled with quirky, eclectic art-pop that could actually be called progressive.

Sure, songs like "Out of the Blue" began to point the way toward their smoother, more romantic and somewhat disco later stuff (I won't even mention "Love is the Drug"...oops, just did!) but the song manages to remain progressive and interesting, unlike that other song that I won't...and didn't mention. Perhaps Eddie Jobson on violin was a difference maker.

Highlights on "Country Life" for this listener also include: "The Thrill of it All", "Bitter Sweet", "Triptych" and "Prairie Rose" which are all progressive yet very different than what other prog bands were doing. Interestingly, while most of the songs here are quite good, only one exceeds more than six minutes.

As a postscript, my disdain for late-era Roxy Music has subsided quite a bit through the years. "Avalon" and "Manifesto" occasionally get play on my iPad, though I still can't get through "Flesh + Blood" in one sitting. Maybe someday, you never know.

Bottom line: "Country Life" deserves a grade of A- or 4.5 stars.

I knew the band from the famous Bryan Ferry not from their music but from his consistent appearance in local music magazine, Aktuil, which was popular in the 70s in the small town where I lived, Madiun, East Java at that time. I did not have any cassette collection on this band because some friends told me that this band was weird and the music was not good. I could understand that especially by that time only Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Uriah Heep and the like who were quite popular. And then I started to know Yes, Genesis and the like. I once listened to the cassette of Roxy Music and I was not impressed at all as the music was quite having a sort of rock'n'roll type to my ears.

This Country Life I only listened to it not a long time ago and I can understand now why I did not like Roxy Music kind of music as the style is quite different from the rest. But having been explored to many kinds of genres I can now understand how the music of RM is performed like this. This Country Life album resembles the combined music of pop, rock'n'roll with some progressive elements in it with the opening track The Thrill of It All (6:24). I can enjoy this type of music actually. One chief reason I could not like it at that time was the kind of vocal style that did not seem like a rockin' one compared to Ian Gillan and Robert Plat or David Byron. Nope, I did not expect something like them ...in fact Paul Rodgers never or seldom sung in high register notes but he was rockin' with his Bad Company. But Roxy Music is different, really.

The composition of this album is good as it demonstrates the different style of playing music compared to other heavy metal bands. Right here the musicians worked their talents on the basis of rock'n'roll music combined with the heavier part of rock - or in a way the music is somewhat similar with the kind of David Bowie even though not really alike. Keep on proggin' ..!

Peace on earth and mercy mild - GW

Why I must be honest when I talk about Roxy Music and Bryan Ferry? Why do I have to explain to others what was Roxy Music and Bryan Ferry to the music of the 70's? Why do I remember that from I was a child Roxy Music and Bryan Ferry were among my favorite bands? Oh, yeah, why explain it? Listening to this compilation would seem that I'm crazy. And instead, I'm not crazy!

This compilation consists of the best of the best of the first three experimental albums of Roxy Music. To be clear when Roxy Music played a Rock'n'Roll entries with Free Jazz as a melodic madness, because the music is rhythmically Rock'n'Roll but there are entries of sax, guitar and keyboards that do not follow a predetermined rhythm. It must be said that the music of Roxy Music was never pure POP, even here. Music is not classifiable as Progressive, Hard Rock or Proto Punk. Only Glam Rock, seem quite right. Yet there is something... Yes, something... Well, something that allows me to classify this music. I can not figure out exactly what that something. Possible that the song is more normal "Song For Europe", a beautiful and pimp power ballad? Possible that Bryan Ferry has written the definitive Rock primordial and that ENO has unstructured this music with Manzanera until it becomes the Rock of the future, the definitive Rock? Listening to "The Early Years" these are definitive questions with no real answers.

But, perhaps today, this music is more vital and relevant than ever.

With the passing of the years Bryan Ferry has become synonymous with Roxy Music (and vice versa), so I had to fight to make it clear to my friend that Roxy Music is not Bryan Ferry's backing band. It must be said that this was due to the fact that Bryan Ferry soloist produced the same music of Roxy. Another fault is that this compilation, a song by Roxy alternates with a solo of Bryan. This is not bad, for those who like Bryan Ferry and Roxy. However, for a neophyte is a big problem.

