Parklife

"Parklife" was the third studio album from Blur. Released in 1994 it marked a strong upturn in both the popularity of the London band and the quality of the songs they produced. " Leisure " was good but lacked the punch needed to make it super duper great, while " Modern Life Is Rubbish " was let down by several tunes that sounded too similar to one another. But "Parklife" was where the band really found its mojo, and the timing couldn't have been any better. Oasis would hit the scene that same year . A Britpop battle was on the horizon. The appeal of "Parklife" is that it's an album that gets stronger and stronger the more you hear it. One playthrough and there's a tune that gets stuck in your head. One more and another one gets in there. Soon you'll find yourself listening to the album "just one more time" just to find out if your ears will fall in love with any particular tune. This will happen quite a few times, trust me. So onto the highlights. Two of the best tracks on the album are two classic pieces that have been played numerous times on the radio and on music channels, GIRLS AND BOYS and PARKLIFE. The former is a disco-ish track about being on holiday, having fun and trying to get laid; and while the latter is more spoken than sung it's a true blue cockney anthem that will make every Londoner stand up, salute and generally feel proud of where they come from. Both songs are upbeat, bring back fond memories of the 90's, and are simply great. Also on the list of "must hear" songs we have TRACY JACKS, a lively piece of light rock about a middle aged guy going through a mid life crisis. The faint use of violins in the background adds to its liveliness and makes it worth several plays. TO THE END appears to be about being immature and drunk. The delicate mixture of rock and classical make it a good night time listen. Also we have LONDON LOVES, a rock tune where the drums and guitars work beautifully in tandem while talking about a rich man and his liking of speeding around London in a flashy motor car. TROUBLE IN THE MESSAGE CENTRE is pretty good as well, mainly because -well to me at least- the old-school techno sounding notes in the verses are reminiscent of a SEGA Mega Drive video game. CLOVER OVER DOVER is about suicidal man planning to jump off the cliffs of Dover, but wants to make sure he's wrapped up any loose ends in his life before doing so. Despite the depressing story this is another tune that grows on you over time due to its decent blend of instruments. The way lyrics come out in the chorus is rather appealing as well. Meanwhile MAGIC AMERICA -which is about wanting to live in the land of Stars & Stripes- is a winner due to its strong energetic drum beat; and the way the lyrics in the chorus segments are sung, like CLOVER, are pretty good. "He wants to go to ma-gic A-me-ri-ca" is a line you'll be singing for a while after you've stopped playing the album. In terms of bad songs we have BANK HOLIDAY. It has a really fast tempo and is overloaded with lyrics about stuff to do on a bank holiday. I think the message is bank holidays are short, so make the most of them and do as much fun stuff as possible, just like the layout of the song. It's a clever idea in theory, but in terms of execution it just doesn't work. FAR OUT is just bland from start to finish; while THE DEBT COLLECTOR sounds like something you would hear on a 1950's merry-go-round with its use of trombone and clarinet. It's good...if you're about 200 years old. The good news is this trio of bad songs don't last very long (THE DEBT COLLECTOR is the longest at 2:10), so if you insist on listening to them out of curiosity at least you won't be tortured for long. Overall "Parklife" is a high quality album worthy of 5-Stars and the purchase, and not even the content of the previous paragraph can lower that score. Oh, one more thing: Read the review title out loud in a cockney drool and you'll understand what I was trying to do. Clever, ain't it?

