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The La's

The La's

1990

Buy At Rough Trade
The La's
Album Summary

The La's is the only studio album by English rock band the La's, released on 1 October 1990 by Go! Discs. It included "There She Goes", the group's biggest hit, and "Timeless Melody". A deluxe edition of The La's was released on 7 April 2008. In 2013, NME ranked The La's at number 153 on its list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Wikipedia

Rating

3.15

Votes

12803

Genres

  • Pop
  • Rock
  • Britpop

Reviews

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Jul 08 2021
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5

This is unexpectedly excellent! Nearly flawless poppy alt rock. "There She Goes" is properly timeless, as I was very surprised to learn this was its origin - I assumed it must be a cover of something that had been around since the 60s or 70s! There are a lot of great tracks besides that one, though. "I Can't Sleep" and "Timeless Melody" are both awesome, but my fave track award has to go to the closing phantasmagorical wonder "Looking Glass"...

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May 09 2021
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2

‘’The La’s” by The La’s (1990). La? Why La? (inside joke for fans of Derek and the Dominos). “La” is “lad” in Liverpool dialect. I might rather have titled this album “The Ho’s” by The Hums. The songs feature lyrics that employ excessive obscurity in the dutiful service of meaninglessness. The point is, one must assume, not the words, but the sounds. And the sounds are a slight improvement over bad rock from the 60s. On a song entitled “Timeless Melody”, a serious listener would naturally have high expectations for the melody. But nope. Subpar lead vocal which absolutely requires reverb—not good. Otherwise, competent instrumentals and backing vocals, but nothing to applaud. One highlight on this album: “There She Goes” is cool, but when she’s gone, there’s not much left. A one hit wonder from a one album blunder. This album is Herman’s Hermits trying to learn from U2. Keep studying, lads. 2/5

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Dec 21 2022
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1

Okay, it's starting to get pretty obvious that the collective of critics involved in making this list probably leans heavy on British critics who served as tastemakers in the 1980s and the 1990s. That seems like the only logical explanation for what seems like a gross over representation of mediocre and unworthy British albums from the 1980s and 1990s. This album is a perfect example of this. Aside from the hit that everyone knows from so many movies from the 1990s, this album and band is completely inconsequential. Nothing really here at all.

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May 19 2021
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3

As much as I love "There she goes", it can't carry the whole album

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Feb 23 2022
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5

This album does what a lot of albums through the 90s tried to do, but not many came to the level that The La's did. Each song stands alone and has its own character without feeling too uncohesive as a whole for the album. And it's got There She Goes, so...

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May 29 2021
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1

I only knew "There She Goes" from this ("There She Goes" is a 5). So based on that perfect pop song, along with the fact it's on this list, I was expecting great things. It's not the perfect pop album some claim it is. You know what is the perfect pop album from a similar time? "Girlfriend" by Matthew Sweet. Girlfriend is a 5, and somehow that perfect pop album isn't on this list. But The La's is? I don't get it. The album is fine, it just doesn't need to be on this list. Put Matthew Sweet on here instead. Still love "There She Goes" though. But one perfect song does not a great album make.

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Jun 29 2021
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1

Pretty confused on how this album is included in a "must listen before you die" list. It's just generic early 90s alt rock, nothing special to it at all.

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Jan 08 2022
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5

This kinda sounds like if The Beatles had come up during the late 80s alt/college rock scene and I’m all about it.

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Nov 22 2022
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5

It is hard to believe that this is over 30 years old. Most music sounds like it comes from a certain period (the distinctive 80s gated drum sound fr example). Not the La's. This music floats along effortlessly. I was among the cult when this was released in 1990. The cult may have grown out of cult status, but I am still on board. There She Goes is a perfect pop song, but there are many highpoints (Timeless Melody and Looking Glass are exceptional). They may have been a one and done, but it is magnificent one indeed.

