I wasn't too much of a fan of this album until seeing them in concert on tour for The Black Parade. My wife had this CD, and other than "Helena" and "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)" I wasn't really interested in hearing it. I liked The Black Parade, just not this one as much, for some reason. It has definitely grown on me though over the last couple years, and now, well, here it is among my favorite albums, even if it is toward the rear. "Helena" starts the album off with a bang, just an absurdly cool song. The next two songs, "Give 'Em Hell, Kid" and "To the End," are a double shot of anger and adrenaline. "You Know What They Do To Guys Like Us In Prison" is a jazzy little number with one of the best titles ever. "I'm Not Okay" is awesome, and it's impossible to think about "The Ghost Of You" without visualizing the cool ass video. After that, though, the rest of the album just kind of steadily goes downhill. "Thank You For the Venom" is pretty much the only good song out of the whole second half of the album. Overall, this is an okay album. Not bad for a major label debut. And after hearing this, there was no way to expect the awesomeness that would follow on The Black Parade. But that's all right. Sometimes those little surprises are pretty pleasant.
5 Best Songs:
5. "Give 'Em Hell, Kid"
4. "To the End"
3. "The Ghost Of You"
2. "I'm Not Okay (I Promise)"
1. "Helena"
"The Ghost Of You"
"I'm Not Okay (I Promise)"
"Helena"
127. James by James (1991)
This album was originally released in the U.K. as Gold Mother, then released in the U.S. in a slightly altered arrangement (but still the same songs) as James after "Sit Down" became a surprise hit on college radio stations. "Sit Down" starts the album off, an insanely catchy song about all the misfits and outcasts coming together for comfort. It is easily the best song on the album, which isn't easy since there really aren't any weak spots on this disc, other than "Government Walls," which is a pretty sad attempt at a protest song. "God Only Knows" is a pretty brilliant song, a very biting attack on televangelists. "Come Home," "You Can't Tell How Much Suffering (On a Face That's Always Smiling)" and "Lose Control" are all pretty standard James songs in that they don't try to be anything that they're not. "Gold Mother" is kind of a weird song, but very interesting. It's basically about a child being born, but at varying points, as well as some overlapping points, singer Tim Booth is singing from the points of view of the mother, father, and baby. I love the line from "Gold Mother" that is basically asking how the baby is going to fit out of the woman: "How do you sail the ship from the bottle?" Ha ha. "How Was It For You?" is a pretty stellar tune as well, a nice upbeat song that in essence is calling the song's subject a jack ass, more or less. The two ballads on this album are awesome. "Walking the Ghost" is about a ghost (obviously) trapped in her former home and being upset with the changes the new residents have made and how generally sad she is. "Top Of the World" closes the album and has an air of... reluctant optimism, I guess? Not really sure how to describe this one. Just let it be known it's an awesome beautiful song.
5 Best Songs:
5. "Gold Mother"
4. "How Was It For You?"
3. "God Only Knows"
2. "Top Of the World"
1. "Sit Down"
"God Only Knows"
"Top Of the World"
"Sit Down"
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