lambchops's Full Review: Gold Mother by James (UK Band)
It was with Gold Mother that British musical greats James really made an impression in England. And with the self-titled reissue of the disc and re-recording of Sit Down the album was an eventual minor hit stateside and allowed for a major hit in Laid just a few years later.
Formed in 1982, James was always the brainchild of Tim Booth. Despite the many rotating members of the band throughout it’s nearly two decades in existence, the music changed little. A thoughtful, energetic, yet mellow brand of college rock/folk/baggy the band went on to release their debut EP Jimone in late 1983. Throughout the band’s career they released about a zillion EPs and singles…so many that it is quite a chore to collect them all. With that said, the band finally released their first LP, Stutter, in 1986.
Stutter wasn’t well received, but the band persisted and released two more albums (1988’s Strip-Mine and 1989’s One Man Clapping) before finally hitting pay dirt with Gold Mother in 1990. Produced by Flood (U2, Depeche Mode, Smashing Pumpkins, Erasure, etc…) the album was released on Fontana. At the time of the recording Booth was of course in the front with vocals and wrote the lyrics while Jim Glennie (bass guitar), Larry Gott (guitar), Mark Hunter (keyboards), Saul Davies (guitar, violin), Andy Diagram (trumpet), and David Baynton-Power (percussion) all added nicely to the at times diverse musical mix.
Kicking off with Come Home, Gold Mother is a strange although refreshing combination of rock rhythms and keyboards. It would seem an unlikely amalgamation, but in the case of James, it seems to work quite well most of the time. Come Home whirrs and whips in celebration yet in typical post-1990 Booth manner seems somewhat detached. Despite that minor flaw, the song is wonderful and an obvious instant classic.
And I can't believe you're all I'll ever need
And I need to feel that you're not holding me
And the way I feel just makes me want to scream…
Government Walls is an equally powerful song in a pseudo-political sort of way. Ignoring the U2-esque pleas to break down the government walls, the song is a somewhat depressing rock-dance-alternative track. It is pseudo-political because little of what is said is earth shattering or even that interesting. The beat and what not are entertaining, but the lyrics leave the listener wanting more…and not getting it:
In China, they murder
Their youth
Who are questioning
How their lives are controlled
God Only Knows, while employing a vaguely tribal beat, is at its heart a alternative dance-rock track similar to many throughout the band’s second decade of music. It doesn’t particular interest…Booth just seems to have gone off the deep end. Rather than appealing to the masses, it appeals to him…and nobody else to speak of. Fortunately, How Much Suffering is a great follow-up. It’s understated and nicely arranged and probably one of the most user friendly tracks on this album.
Opening with a soulful trumpet, Crescendo is a mild adult-contemporary track. Booth’s vocals are pristine as are the delicate backing voices. And when the distinctive guitars/bass guitar and keyboards are added to the equation the resulting vision is evocative and intelligent. It is difficult to not get great joy and sadness out of this song:
I'm afraid of loneliness
Swallowing me.
How Was It for You is an incredibly fun track, one that probably should have gotten more attention stateside. Fortunately, it was released as a single in Britain and would later get more exposure on the Best of… collection in 1998. While the music and melody portions of the song are impressive, the fact remains that it’s lyrically not up to par even with some of the other tracks on this album. If you can overlook the repetitive stupidity of the lyrics, it’s easy to love How Was It for You.
Even at the album’s release in 1990, Hang On was dated. It feels a bit like a second hand new wave song from 1984. Then again, Booth manages to salvage the song from failure. His uniquely styled vocals raise the track to average status. Also of minimal interest is Walking the Ghost. While the track is reminiscent of earlier folk releases from James, it doesn’t fit too neatly into the scheme of this album. Examined by itself, Walking the Ghost is compelling and lovely and a standout…it’s just too bad that the violin/keyboard/bass guitar driven epic is so out of place.
I'm sensitive to unkindness
stab in the back, burn in the ribs
I need your fingers to straighten my flesh
I hope your fingers are kind
The title track, Gold Mother, is bad. No…really bad…worse than the rest of the offerings on the album and the only truly sub par offering. It’s just too pop, and with the chanting and whistling the melody and song itself are nothing short of laughable. In fact, it sounds vaguely like a bad attempt at ska. Wrapping up with Top of the World was however a good move. Emotional and full of melodramatic ambiance, the track takes full advantage of Flood’s production. It’s here that listeners will feel his influence the most. Booth’s vocals are majestic and delicate. Top of the World is absolutely gorgeous.
Overall, this original version of Gold Mother is a better than average offering. The subsequent identically titled re-release replaced Crescendo and Hang On with the popular radio friendly versions of Lose Control and Sit Down. Just a few months after the release of this album, James appeared in American stores with their self-titled album also including the vast majority of these songs.
In the years that followed the release of Gold Mother, James became popular stateside (hence my knowledge of them) and subsequently disbanded. Throughout the 1990’s they continued to release a string of EPs and singles and even the occasional album. Discs like 1993’s Laid and 1997’s Whiplash were awarded a great deal of attention with Laid probably ranking as the top release of the band’s long career. In 1998, The Best of James hit shelves, and is a great start to any relationship with the Manchester natives. James broke up for good in December 2001.
Rating: 4/5 stars
Track Listing:
01. Come Home
02. Government Walls
03. God Only Knows
04. How Much Suffering
05. Crescendo
06. How Was It for You
07. Hang On
08. Walking the Ghost
09. Gold Mother
10. Top of the World
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