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Sep 02 2023
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3

Sometimes I wish Time-Life was still putting out their weird compilations and shilling them on tv via infomercials. I mean, what would a “Alternative Super Hits of the Early 90’s” compilation from Time-Life look like? You’d have your Gin-Blossoms, that awful 4 Non-Blondes song, some Counting Crows, Soul Asylum or maybe Deep Blue Something’s “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” and, of course, “There She Goes” by The La’s. Not a judgement on this record (ok, maybe a little), just that I probably I heard that song a thousands times growing up, but never actually knew who it was by. It just kind of blended into the ether of the 90’s alt rock landscape for me and is associated more with a time and place than an actual band. Like Superdrag…bet you haven’t heard that name in years, but now you’ve got “Sucked Out” stuck in your head, ya weirdo. The La’s debut (and only) album is pretty damn good; concise with well written and enjoyable songs. Ultimately, I like my power-pop to have a little more “power” than “pop”, but it’s a good record nonetheless.

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Oct 14 2022
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1

Hmmm, so I thought this was the worst oasis album, always thought the big song on this album was just the worst oasis song. So my bad. Just really not good

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Dec 20 2022
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1

Budget britpop band cosplaying as REM, the worst of jangle pop meets bland lyrics. There She Goes is still fun though.

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Oct 26 2020
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5

Perfect jangle pop, it's never been done better. If only The La's could have been happy with this album and released many other albums, the world would not have needed or noticed the overrated Oasis. I don't know why the band couldn't be satisfied, but I'm glad, at least, that this got released. It's happy and poppy, yet it is still one of the most enjoyable albums of the 90's

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Mar 30 2022
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5

End to end greatness - snotty, melodic, great musicianship and then there’s ‘There She Goes’ throughly fun and enjoyable.

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Apr 19 2022
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5

Never heard of this band, and this was great! Halfway through the album, brace for a "oh, the version I know (and kind of hate) was a COVER?!"

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Jun 27 2022
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5

I really liked this! Every song was different and engaging and just overall pleasant. I didn’t think it was necessarily groundbreaking but I do think it’s really well done for 90s power pop. On my first listen, I was thinking I would give it a 4, but after listening to twice, I’m giving it a 5 because I plan to keep it on my phone.

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May 12 2024
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5

Wow! I forgot how good this album is.

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Dec 03 2021
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2

This was okay, but no real stand out songs aside from "There She Goes." Everything basically blended together. This whole time I thought a woman sung There She Goes, but I think I was just misremembering the song.

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Jul 11 2021
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5

The definitive scouse album. Cosmic stuff!

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Mar 02 2021
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5

Good album this. There's a smash hit which is not at all representative of the rest, which is a good thing

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Mar 04 2021
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5

This was a good album. I really liked it. The last track was exceptionally great imo. That is all.

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Mar 02 2021
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5

It's brilliant. I think I know every note. The most famous song is probably the worst in it. Like The Stone Roses, just so frustrating they didn't make more at their peak.

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Mar 02 2021
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5

banger pretty fucking good i like yep

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Feb 16 2021
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5

Probably heard this a 100 times and is still awesome.

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Sep 15 2021
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5

One of the greatest songs ever written and some other great songs. I own this on vinyl and couldn't hit the 5 button faster!

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Sep 25 2021
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5

All I knew ahead of time is There She Goes, mostly from So I Married an Axe Murderer (which I watched again this summer and it has held up pretty well). I like this album! Different songs remind me of different bands --- lots of REM sounds, a bit of U2 and The Beatles, British Invasion era Rolling Stones and The Kinks, and even an iota of The Monkees. None of that is bad. The song Feelin' has me feelin' pretty darn good. (It's just too short!) Would have rated it a 4 after the first listen. Rounding up to 5 after the second.

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Oct 05 2021
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5

Really enjoyed this, only knew one song well, but it wasn't even the one I liked most. My favourites were son of a gun, doledrum, timeless melody, and the absolute best was looking glass. Just wish they had done more, but better one 5 🌟 album than five 1 🌟 ones!

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Nov 18 2021
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5

Love it... first 5 star album. Always loved "There She Goes", hadn't heard the rest, and am glad that I did!

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Nov 21 2021
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5

This album surprised me with being better than I thought it would be. Listened to it almost three times in a day. The songs are interesting, and they didn't all sound the same.

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Dec 17 2021
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5

It’s some good Brit pop. And has “there she goes” on it.

