Eurythmics: Classic or Dud?

I think Angel *is* a brilliant pop song which really shows off the range of her voice - those la-la-di-da bits are a bit high, aren't they? Then, there's the added bonus of the blonde wig in the video, covering up Annie's ginger crop, which made her angular features look rather harsh (I know she must have done that on purpose, but it always put me off her a bit).

Sweet Dreams is even better, I think. The beginning still makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. I find it quite unsettling, almost threatening and it didn't surprise me that Marilyn Manson picked up on that too (although I don't like what he did with it).

I haven't been at all impressed with what she's done since the Eurythmics - it's been more stuff for the 12 CD brigade - and didn't she win the best female solo artist Brit Award several years in a row? Shocking. Still, better than Eddie Reader...

I think they did enough to be - as Nick D says - classic, though Nick's reasoning seems, as far as I can make it out, to veer too much into the realm of inverted snobbery. Put like that, that sounds very harsh, much harsher than I intend. I just mean that I don't think something's necessarily good cos lots of "office workers" like it, any more than I think it's bad because ditto. Perhaps Nick doesn't either, and I'm taking him the wrong way. Despite classic nomination, I liked Dr C's phrase 'the fishwife Lennox'.

I actually hated Eurythmics until I was on vacation with my family and had only brought my copy of Nevermind, so I was forced to borrow my sister's copy of Eurythmics' Greatest Hits. Granted, there are some clunkers, but I think "Who's That Girl" and "Sweet Dreams Are Made Of This" are still pretty decent singles. I don't know if I'd say classic exactly. How about Not Bad I Guess.

I need you to really feel the twist of my back breaking I need someone to listen to the ecstasy I'm faking...

I need you, you, you, etc.

on Savage... Annie Lennox w/acoustic guitar, pulling a Madonna 15 years early....

Just `cos I saw the vid for "Love is a Stranger" on VH1 Classic not too long ago. They were kinda damn cool for a little bit. Then they had to go all crap and clutter everything up with guitars and horns and fucking Aretha Franklin whatnot. Why couldn't they have stayed cool, icy and electronic? (ala Eurythmics - 1984For the Love of Big Brother ), Dammit!

That all said, I did quite like "Missionary Man". Too bad about that reunion record, though. Also, could Annie Lennox possibly have picked a less flattering album cover to return after six or so years with? I think not.

i agree w/ Alex ... "sexcrime" was a cool song!

well, all their later stuff was a bit shit. apart from 'shame' off savage is amazing. the old stuff is just too good!
love is a stranger and sweet dreams, sexcrime, here comes the rain again, whos that girl: all remind me of that disco scene in 'terminator'.

anyway its all for totally personal reasons. ie i listened to them solidly until about 1990 (when the arrested development love was about to hit)

• "Sweet Dreams...", "Touch", "Savage", "1984" - Classic!!!!
  
• "Be Yourself Tonight"- OKish!!!!
  
• "Revenge"- Bit Weak!!!!
  
• "We Too Are One" (From the early 90s!!!)- Pissawful!!!!
• The others- Er, I don't know, I haven't!!!!!

• ...listened to them yet!!!!

Also search their early b-sides from 'Garden' and 'Sweet Dreams'. Primitive, weird, great.

If I did I'd buy it.

Not the bin.

Here comes the rain again, Julia, Sexcrime, I Need a Man, Beethoven, Love is a stranger, Sweet Dreams, Who's that girl... I don't believe anyone who says they don't like at least one Eurythmics single.

Album wise it all went downhillafter 'Touch'.... Be Yourself Tonight was horrible US stadium posturing, far too rocky by half, We Too Are One was wishy washy, only Savage justifies their releasing records after 1984. And Savage was a masterpiece. 'Shame' should have been their biggest hit single (and Lennox looks strikingly beautiful in the video) and 'Beethoven' was a huge gamble for a band who had toed the commercial line for several years and done very well out of it, thank you.

The reunion album, bar the lovely 'I Saved the world today' was a washed up mess, twee and middle aged and horrible.

