Steve McQueen

I loved this album

Fav song: When the Angels

в целом средне. но «Desire as» настолько красивая…

Best: Bonny and When Love Breaks Down Worst: Horsin' around inget speciell som kittlar sådär supermycket, men inte dåligt heller

I will say, I thought it was preeeetty good...I like the production a lot, especially. And I liked the drums. Even though it struck me pretty quickly, it wasn't very good at keeping my interest. There's a lot to like here, I think the album sounds great, but it's really just...not my thing. Sorry, that one guy on Discord who was begging me to listen to this.

- i like appetite a lot - fun to listen to even tho it's not exactly my cup of tea - also liking goodbye lucille #1 - horsin around fun too - i don't think i would listen to this album again but i am enjoying it so rating is hard... i've been to lenient with 3 star reviews

mmmmm okey. Not bad pero tampoco well.

I'd say that this is pretty middle-of-the-road 80s music.

It's possible that these songs aren't that bad, but the 80s production is not for me. It's all too cheesy and soft sounding.

So, so much filler in this list. And it's not even good filler. It's just, we need albums! What's in the pound bin at the British vinyl shop?

va någe kule sanger på dette albumet, men det var egt ganske kjedelig å litt struggle å komme seg gjennom.

It started out okay but then started to progressively get on my nerves. Sounds like a lot of the other music of the era.

That’s great 80s Album.

Throw on your glasses and become the legend

Стеклянный саунд и какие-то гейско ковбойские напевы я нифига не понял

Correct album mais c’est pas trop mon genre, comme du country/pop. L’instrumental se ressemble trop.

Prefab Sprout make wonderfully dreamy music. Faron Young and When Love Breaks Down are great tracks and whilst the rest of the album doesn’t quite live up to this standard it all floats along pleasantly

This is very odd because, while this felt like the longest 45mins of my life, I still enjoyed it. The first half, in particular, was great - I did feel the quality died off a little in the second half, however. And, as always, Paddy McAloon is an astonishing songwriter.

Another classic 'know the name, couldn't tell you anything* about them' artist for me. I really liked the first song which reminded me of The Clash. I'm pretty sure Steven Page pinched the jingly jangly guitar guitar hook on Bonny to use on one of his solo albums (and therefore I really liked it). Appetite dialled up the 80s considerably - not my favourite track although I like "if you steal, be Robin Hood" as a lyric. When Love Breaks Down was also extremely 80s but I liked the vocals a lot. Paddy McAloon has a really lovely voice. Goodbye Lucille was so close to being a really lovely song but for me, far too many "oooooh, Johnny Johnny Johnny" refrains happened in 4 1/2 minutes (again loved the vocals). Hallelujah was funky. I liked the premise of Moving The River being a bit like a one-sided conversation and the lyrics "But I'm turkey hungry, I'm chicken free" made me laugh. Horsin' Around is great: genuinely loved that song, especially when the walking bass started and it got weird. Desire As - two songs in a row that mention jam, eh? Interesting common thread. Blueberry Pies gave more funky weirdness and lyrics I really enjoyed. Finally When The Angels was a great way to finish an album that kinda surprised me. I actually really enjoyed this overall. Probably a 3.5, but it's getting rounded up because I definitely wanted to listen to it again. 4/5 *Anything except "Hot dog, jumping frog, Albuquerque" anyway.

I'd heard of this band, but I never listened to any of their work. After listening to this album, I know I wouldn't have liked this music back in 1985 because I don't like it now. White bread 80's pop blah.

3 out of 5. Ok 80's music, some nice melodies here.

Don't know how to describe it. Technically from the 80s, but didn't have that overproduced/synthy quality I associate with that. I liked it, 3*

Honestly not bad for the UK slop on here

Actually much cooler than I thought it would be at first. Good songs and superb production (by Thomas Dolby as it turns out).

Meget lille 3'er. Ikke noget, er vider sig fast, men heller ikke trælst at lytte til. De akustiske versioner faldt nok mere i min smag men hører vist ikke til albummet. Det er bare endnu en af de der irriterende ting ved Spotify og deres evigt udvidede versioner.

Fun as heck ! Felt like bouncing through an English field on a nice day with your loved one. Loved that single, Bonny on this.