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Feb 15 2022
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5

What a fantastic album, captures the spirit and feel of classic 60s British pop (is it Mersybeat) better than any British pop album I can think of. It manages to sound both fresh and nostalgic at the same time. And every song is a winner. Of course the omnipresent There She Gies is the hilight, the song everyone knows but no one knows who sings it. I love this album for its sound, its gorgeous and utterly tasteful production but mostly for its fantastic songs. 5 🌟

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Feb 27 2022
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5

Never heard this before but it’s quite good! Awesome early 90s alt rock. Bit of a “one hit wonder” with There She Goes, but honestly every song on this album could have been a massive hit.

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Mar 19 2022
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5

Really the only question is do you like this style of music...early Kinks, mersey beat, brit jangle pop? Because if you do...this album is quite nearly perfect. Song after song pure pop perfection. Gorgeous melodies, tasteful, beautiful arrangements, sweet ringing guitars. For my sensibilities it is, as said...nearly perfect. 5 🌟

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May 22 2022
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5

A record in my sweet spot, a high water mark of my college radio prime. I still have the vinyl shared promotionally by the record co. Every cut works well on its terms, and the record is the antithesis of the one-hit-wonder in that sense, but it’s hard to believe they never made another album – sound like the perfect got to be the enemy of the good. The final track still amazes, pulling together the records many to build something new; the whole is very much more the sum of its parts, which might also be said of the record a whole.

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Jun 30 2022
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5

Love this album - especially Doledrum.

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Aug 10 2022
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5

Fuck this shit. 5 star. Best album yet.

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Aug 14 2022
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5

Brilliant album. Well worth a listen!

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Aug 23 2022
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5

I really liked this album. I had to turn on the lyrics to understand him but was glad I did. They were rilly gud

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Aug 28 2022
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5

Rubbing my chubby cock on the curtains after dribbling down my ball sack. What a seminal record this is and for me, what a semenal record too. In case if haven't realised, I jizzed and then wiped it on the curtains.

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Sep 02 2022
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5

Wow! I've never heard of this band. This was such an amazing experience! This is why I signed up for this generator. A solid 5/5 a British delight! I can definitely see the influence this band had on other bands I've listened to like The Clinic. Thanks!

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Sep 21 2022
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5

I actually am disappointed this group ended after this, because the album was really strong and punchy. I think if they had written another album they might have become massive successes.

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Oct 10 2022
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5

I have a real soft spot for this album. It has some fantastic songs on it.

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Oct 13 2022
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5

Going in I only knew their hit. The album was really nice. Despite never having heard it, it gave me a pang of nostalgia. And the last song on the album hit me like a ton of bricks. Very glad to have listened.

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Nov 18 2022
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5

An old favorite of mine, that song way out always improves my mood

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Dec 24 2022
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5

Worth owning the album just for of the greatest songs ever written, plus a few other solid tracks. Great Brit Pop.

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Dec 29 2022
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5

This was a big surprise. I thought they were a one hit wonder with There She Goes. But this sounds more at home on 2022 Indie Rock radio than 1990

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Jan 03 2023
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5

This a great opportunity to review a good friend and chat a little! A favorite!

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Jan 09 2023
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5

Every single song is a winner. I love love love this album so much and remember a time pre-Internet when I kept looking for more The La's. I realized I've been rating albums against Sgt. Pepper. Like I rarely give a 5 b/c how can anything come close to Pepper. But I'm seeing that as a mistake and trying to be pure to the question, "is this an album to listen to before you die." The La's is indeed such an album. Simply perfect.

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Jan 09 2023
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5

I first heard ‘There She Goes’ while watching the movie ‘So I Married an Ax Murderer’ in 1993. Thought it was great. Moved on with my life. Then a few years later my great friend Marianne reintroduced me to the band. I borrowed the CD from her and did not want to give it back. Eventually I did after many requests and gentle threats. All of the songs are my favorites!