Let's not forget, too, that Eurythmics almost single handedly invented the fabulous pop video - their early 80s videos for 'Love is a Stranger', 'Sweet Dreams' etc. were all incredible.... and their later ones like Missionary Man, Who's that girl and Shame were all superb and worthy of a mention.

So inbetween classic and dud, really.... I think Stewart's discovery of stadium rock, and rock in general, tainted the band and stripped away what I loved about them - their icy aloofness (well, Lennox's icy aloofness) and made them rawk. Horrible.

And Lennox is a star, even now, one of the few genuine 'stars' we have left. And despite the ropey cover for the new album, she's still looking pretty great.

I recently bought "Sweet Dreams" for $1. I remember listening to it a lot as a kid and being alternately freaked out/turned on by Annie Lennox's weird, flirty S&M/drag schtick. I remember constructing elaborate mental narratives to accompany songs that had maybe three lines of lyrics. Listening to it now a lot of it is tame, but there's an undercurrent - something a little sinister - that still appeals. Plus "Love is a Stranger" and "Sweet Dreams" are just great, dark, minor-key synthpop. I also have "Be Yourself Tonight" which I don't enjoy quite as much - 'tis true the addition of stadium rock gestures and shitty horns did not improve upon their formula.

I say classic just for the early singles/videos, but after 1985 yeah it's pretty much shit.

i evenm like some of the stuff on "we two are one" ,but not as much as the proper synth pop stuff. its a cliche, but love is a stranger is just totally wicked manipulative obvious desperate stuff, sweet dreams is likewise amazing. i guess they got into coke or something (i dont knwo anythign about drugs) and started playing sax and stuff and being a soul rock band. btu savage is quite. ive never seen a copy of in the garden. might hit slsk now for it tho.

i thought annie lnnox was a man first time my brother played me "savage"

"Be Yourself Tonight" has a number of really good songs on it. "Ball and Chain" is also my wife's fave, oddly.

x-post

I heard "Revenge" the other day and, man, that's a dull one. It takes a lot to make Clem Burke sound like a drum machine. I genuinely prefer "Savage," which has "You Have Placed A Chill In My Heart" and "I Need You."

In The Garden”
“Belinda “
“Never Gonna Cry Again”
“Revenge”

Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)
“Love Is A Stranger”
“I Could Give You (A Mirror)”
“The Walk”
“Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)”
“This Is The House”

Touch
“Here Comes The Rain Again”
“Right By Your Side”
“Who's That Girl?”
“Paint A Rumour”

Be Yourself Tonight
“Would I Lie To You”
“Conditioned Soul”
“It's Alright (Baby's Coming Back)”

Revenge
“Thorn In My Side”

good times!

I was sitting in the front row, an industry thing. She came up, cooed a line, and, well, fell out of her top.

I A-Bed that with post New Romantic memories of feeling delightfully miserable while listening to the first three records and experioenced a unique, troubling and sassy frisson.

*actually I liked whole albums when I was prepubescent but haven't listened to any since. except for Savage, which I dug out of a box three years ago when I needed to listen to stuff on tape and was happy to discover that my childhood impression of it being a TOTAL UBERCLASSIC was entirely accurate.!

Has anyone heard the reissues? Much as I dig on these guys I can't say I've been feeling a burning need for remasters, but I am curious about the "Satellite Of Love" and "Last Night I Dreamt..." covers.

What are those crap rockist responses up top?

Tracer Hand was on point - you can never go wrong with "I Need You"

Thanks for the link. And, er, yeah. I forced myself to hang in until the chorus, and it did get better, but... ouch. Fun times in the studio, I guess.

Still haven't heard ITG, but like them very much through Be Yourself Tonight. Revenge is a horror. Savage has a few high points ("You Have Placed a Chill in My Heart").

had never heard In The Garden before a few weeks ago (thx jjj)

had no idea it predicted School of Seven Bells

why did people keep bothering to make music after her e comes rhe rain agian

no less important a question sober

Dud.