One of my all time favorite pop albums from the eighties.

Good album, very jazzy and I enjoy the sophisti-pop 4/5

I quite enjoyed this. Feels harsh calling it an 80s pop record, as that doesnt do it justice. It is an 80s pop record, but it sounds a lot better than that. The lyrics are better, the songs are better put together. It’s quite varied too, one song sounded like Smiths, the next like War On Drugs. I preferred I Trawl The Megaherz, it’s more interesting, more unique. But this is very good. Probably a 3.5 rounded up

Know the name prefab sprout but no music, for some reason I thought they were punkier and more alternative than this. Ah they are from Newcastle, thats probably why. More sophistipop though on the lighter side, not simply red etc levels. Very overproduced and just generally smug sounding but there were some nice progressions here and there, quite liked horsin around and some other bits. So a general sound I dont like but not completely unenjoyable. 2.5

Never heard of Prefab Sprout so had no idea what to expect. Initially I thought this might be quite interesting, but I think it all just went a bit 80s pop unfortunately. There were some more promising bits though 2

At first the music was nice to listen to, and his voice was pleasant enough. But by the midpoint of the album I was looking forward to the album being over (not a good quality). Fine, but less than the 50% mark. 2.4/5 -> 2/5

#465 A band name I’ve always known without ever knowing their music. The opening track certainly piqued my interest, and I was struck by how well this was crafted and produced but ultimately, the more the album went on, the more I realised it wasn’t quite my thing. Heard before? ❌ Would I revisit? ❌ Listen before you die? ✅ Fave track(s): Faron Young Rating: 6/10 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Whispy 80’s soft rock British

Ok pop

I did not like the first song, but I’m glad I didn’t let it influence the rest because I really enjoyed this! It felt very 80s and was fun and dreamy. I can’t believe I’ve never heard of them before!

Several songs are amazing - some not so much 3/5

Never heard of this band, man was I pumped during that first track. It has a cool kind of country twang mixed just right with 80's synth. I was ready for a cool experimental type 80's album, it was not that. This went south fast, the second song was decent then I was ready to pull the plug after track 3. The rest of the album was just ho-hum 80's jazz pop, nothing special or different and frankly boring. I didn't hate it but didn't like it either aside from the first and last tracks.

diários de motocicleta

Expected the worst. Started off quite surprised that it was pretty decent music... then hit that 80's corny fake piano synth sound that INSTANTLY annoys me. Then back to half decent music. This is has ENGLAND written all it, and belongs on the Twin Peaks soundtrack. I am giving it 3 stars, but it very likely only deserves 2... actually... 2.5 stars it is.

Pretty decent for an 80s album actually. But still an 80s album

Sort of okay at points? Almost good, maybe?

Dosadno dosta, baš ništa mi nije napravilo. 1/5, 1/10

It’s good but a bit mono paced and same-y not as good as swoon.

Sort of like a jangly Steely Dan? Cool album, and at first I didn’t know what to think of the slower second half. I’ve grown to like it more, but I still wonder why they decided to slow it down so much.

This is nearly classic 80's brit-pop material but there's this annoying thing where the lyrics are filled with scansion errors and just...odd as fuck. Sometimes it's amazing only to fall out of rhythm again? It's really off-putting and makes no sense given what competent musicians they are. That said it's a really endearing album with the some very clever lyrics.

If someone asked me to write a soundtrack to a formulaic 1980’s movie—where there’s love, heartbreak, and some sort of fast driving scene of angst—this is what I would write. Despite being more lyrics first when listening to music, I found myself drawn into the music first on this record. The vocals felt kind of vanilla to me, but it was a fun listen for someone with vivid memories of and nostalgia for the 1980’s.

4.5/10. I didn't enjoy the slowness that they brought, but tried to push through a pop lens. It just didn't work, and for most of the album I just felt that it dragged on for not much reason. I won't be listening to it again, it simply felt too boring of music. The atmosphere they created makes you feel it well, but other than that it wasn't stand out in any way.