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Jan 27 2023
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5

For one album with one main hit i was surpirsed how much i enjoyed basically all the songs from this album. it's got a lot to enjoy 1) Strong start. Vibey, captivating lyrically and audio wise. 2) head nodder, a song you can feel in your body, vibey amping up 3) Good 4) funky def a bop 5) There she goes. a classic. its not suprising that its a one hit wonder song. its just interesting that it is considering that its half way into the album and the songs before definitely were good. This song is basically repetitive vibes which i guess fits the people can learn it quickly and obsess over it pipeline. 6) slack jaw groovey 6/10 7) i like it. relateable. almost that surfer rock guitar? 8) a little bit harder and rougher vocally, in a good way, more of a rock and roll influence 9) more rock. def a top 10) ooh i love the vibe switch up. darker, slower pace. love death vibes 11) might be my favorite. full on rockabilly. picking up the pace. 12) its interesting how many of these albums end with an extra long song. this is a good one

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Feb 21 2023
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5

Really enjoyed this, only knew one song well, but it wasn't even the one I liked most. My favourites were son of a gun, doledrum, timeless melody, and the absolute best was looking glass. Just wish they had done more, but better one 5 🌟 album than five 1 🌟 ones

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Mar 06 2023
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5

Probably my favorite that I've gotten so far. I was completely unfamiliar with this album before listening, and it blew me away! Great variety in music and really captures a unique sound that fits right in between 80s pop rock and the onset of grunge.

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Mar 13 2023
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5

Great album - takes me back to my salad days!

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Mar 13 2023
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5

I had no idea this was the group that did "There She Goes" - I've always wondered who did that song! And the rest of the album was great too!

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Apr 08 2023
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5

Pensé que se trataba de un disco de los 60,70, pero no es así porque pertenece al 1990. También me esperaba algo diferente, ya que apuntaba escuchar pop/brit pop/etc, pero tiene un sentido de pertenencia en el folk, lo que hace a este disco hermoso. Es uno de esos proyectos que después de escucharlo decís mierda, que musica hermosa. No entendí las reviews/críticas de que se parece a un disco de los beatles o de oasis cuando los dos son grupos mucho más rockeros. Este disco si se pareciera a algo es a una variación con gran influencia de los beatles en sus discos más experimentales, pero esto sucede principalmente en pocas de las últimas canciones. Lo acústico predomina y por más de que no sea folk es una especie de folk progresivo. Escuché en este disco un poco de harry styles, Radiohead y blur, por lo que enteiendo que la actitud y algunas de las ideas de este grupo influenciaron estos entes musicales. No me aburrió en ningún momento, es más, me conmovió y debo reconocer que es un gran disco. La útima canción no se me hizo pesada y me gustaría qeu esto estuviera en Spotify. Un disco que cierra y dan ganas de tirarse simplemente a escuchar música, las letras en partes defraudan, pero la psicodelia propuesta, la manera en que las melodías que ya escuché no me cansan y la cantidad inmensa de buenos estribillos o frases que se te quedan/llaman la atención para bien hacen que este disco sea una experiencia, una vez más, de música hermosa 9/10.

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May 31 2023
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5

My mate, Peter from Scratches, put me onto this album when it came out. he loved it with a passion, and I loved it too. Is it possibly the album the Beatles might have made in 1965 if they hadn't made it big? The tunes are all first rate, and There She Goes is one of those all-time classic, can't-be-improved, \"play it again\" pop songs. Apparently, Lee Mavers kept re-recording and remixing and polishing the album, and the record company finally took over the tapes and had Steve Lillywhite do a (quite sympathetic) mix for release. Lee immediately disowned the record as not meeting what he heard in his head, and he never recorded again. That left this as one of the perfect one-album bands. (If you look at a list of great single-album bands, many of them are artists who were fairly prolific, but only released a single album in a particular line-up. I mean, Blind Faith and Derrick and the Dominoes often appear in those kinds of list, but you could hardly accuse the members of those bands of being \"single album\" artists). In this case, he NEVER did anything else, leaving this perfect (but possibly imperfect?) single document. It's a massive \"what if\" scenario... I mean, Noel Gallagher took this formula and ran with it to great success. The songs are great, the playing has a charming mid-60s British invasion sound (early Beatles, Byrds, etc) and you can sing along to every song on the record. I have played this album a lot over the past 30 years. I keep a spare copy, just in case one gets damaged. There is never a time that I wouldn't happily throw it on the turntable. This is one of my all-time favourite records, and I find it hard to think of any way to improve it. Five stars.