Nonsense. "Love is a stranger" is one of the greatest songs of all time and would be my favourite First album First track were it not for the over-underrated first album. For that song alone this band achieves sainthood and "Savage" is a great album too

Until I heard Sweet Dreams.... a few years ago I thought it'd be the precursor for the realization that's Touch; instead it's the latter that sounds tentative.

I really love Savage too.

It's all about the first 3 albums. There are good songs after that, but the whole arc of those first 3 is an amazing collection of music that spans from kraut rock to top of the charts.

I became a Eurythmics freak after hearing the Sweet Dreams album at 12, it was the first music I really engaged with. There is a lot of interesting stuff there like The Walk and This City Never Sleeps which holds up well now. A decade later I interviewed Dean Garcia from Curve who also played on Sweet Dreams and Touch, which was a little surreal. 1984 is vastly underrated in my book, despite the dated production in places.

"Love is a stranger" is one of the greatest songs of all time

OTM

Seconded - flamboyant goon tie absolutely OTM.

I should listen to 1984 more.

hard to pick a greatest between "love is a stranger" and "sweet dreams". not hard to pick between those two and most everything else under the sun.

Hearing "Right By Your Side" for the first time in probably 20 years, and it sounds better than 80s calypso should. Nice.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/6/69/Eurythmics_RBYS.jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WLgMgiQPRI

TPL gets to 1984 with a 1983 album: they don't know what love is - or do they? http://nobilliards.blogspot.co.uk/2014/03/eurythmics-touch.html

thinking about the eurythmics just makes me think of the smell of charity shops

Remarkably, I now prefer its predecessor. Still, it's amazing that the American public took the album into the top ten despite the presence of the harsh effects-laden songs on the B.

never heard savage before today, holy shit what a record

isn't it something? Revenge was their biggest worldwide hit and their worst album to date: they went for a mullet-and-guitar-wank arena sound. Suddenly at the peak of their power they returned to what sounds like demos.

Savage sounds enormously produced and polished!

Not to my ears. Take "I Need You" or "I've Got a Lover" -- Eury is back to Lennox-Stewart and no sidemen.

I Need You is a deliberate anomaly on an album that opens with Beethoven setting the tone

ever heard savage before today, holy shit what a record

― emo canon in twee major (BradNelson), Sunday, March 30

sort of envious of this, like I get when people say "oh i think i'm going to start The Wire."

Savage really is immense.

Title track kills me every time. I just realised the percussion is the same drone-and-thwack I love in Björk's "All is Full of Love" video mix.

Heard a couple of tracks from their debut today, pretty good! I could go for a proper anthology but it appears all their comps are just the singles. Boo...

Ha, I bought the debut recentlty, still plucking up the courage to actually play it!

no courage necessary, the debut is great.

probably seen this already, but this is an early OGWT performance with holger czukay and clem burke:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N7VqGt5dzQc

"here comes the rain again" has got to be one of history's most underrated songs

History loves this song.

for a band whose strengths seemed to lie in icy cold synthpop, there sure are a lot of shitty sounds on these records, especially when they try to incorporate more "exotic" or "world music" touches

shittier or less shitty than the coral sitar on "don't come around here no more?"

"here comes the rain again" has got to be one of history's most underrated songs

― Treeship, Tuesday, July 26, 2016 6:39 AM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

History loves this song.

― The burrito of ennui (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Tuesday, July 26, 2016 7:04 AM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

angelus novus, what's on yr ipod

I admit I like the fake sitar on the Petty tune :)

I do my best

To clarify: the theatrical rights belong to Warner, not me. The people making this musical have been working with Warner, and there are no copyright infringement issues here! I was just taken by surprise; I think they all thought someone else was in charge of letting me know?

— Audrey Niffenegger (@AANiffenegger) March 5, 2021

dangit, meant to link yesterday's original tweet:

Should I know about this? https://t.co/BRrpxTofSj

— Audrey Niffenegger (@AANiffenegger) March 4, 2021

maybe they already told her in the future

Just saw that Stewart is touring the "Eurythmics Songbook" at the moment. Shame Lennox isn't on board for this, as she doesn't seem to be doing much these days.