The J. Geils Band: Love Stinks CD Track Listing

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The J. Geils Band Love Stinks (1980)
Originally Released 1980\nCD Edition Released May 1, 1992\n\nAMG EXPERT REVIEW: Released some two years after the band's EMI debut, Sanctuary, the Love Stinks project would see the J. Geils Band going in an even more commercial-leaning direction than its predecessor. Taking over the main production duties, keyboard player/main songwriter Seth Justman set out to better the band's gold-plus-selling Sanctuary. And to some degree, he wildly succeeded. Although not as consistent or diverse as Sanctuary, Love Stinks would feature one of the band's most recognizable FM songs ever -- the album's infectious title track "Love Stinks." In a live setting, the track would often turn into a veritable tour de force only to be outdone by Peter Wolf's hilarious rap about "Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden smoking weed together," which would introduce the song (often on a nightly basis). "Night Time" is another great, although somewhat typical "rave-on" type of J. Geils song; "No Anchovies Please" is a little strange; and closer "Till the Walls Come Tumblin' Down" is, as the song title hints, just that. Bolstered by "Just Can't Wait," another good album opener, Love Stinks turns out to be solid effort, but one that sounds a little outdated at times due to its acerbic, synth textures. Not one of the band's best overall records but one that would allow the band to outdo itself with the classic Freeze Frame a year later. -- John Franck\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nThe J. Geils Band Enter The 80s In Style, October 1, 2005\nReviewer: The Footpath Cowboy "rockerusa2002" (Kingston, NY United States)\nThe J. Geils Band entered the 80s in style with the album LOVE STINKS, on which they welded their roots in the Memphis-Chicago-Muscle Shoals-St. Louis-New Orleans-Detroit-New York-Kansas City blues/R&B/soul/rock & roll axis to the experiments of the previous albums MONKEY ISLAND and SANCTUARY and streamlined the whole thing into a sleek new sound. The song "No Anchovies, Please" isn't really a song; it's a comedy routine about a woman who becomes the victim of three mad scientists. That said, the best real songs here are "Just Can't Wait", "Come Back", "Takin' You Down", and the title track. This is a great album by a great band.\n\n\nAMAZON.COM CUSTOMER REVIEW\nGeils knows how to mix rock, dance, and humor, February 21, 1999\nReviewer: rickshaw@telusplanet.net (Calgary, Canada)\nOK, I admit it: this takes me back to the high school days of crack a few cases and turn the tunes up really high. In those pre-CD days, you had to be careful to mount your turntable out of the way of the pulsing speakers and the out-of-control dancers who got off on the music. This one was a standard. Peter Wolf manages to sing like he's got a joke that he's just dying to share with you except when he's pulling out the soul on Desire. Magic Dick on the harp blows energy to match the great guitar leaps and bounds of J. Geils (himself) and the Steve Winwood-esque manic accuracy of Seth Justman on keyboards. If you go through life without hearing "No Anchovies Please" then you've had a sad, miserable and partially empty existence. I am desperately hoping that the Coen Brothers eventually film it. Bottom line: rock and pop and dance and all the genres that music has divided into nowadays used to exist in a sort of frenzied detente and this album represents the best of what can happen when it happens.\n\n\nHalf.com Details \nProducer: Seth Justman \n\nAlbum Notes\nJ. Geils Band: J. Geils (guitar); Seth Justman (vocals, keyboards); Stephen Bladd (vocals, drums); Peter Wolf (vocals); Magic Dick (harmonica, alto saxophone); Daniel Klein (bass).\n\nRecorded at Long View Farm, Massachusetts.\n\nAfter spending the 1970s as a hard-touring rock band with a few hits sprinkled here and there, the J. Geils Band retooled their sound for 1980's LOVE STINKS. The album resulted in the band's first ever back-to-back set of gold certified albums (1978's SANCTUARY reached the half million mark as well), which showed that in addition to their legion of longtime fans, newer fans were just discovering the band as well.\nSynthesizers became an integral part of the J. Geils Band's sound around this time, making their albums from here on out much more radio friendly. The decade-old band wasn't afraid of the new promo video marketing tool, as several of the tracks were made into short films--the humorous rock of the title track (an early MTV favorite), as well as the almost disco sounds of "Come Back."\n\nIndustry Reviews\nRanked #8 in CMJ's Top 20 Most-Played Albums of 1980.\nCMJ (01/05/2004)\n\nROLLING STONE REVIEW\nLike The Beatles and the Rolling Stones, the J. Geils Band got its start by churning out loving, frantic cover versions of R&B, blues and Fifties rock 'n' roll classics. While the Beatles and Stones moved on to find their own niches (mostly because of the compositional abilities of Lennon-McCartney and Jagger-Richards), the lack of a solid writer always held J. Geils back. However, on the group's last two albums, Monkey Island and Sanctuary, Peter Wolf and Seth Justman finally seemed to have developed a strong songwriting flair. "Surrender," "You're the Only One," "Sanctuary" and "One Last Kiss" were fine rock numbers, and the future looked bright. Unfortunately, the promise of those two LPs makes Love Stinks more than a little disappointing.\n\nThings start out okay with "Just Can't Wait," an infectious uptempo pop rocker that boasts an irresistible hook and a catchy, handclap-dominated chorus. Later, the Strangeloves' Sixties classic, "Night Time," gets treated with energy and conviction. "Till the Walls Come Tumblin' Down" is a typical Geils raveup, excitingly propelled by the band's airtight rhythm section.\n\nBut the rest of the record is plagued by indifferent material and Seth Justman's bloated, uneven, synthesizer-dominated production. "Come Back" spotlights a Eurodisco feel that simply sounds incongruous, while the title track is marred by banal lyrics and a mundane melody. "Tryin' Not to Think about It" carries a heavy-metal intro that seems unconnected to the body of the tune. "No Anchovies, Please" is an embarrassing talking song that could be a Firesign Theater reject.\n\nLove Stinks is a step backward for J. Geils. One can only hope that whatever inspired the group on Monkey Island can be rediscovered and used again. Indeed, some inspiration would appear essential if the J. Geils Band is going to evolve toward a more distinct and original musical identity. (RS 314 - Apr 3, 1980) -- ED LEVINE
This rock cd contains 9 tracks and runs 37min 40sec.
Freedb: 6308d209
Buy: from Amazon.com

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