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May 31 2023
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5

At La’st!!! My album of the 90’s. Still sounding as fresh as ever, over 30 years on. And still waiting for the follow-up. The album ends with an 8-minute epic, Looking Glass, which begins with the lyrics : Oh tell me where I’m going / Tell me where I’m bound. Appropriate. The other 11 tracks average less than 2 & 1/2 minutes in length. Just like an early 60’s album. From Liverpool, The La’s somehow build a bridge from The Fab Four to Oasis with this amazing record. They’re quick out of the gates with Son Of A Gun, and just when you’re loving it, they abruptly end it in less than 2 minutes. (But read the lyrics & then read the lyrics of Flanagan & Allen’s Run Rabbit Run, recorded 50 years before this. Everything the band does here is cleverly conceived). There are no duds here so I ‘ll just mention my highlights - all of them. It never gets boring. There She Goes is deservedly a classic, Timeless Melody is one of Lee Mavers’ finest vocals, Feelin is such a clear nod to The Beatles & tears it up in only 1:45. Freedom Song is unlike the rest of the album, more like a statement than a song. The variety here is rare. I feel lucky to have been enjoying this record for so long now. The best.

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May 31 2023
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5

I love this album and the whole Lee Mavers thing. Firstly great pop songs, not a bad tune on it and secondly the band play it straight which makes for a great listen, with the melodies to the fore at all times. So listen Dimery death freaks and Jennifer Egan fans, pop this one on in the car for a decent road trip and let the whole thing just wash over you. As the 21st century would say, its like, you know, like, awesome. The thing I love about Lee is that he knew he had one shot in the locker, fired it, and checked his weapon. Of the other stuff, Open Your Heart is fabulous, but the rest is pretty basic, this album is the one that works. Lee did it all, went weird in the studio, wanted 1960's dust in his eight track, all that batshit crazy pop songwriter stuff we love, and then retired to live on his There She Goes royalties (About 4,000 pound a month if you are interested synchronized swimming fans). Great pop record.

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Jun 14 2023
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5

Tremendous pop album. Once again a delightful diversity of sound. I keep being surprised by the range of breakout 90's pop-rock bands.

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Oct 30 2023
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5

I adore this album. Of course, everyone knows the big one off of this, but I think the rest of it is excellent as well. The songwriting is top notch and catchy. The whole album, to me, is like the Beatles meets the Who, meets the Violent Femmes. Just a great time front to back.

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Jan 04 2024
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5

1990s English indie/jangle pop at its very best. The songs are varied and each of them are good but they also work so well as an album. 'There She Goes' is one of the most famous songs from the decade and 'Looking Glass' is an epic closer, though all songs are good on this one. Lee Mavers was extremely perfecionist and he was so dissatisfied with the final product after years of working on it, saying it didn't have the right sound and mood that he turned his back on the music industry and 'The La's' remained the one and only album the band made. Wish we knew what sound he wanted to hear; but nevertheless, this is one of my favorites from the 1990s - an excellent album.

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Jan 06 2024
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5

Oh, they wrote that song??? Cool vocals, great instrumentation, some good songs aside from "There She Goes," but does not resonate much with me overall.

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Jan 07 2024
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5

Loved it, didn’t know they were the first to record “There she goes”.

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Jan 17 2024
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5

The only thing wrong with this album is that they didn’t make another one.

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Feb 15 2024
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5

BL: Complete Blind Listen AL: Awesome proto-Britpop album, lots of catchy licks, dreamy vocal performances and generally catchy 90s rock. One of the better hidden gems on this generator so far FT: "Son of a Gun", "I Can't Sleep", "Timeless Melody", "There She Goes", "I.O.U", "Looking Glass" 5/5

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Feb 28 2024
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5