Pleasant but not very memorable. I didn't mind having it on in the background, it was pleasant enough to work too. I am not sure what the right way to phrase this is in a music context, but there were moments where the album felt corny/dated... However, the music had a crisp sound to it, which I liked! Favorite Tracks: Bonny Horsin Around

Every Mother's Son's Romantic 1001 Albums Generator 357 (9/24/2026) This is a really nice, smooth rock (?) album, but a lot of the slow moments are overly cheesy. 3.5/5, rounded down to 3. Favs: Faron Young Appetite Horsin' Around Least Fav: Desire As

#477/1001. Kind of in the middle 80s: not super indie, not super jazz, not super electronic, not super good hit songs. Interesting, might get some time to dive into the album, but I'm not giving this a super good rating (yet).

Going in, know that you're listening to an album in the Crowded House/Dream Academy/Squeeze/XTC sort of 80's Britpop. Once you get in the mindset, this is downright enjoyable.

M’oui chiant

J'ai plutôt bien aimé la vibe!

I'm missing something of they are. It's really fitting they'd take the name and image of something that was more culturally relevant to latch onto. I can hear motivations and inspirations this works with but overall I can't find much of anything on why this is worth listening to. Goodbye Lucille #1 is probably my favourite part of the album.

A pretty good production. The songs are solid enough that the 1980s stink didn't bother me as much. A pretty good album, but don't see myself revisiting it.

Soft pop-y rock. Not as bad as it could've been. Still very unmemorable.

As of writing this review this album has exactly a 3.0, and I get it but this is still a cool album. It's a bit twee and pretty British, but it's good soft pop.

Twee rubbish

wait loved

Constant distractions this week prevented single through listen; rather small chunks over several days. A disadvantage for sure. In the end: rather overwhelming sense of blah. Nothing offensive. But nothing curious either. 3/5

"Steve McQueen" makes me nostalgic for simpler times with its clean, sophisticated 80s production. It takes a few listens for it to "sprout" on you. Didn't quite get it on first listen, but when my playlist put it on shuffle a few times I got the vibe of going back home at night on the train.

British pop you say? What a surprise to find that on the list!

Man... that first half had me convinced I had just discovered the most underrated album of all time and was just about ready to slap a five star review on it. I already know Bonny and Appetite are going to wind up somewhere in my Wrapped of this year. But yeah, the second half is decent but nowhere nearly as great as the first five tracks. Paddy is pretty much a true genius, but some songs are simply more true genius than others. Still, this is one of my favourite discoveries on this entire list.

これはまじであんまり。 どんな曲が良かったとかないし、思い出せない

Overall: 10/10 This is such a beautiful pop rock album. The vocals are killer and I love the female backing vocals. The guitars are crisp, the bass is great and the drums are relaxing. I love this so much. Fav Song: When the Angels

хороший альбом

This is... fine, but unremarkable.

More '80s British background-pop. Not a song, hook, or even a moment that was remotely memorable.

Nice easy listen but also extremely boring. Unfortunately a common theme I'm noticing is a lot of very ordinary albums but the artist is obscure and maybe influential so it's thrown on the list but some other more deserving albums are snubbed completely

Britslop. My fav

This was really great! I'd never heard of them before but the songwriting is awesome. Beautiful lyrics and great 80s production all round

the lyrics were utter shite

Not bad. Kinda fun

Starts of pretty good but the singer is a little annoying to me. It's unfortunate because the instrumentals are really good but his attempts at sounding gentle are quite a turn off for extended listening.

Quite enjoyed this and recognised a few of the tracks, probably won't listen again but wasn't bad by any means

fun!

Very pleasantly surprised by this. I was expecting some fairly standard, mildly irritating jangly indie pop; but what I got was an album packed with pristine melodies, subtle jazz-esque complexities to the songwriting and some tearjerking lyricism focusing on themes of romance and nostalgia. The album undoubtedly has a glossy sheen to it, but that doesn't come at the sacrifice of character or ingenuity in the songwriting. The production manages to make the listening experience feel sweeping and cinematic, yet warm and intimate at the same time. It's also very cleverly crafted in a lyrical sense through its intriguing wordplay, but it remains emotionally resonant. It perhaps lacks huge, instantly beltable refrains, but more or less everything here was pleasurable to my ears, aside from a bit of a downturn with the last few tracks.

surprisingly ok

It was fine, it's forgettable, and not something I would go back and listen to again.