Musically speaking, the music is really interesting. Initially it is very Rock, becoming then a pander POP, with great melodies and great arrangements. It is not unfair to say that Bryan Ferry wrote for Roxy, if left to cover bloated (all "A Hard Rain's A-Gonna Fall" by Bob Dylan). Unfortunately for many, Ferry and Roxy are the POP ballad of "Avalon" and "Is Your Love Strong Enough", a good POP Rock, but they forget that they were a prog band with Eno on the edge of the wildest Glam Rock Garage and also Garage, if I may venture. What, the latter, which is not reflected here.

To say that "More Than This" is not a good compilation is not correct. To say that is what fans were looking to Bryan Ferry... That is correct.

TIn the second half of the seventies, Roxy Music took a break. Bryan Ferry released a couple of solo albums, where he continued his journey from quirky off-key front man to romantic crooner. Phil Manzanera released some nice albums with 801.

On this comeback album, Ferry seems to be driving the band more in his direction. While most of the basic Roxy Music feel from the past few albums is still there, the edginess is watered down. In fact, this is a mostly forgettable album, save for some nice bass lines (Gary Tibbs and Alan Spenner share this role, so I'm not certain who provided the better tracks), some fair Manzanera licks, and a few nice sax pieces from Andy Mackay.

Particularly, I like the bass and sax play in Stronger Through The Years. But the second side of this album is dismal. Mostly written by Ferry, side B opens with the fair . But it then deteriorates into pandering pop. The same stuff that caused me to sell Ferry's solo albums soon after I bought them

At least this group did provide an excellent live show.

Roxy Music's second album tones down the abrasiveness that permeated their debut, and tightened up their sound a bit, making this a bridge between that first album, and the smoother glam band that they became.

Songs like Do The Strand and Editions Of You have that proto-punk feel that Eno ran with on his first album, Here Come The Warm Jets. There are some other good moments, such as the inelegant humor of In Every Dream Home A Heartache and the eerieness of The Bogus Man.

But what limits the album is that at this point in his career, Bryan Ferry was an awful singer. He alternates between singing off key and over emoting in a style like a failed cabaret singer. But despite his voice, the rest of the band makes this an intriguing piece of art rock.

Who'd have thunk that you could cross-pollenate prog, pop, and overall pompousness into one cohesive unit? Roxy Music is this type of band and the one that could pull off this effort quite effectively. Leader Brian Ferry must have had visions of art-pop success dancing in his head, and you could argue that it's the prevailing style here; it's Manzanera, Thompson and MacKay that balance the art out with loud rocking when needed.

When the group puts you in a swaying, soft mood like that on ''Strictly Confidential'' and ''Grey Lagoons'', it works quite effectively. But the band also proves they can rebound into dancier territories which explain long-lasting catchiness of ''Do the Strand'' and ''Editions of You''. This concoction of pompous artsy-fartsy, pop sensibilities, hard-rocking backbone rhythms and the occasional outside indulgences (Krautrock on ''The Bogus Man''; Eno really makes his stamp here) sounds fresh and enjoyable even today. The mystique at the end of each side is haunting and mesmerizing with the title track evoking the feel if ''Crime of the Century'' just faded out into obscurity.

If ''Beauty Queen'' was left on the cutting room floor, I think FOR YOUR PLEASURE is a bona fide masterpiece.

Looking around other forums, I've found that a lot of people tend to consider this one of Roxy's two best albums, and this is an idea I heartily endorse. One thing kinda bugs me when I see some reviews of it, though (again, not in this forum, but in other places); there often tends to be quite a bit of praise for the album being so sleek and stripped-down and dancable. This isn't bad in itself, of course, but I always get the feeling that the implication of such statements is that this stripped-down, funkier state is a big improvement over the sound they'd had before, which was much more dense and tricky and insane. I mean, wasn't being dense and tricky and insane one of the main reasons people liked the band in the first place? I just can't help but be bothered by the idea that being stripped down is better in and of itself than being lush (I mean, just look at Manifesto), just as I am bothered by the idea that being lush is better in and of itself than being stripped down.