The human mind is an eternal mystery. It's just mind-boggling to think of how Lee Mavers, in his many attempts to capture the "sound" he had envisioned in his head for The La's, has exhausted an army of producers--some of them high-profile, such as John Leckie or Steve Lillywhite--to then just disown the band's first album once it was finally released. Especially when said debut (mostly produced by Lillywhite) is such a gem, convincing both critics and the audience at the time that it was a masterwork of a debut, and still convincing listeners who only discovered it recently (like me). What is it that Mavers heard in that final record that couldn't sustain his high hopes--to the point that he left the music business and has never recorded any other album, nor even reappeared since (except for a few reunion concerts once in a while)? There lies the biggest mystery, suggesting that there's a very thin line separating perfectionism from neurosis--or genius from unrealistic expectations. Oddly enough, the lyrics of old-school sixties rock stomper "Failure", about a character going through the throes of depression, unwittingly shed some light on the sort of issues Mavers probably faced at the time : "No you can't throw failure over your shoulders / If you don't look after - you gonna look back / No, you can't hurry forward...". How many times has Mavers "looked back", instead of looking forward? At the end of this tune, the depressed protagonist elects to leave his self-imposed isolation to return to the world (here symbolized by his family). "And you go downstairs and you sit in your place". Sad to think that Mavers has not returned yet to the seat he deserves to have among the family of important rock figures. More than thrity five years later, there are still some great tunes by him we only have a demo version of (example: " I Am The Key"). And this, mostly because he erroneously thought--and apparently still thinks--that there is something wrong in the sound of his band's first album. Like any sort of depression, it seems like long-time *creative* depressions can be triggered by the most innocuous events. And like all depressions, their real starting point probably lies elsewhere... Sure, if really you had to *nitpick*, you could argue that a *slightly* grittier production would have served this record right. But c'mon, even with that very minor grudge in mind, *The La's* has aged like fine wine. Especially when you consider the sheer number of "rock albums" from that particular period whose horrible eighties sound still mark them as hackneyed and/or irremediably dated... And the songs in this debut are just incredibly beautiful or effective. There's the instantly recognizable hit "There She Goes", of course, but also "Timeless Melody" and its epic, breathtaking harmonies, the dizzying 3/4-timed "Way Out", the lively "IOU", or the moving acoustic ballad "Looking Glass"--closing the proceedings on a wonderful and unexpected climactic racket. Half of those tunes give you the feeling they have been around since "mature" rock surged at the tail end of the sixties, so immediately catchy as they are. And the other half is still pretty impressive-going to all sorts of interesting directions that bring welcome dynamics to the whole tracklist. Indeed, what unites all those magnificent tracks is the scope of influences Mavers draws from to create distinctive and immediately likable aesthetics for his own band. Those influences go from jangle pop and psychedelic folk-rock to Big Star and The Velvet Underground, up to the best of what The Soft Boys and The Replacements had to offer during the eighites. And they also foretell the Britpop wave about to engulf the UK (and the world) in the following years. Yet this album is also very much its *own thing*. Which is why it will always have a special place in the hearts of many rock fans. The human mind is a mystery, I said. I found one reviewer in this section complaining that the name *Timeless Melody* couldn't apply to the song it refers to. Excuse me? That vocal line is one of the most beautiful melodies that has ever surged from the pop-rock idiom in the last sixty years or so. What more do you want, seriously? And equally striking is the other "timeless melody" that graces "There She Goes". Please, give five stars to *them*, at least. Because those two tracks alone warrants a place for the whole album in a list such as this one. 5/5, of course. Number of albums left to review: 272 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 322 (including this one) Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 178. Albums from the list I won't include in mine (many other records are more important to me): 234

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Mar 06 2024
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5

This was quite interesting. Wasn't exactly what I was expecting. Lately I've been so scared of any assignment from the 90s thinking it'll be electronic music that I've grown tired of. So this was delightful. Some of it was nice and short and sweet. Some of it went on and on kind of repetitive. But some of it was genuinely really interesting to me. I liked it. A lot.

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Jun 02 2024
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5

Total delight! I used to find there she goes way over played and slightly annoying. Why’s it taken me so long to listen to an entire album by The La’s. Brilliant. 4.6

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Jun 05 2024
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5

Hoy toca banda desconocida, de un subgénero que me gusta mucho como es el britpop (ahora estoy cayendo que he escuchado mil veces "There she goes" pero no sabía que era de ellos). Desde el primer tema ya se nota la tonada sucia y particular de Manchester y de bandas como The Stone Roses, además de algunas sutilezas en la música de los Beatles. Tiene en principio un sonido más crudo que bandas como Blur u Oasis pero con canciones igual de pegadizas y bailables/colgadas. Suena a rock viejo. Algo que vuelve a las raíces. Muy muy buena banda

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Jun 06 2024
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5

This album used to be on my regular rotation during the 90s, it's been a while since I'd listened to it. It's difficult for me to listen subjectively, to separate the nostalgia from the album - being (a tiny) part of the Liverpool music scene in the 90s, The La's meant something to all of us. While I didn't know any of them personally, (realistically there was a decade between us gigging), I had mates who did know them and we played the same venues, (Phil Hayes once told me to get the fuck out of his office!), so I felt close enough connection. As for the album itself, I've really enjoyed re-listening to it today, so many great songs! But the album does feel like a thrown together collection of songs, rather than a coherently flowing track list. I've read the stories that the record company were exhausted of waiting for Lee Mavers' approval, so released the album anyway. Whatever Mavers uncompromisingly envisaged as the sound of the album, I'm glad that a version of it did see the light of day.