Drifted a bit at the end, but otherwise a lovely listen that I'd never listened before.

This is soooo up my alley. I loved this ❤️

You know, I am a kid of the 80s. Get X through and through. And the truth is there was this strain of music that I did not listen to then, and don't really want to now. This. Prefab Sprout. Style Council. It's fine, they think they were so great they needed to make an acoustic record (which honestly was better).

Upside: mellow, well executed jazzy new wave pop, perfectly “80s”. Paddy McAloon writes perfect songs for his vocal style and range. Entertaining, romantic and melancholic in turn. This type of music is really easy to get wrong but there’s a necessary sophistication here that carries this. The Thomas Dolby production is crisp, and the band is tight while remaining ever so slightly funky. Downside: a bit milquetoast. Overly smooth when some of the themes want more edge. Appetite and Horsin’ Around are standouts and McAloon has a great voice. Really enjoyable if you’re in the mood for some mid-eighties stylish new wave pop

Quite an entertaining album, at times it really soars and feels quite euphoric to listen to. Sadly, other times it falls a bit flat and makes for a mixed bag of songs.

I'm supposed to like these guys. Can't say that I do.

An uninspired, middle-of-the-road 80s album. It avoids the classic 80's glam/pop trend, but fails to achieve anything noteworthy

Two classic songs, Appetite and When Love Breaks Down, here. But the '80s production taints it in the same way band such as Deacon Blue and others suffered. Would be good to hear it performed today.

Very much a product of it's time. Feels right at home in the sophisti-pop kind of music genre. When Love Breaks Down was a really good song, easily one I'll continue to listen to. The rest is fine as well but sorta filler in comparison. That said, good album to listen to. It goes for a certain vibe and just manages to keep that steady the entire runtime.

Kinda nice easily listening but I think it’s kind of overshadowed by the heavy hitters of that time period.

This was a really sweet surprise. Very British, very loaded with catchy pop hooks. I was immediately taken with this after hearing the line "as obsolete as warships in the Baltic."

Favorite tracks: Bonny, Horsin' Around What a goddamn delight! Feels like eaaarly emo. Great melodies and lyrics, and I loved both vocalists' voices. Horsin' Around sounds like a Bill Wurtz song. Man, just really loved this.

It's just 80s pop music. Nothing very special about it but it's certainly not bad. He's got a lovely voice.

Very 80s but not in a bad way

jako generično za 80-e, al uopće nije loše. ima i dosta dobrih momenata, ali i nekih presladunjavih i danas pomalo zastarjelih, pa eto jedna lijepa trojka

Very solid brit-pop that didnt necessarily Wow me. But still very enjoyable

You'd like a nice cup of tea. The only teabag you have is a dried up old thing stuck to the bottom of a cup from yesterday that has already been steeped twice. You add warm water and savor...nothing but vaguely tea-flavored water. This was just like that.

This is an album stamped by the period it was released. Is there still a place in the world for these albums released towards the end of the new wave era. This is a good record with a truly terrific singer in Paddy McAloon. The real issue with the record for me when it came of was that this record was so similar to other artists mining the same pop territory such as Spandau Ballet, Book of Love and the Bluebells. If Prefab Sprout was the only band in this niche, they would standout. For the most part, the songs are catchy pop songs that are simple enough you can sing-a-long on the first pass. Truly standout tracks are Bonny and When Love Breaks Down. I can see the comparisons to Elvis Costello and Joe Jackson but the vocals are so clean that you understand exactly what is being communicated. For 1985 this was a top pop record but in no way does it belong on this list. Unfortunate but true. Is it a good listen? Certainly. However, it is now and will always remain a change of pace record to be brought out once in a blue moon in order to rediscover its undeniable charm. 3/5

A beautiful, very British piece of melancholy but not too melancholy and not too 80s. As I relisten, as my sister is about to die, the album (extended version with bonus tracks) is one of the most beautiful and calming things I've ever listened to. "Desire As" acoustic as a balm for your soul.

Day 22 Faron Young had me fearful but it slowly redeems itself. Not entirely. Another case of a frontloaded start. Fav track: When Love Breaks Down