an album that has more depth and identity than you'll find almost anywhere.....
| Saturday, September 1, 2001 - 07:00 |
If ever there was a band that made the great escape from the 'whatever happened to' folder, it's The 4 Of Us. Last year's album 'Classified Personal' was their first album since 1992's 'Man Alive', after which they pulled one of the great Irish disappearing acts.
'Off The Record' is in many ways a 'Thus far/best of' album, but with something different. The band have reworked many of their old favourites and mixed them with three tracks from 'Classified Personal'. For anyone familiar with the band's previous material, the new versions take a bit of getting used to.
'Drag My Bad Name Down', which opened their 1990 debut 'Songs For The Tempted' starts things off here. Aside from the lyrics and key chords, this version bears few similarities to its original. From a youthful burst of pop, it's been moulded into a sombre ballad that leaves you with a completely different impression of what they're trying to tell you.
'The Girl Next Door', 'Washington Downs' and 'Possessed' work beautifully, but the versions of 'She Hits Me' and their biggest hit 'Mary' take a little getting used to. The quality of both songs is still fully intact, but there are a number of changes that are unexpected.
For someone listening to the band for the first time, this will come across as an album that has more depth and identity than you'll find almost anywhere. Call it fear of change or plain stubbornness, but altering a proven formula can often have this kind of initial effect.
Daniel Hegarty