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Jun 12 2024
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5

I went in expecting a one hit wonder that didn't deserve a place on the list. What I heard was a slightly unpolished gem. What a shame that these guys only ever had one album. Though judging from their 10 releases on Spotify, they gave people enough to obsess over. According to Wikipedia, they struggled to get the sound they wanted over the course of three years. I'd say that those efforts paid off pretty well, as this is a varied and interesting debut, with loads of great songs. 'There She Goes' stands out like a manicured thumb on an otherwise guitar callused hand. I suspect that it may have been there undoing. It must be hard to manage the expectations of people only want a full album of that but miss out on brilliant tracks like 'I Can't Sleep' and 'Looking Glass'. But I genuinely loved this album and think that one hit could have easily been removed, or replaced with one of the many outtake versions. Hopefully they're still getting royalty checks for all of the soundtracks that used it in the 90s though.

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Jun 13 2024
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5

Two of my favourite albums ever in a week, Pixies then this, this algorithm is on it (cue some utter shite next week). Anyway, this is the first indie album I ever fell in love with, and it directed my earliest musical journeys I guess. I just love the, I’m gonna say bouncy style (you heard it here first) acoustic driven sound and the songs are just so well written. Spent years wanting more from them, but over time that’s made this lone effort feel more timeless. Odd aside is that I’ve always thought There She Goes is the weakest song on the album, it never sounded like it fit to me - guess I’m the outlier here. This has also left me wanting to listen to Weed Bus by The Stairs.

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Jul 02 2024
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5

I sometimes use the term 'graverobbing' here, perhaps a little too liberally - but what the La's achieve here is nothing short of necromancy. Legend has it that Lee Mavers wanted the songs to be recorded on equipment that still had 'dust from the 1960s' on it - perhaps an urban myth, but this has emerged sounding like a clutch of lost recordings from the Byrds, the Who et al. What is totally surprising is that it's brilliant - an album that has the aural mouthfeel (earfeel?) of a warm hug, spiky Rickenbackers and some really punchy jangle pop. 'There She Goes', 'Feelin'', 'Doledrum' and the epic 'Looking Glass' are for the ages. Proper class, that.

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Aug 05 2024
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5

I like this take on British island-influenced rock.

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Aug 21 2024
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5

You clearly hear the influence a very famous Liverpool band had on The La's. I also hear some hints of The Who and strangely, Ian Drury. I only knew of "There She Goes" off this album. Which stands out like a Georgous Golden Unicorn, basking in the sunlight in an otherwise dark cavern. Just a beautiful song. Everything else(musically and lyrically) in my humble opinion just doesn't seem to match, it just sounds like a completely different album and band. It's not horrible, just different. Instead of eating a typical PB&J sandwich, it's like eating a PB& pickled sandwich, just a wierd combo, I hope that makes sense. Pickles are great, they just don't belong with peanut butter, although, I am positive somebody out there likes that... just not me.

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Aug 26 2024
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5

That is a great album. I've never heard them before!

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Oct 10 2024
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5

Brilliant album that’s more than just the hit single There She Goes. A blueprint for indie music that followed. Timeless Melody and Looking Glass are two standout tracks but every track is strong.

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Sep 10 2020
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4

Enjoyed much more than I thought I would. Reminded me of Small Faces?

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Nov 23 2020
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4

1990. Key Songs: Son of a Gun, There She Goes

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Nov 03 2020
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4

Solid power pop album. Really great stuff in here, espec I Can't Sleep and Looking Glass. And, There She Goes is an all-timer. This one will get repeat listens, for sure.

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Mar 23 2021
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4

det här var fan rätt bra alltså

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