As the album that made Blur the defining Britpop band, it's also the definitive Britpop album. As an exploration of working class Britain to doolalling over the thoughts of Magic America and Bank Holidays, and just overall over-the-top pop harkening back to the four boys in mops, it's one to own. 1. Girls and Boys: A fun, jumpy opener that kicks off by telling you Blur is in it for the entertainment, with an added touch of social commentary thst is the unifying concept of the album. 2. Tracy Jacks: No idea who Tracy Jacks is, but I'm guessing she's some young lady with a lust for life, albeit she's runs around naked, and thinks being normal is overrated. Great cowbell beat and an all round catchy number. 3. End of a Century: The first understated acoustic number on the album is a nice little Beatlesque song. Not much else to say really. 4. Parklife: oooohhh Everyone knows this one. Phil Daniels from Quadrophenia has the perfect accent to accent (no pun intended) and critique words that reflect working-class Brits. Everyone should be bobbing and singing along to this one. 5. Bank Holiday: Punkish, brief number that justs hits you with furious guitar, noise and talk of BBQs. 6. Badhead: This lament to a love floating away is definitely the most poignant the band has offered. We need something distinct after this to break the soft mood. I know, hows about... 7. The Debt Collector:... A drunken instrumental! Perfect for brass bands who can't take themselves too seriously. 8. Far Out: BLUR DOING A PINK FLOYD RIPOFF?! I'LL BE... amused. :) Bassist Alex James takes vocal duties to very accurately pay tribute to one of Psychedilia's defining artists, Syd Barrett. These guys are chroniclers of all things poppy, and this quick one shows. 9. End of a Century: All I say for this is please tell me what language the woman is whispering in and what's she saying. 10. London Loves: 11. Trouble in the Message Centre: Here is the menacing one. If Damon Albarn was a phone operator, the world would be a bit more ummmmmm, interesting. 12. Clover over Dover: Nice bit of gentle harpsichord. The best bands embrace the future, but don't embracing the past every once and a while. 13. Magic America: Magic America my arse!! Don't go if you want to meet people who don't even what, WHAT the United Kingdom is. Mind you, the food looks plentiful. Oh yeah the song. Just bloody listen to it. Don't listen to me. What do you think I am, a critic?! 14. Jubilee: Just your typical Sex Pistols thig-fest nicely done. Should be the Diamond Jubilee No. 1. 15. This is a Low: Epic way to finish the album, as swirls of guitar and soaring choruses bring this suberb album to a closer. 16. Lot 105: Oh what have we here? Something to break the mood after that big finale. Bit like Red Hot Chili Pepper's cover of They're Red Hot off Blood Sugar Sex Magik, only even more demented if that be possible.

Excelente produto. Recomendo

Parlophone always make great reissues. Any fan of Blur should get this release for a crisp sound.

Le meilleur album de blur

La historia más conocida y mítica del Britpop, fue la real pelea de talento y egos entre Blur y Oasis, las dos bandas inglesas más sobresalientes y talentosas de mediados a finales de la década de los noventas del siglo pasado. Parklife, el tercer álbum de Blur, fue lanzado con algunos meses de diferencia a Definitely Maybe, el álbum debut de Oasis y ambos discos se consideran obras puntales no solo del britpop, sino del movimiento sociocultural que revivió a la clase obrera de Inglaterra bajo la bandera de la “Cool Brittania”. Parklife es un disco que retrata la melancolía de la juventud clase media británica a través de la visión irónica, sarcástica y mordaz de las contradicciones que existen entre el esforzarse para acceder a mejores niveles de vida y, por otro lado, el estar casi al borde de la pobreza en un estado que virtual congelamiento, donde elegir no es opción cuando esta simplemente significa repetir y vivir la misma vida que tus padres al ritmo de refrescantes tonadas pop encadenadas con ritmos duros y riffs de guitarra electrizantes, consolidando el estilo musical de Blur y que tiene su contraparte en el electrizante, duro y a la vez elegante, disco debut de Oasis, quienes embelesan a la clase obrera inglesa con su imagen dura y rebelde que canta exactamente sobre los mismos tópicos que Blur, pero desde una perspectiva más sucia y roquera. Comparaciones aparte, ambos álbumes son ejemplos perfectos de como el arte puede reflejar la época que le toca vivir y volverse referencia clásica sin siquiera pretender aspirar a ello. Un excelente disco que bien merece un lugar en la colección de ustedes. ¡Óigalo recio!

Das ist ein absolutes Sammlerstück, dass in keiner Blur Kollektion fehlen sollte. Super verarbeitete Platte!