That's not to say I don't like the sound of the album, of course. It's just that I'm of the mindset that the sound works not because it's stripped and dancable, but rather works because it still sounds like this stripped and dancable music is being made by a freaking great band. The band is still tight as can be, the drum sound is terrific for this kind of music (for whatever reason, which I'm still not sure of, the drums are the first thing that really caught my ear on this album), and Ferry is still at the top of his game (much more consistently so than on Country, if you ask me). Furthermore, the sound is perfect for the "post- breakup debauchery" theme that runs through the album, and it makes the great pleadings and croonings come that much more alive.

Actually, come to think of it, the "dance pop" (or funk or disco or whatever) reputation this album has is kinda overstated, as there are only three tracks out of nine that I think would really qualify. Ironically, for all my rantings about funkiness not automatically improving something, these are my three favorite tracks on the album, though in a different order from how most tend to order them. Believe it or not, the infamous opening "Love is the Drug" is only my third favorite on the album; this of course means that it's a great song, with a fine bassline and amusing lyrics about needing to score his fix, but I honestly don't find it as addictive as so many others do. "She Sells," on the other hand, gets a no-hesitation thumbs up from me. What makes this song so great in my eyes is that, as overpowering as the funk breaks in the middle might be (and oh man, do they groove, accentuated by the great saxophone lines that had become underutilized by this time), they are *not* the main feature of the song, which is formed around this great sorta sleazy vaudeville piano theme and Ferry alternating a bizarre (even by his standards) croon with other great parts like where he goes into that robotic "con-sum-ing you con-sum-ing meeeeee" part. Oh man what a great song.

In my world, though, all on Siren bows down before the might of "Both Ends Burning." This is a disco-rocker that does both aspects proud, with great sounding background synth noises and a relentless groove that grabs me and never lets go (and believe me, it takes a lot for a dancable groove to grab me) while Ferry pulls out some more absolutely amazing vocal hooks. Look, I know it'll never happen, but if ever comes the day where I'm allowed to be a DJ for one evening, there is no doubt in mind that this would be the song I'd choose to be the closing send-off, as I really can't think of any song that would be better suited. I can also say that, on the 16-track Roxy Music compilation I made for myself, this was a hands-down choice to close it out, as it does an amazing job of leaving me wanting more (and wanting to put the compilation back on, natch).

There are six other songs on here, and they're mostly good. I could live without the really awkward, schmaltzy "Could it Happen to Me?" (possibly the WORST choice to stick between "She Sells" and "Both Ends Burning," as is the case here), but that's the only one I can gripe about. "End of the Line" is first-rate nostalgia (and with a great 'home-on-the-range' style harmonica to boot), "Whirlwind" is a marvelous pop-rocker whose opening gives Phil his best moment on the album (the wall-of-sound strummed distortion, I mean), "Nightingale" is a decent ballad, and "Just Another High" is pretty much the perfect philosophical end to the album (basically it's "great, the buzz is wearing off, and I'm still lonely. I miss her"). Oh, there's also "Sentimental Fool," which opens with a long stretch of creepy Eno-ish and Fripp-ish noises before going into another nice ballad with more nice vocals...

Ok, so the album isn't exactly spectacular outside of the three main highlights, big deal. It's really good, though, and those high points are easily high enough to guarantee this thing a high ****. Which is a lot more than I can say for the album that came into being after the band took a lengthy break ...

Avalon may not be the most appreciated effort by fans of the 70's Roxy Music which represented the cutting edge of avant-garde pop/rock music. But this is just Art Rock of another kind, and as depicted on the cover, there is an airy mood and atmosphere that surrounds this album that no other album, by any artist has quite achieved. Here the band shifted gears towards more soulful sounds that lead singer Bryan Ferry was exploring on his solo albums. The 1979 album Manifesto was a transition into the group's new sound, but by this last effort, Mr Ferry was singing more broodingly, seductive and smarter lyrics, from the opener "More Than This" which is one of the most elegant love songs around, the arrangements are more subtle and sophisticated, with the cool atmospheric synthesisers and shimmery guitar work thoughout. The title track, "Take a Chance with Me", "While My Heart Is Still Beating" and "To Turn You on" are some of the most exquisite songs here. Avalon, set the standard for romantic synth-pop that countless bands in the 80's tried to copy, but could never replicate. It is THE album to have playing for the ideal intimate encounter! Four stars..