Reviews (page 5 of 9)
One hit wonder. Sweet dreams is a great song though.
Meh, peak meh. This album has never been good.
The title song is pretty catchy. Not huge on everything else. Will I listen to again: 1%
Always a fun album to listen to. Yet as much as I enjoy it, I can’t help but feel this album was included for the title track alone. The album never reaches a height of you must hear this before you die. I could definitely agree if “Sweet Dreams” was on a list of songs you must hear before you die though.
This is 80s euro pop trash. I suspect there was a corporate interest behind their success
Classic 80s, album doesn't particularly flow well despite several bangers
Not my typical style but was feeling the vibe
Annie to legenda. Uwielbiam jej barwę głosu. Same kompozycje są dla mnie zbyt elektroniczne i trochę sztuczne, ale nie jestem w stanie odmówić im mocy. Szczególnie pierwszy utwór zmiata z podłogi. Płyta trochę traci na impecie pod koniec ale i tak można do niej wracać w całości. 7.5/10
This is definitely the type of album that just isn’t for me. It just sounds like pounding in my ears with the relentless electric sound.
3.5 I always feel like I should like this album more, but I really only think it’s okay. Fun fact: Annie Lennox used to scare me as a kid. There was a commercial for a CD that would play a clip from the music video for this song, and Lennox looked so intense, so unlike anyone I had ever seen before, it genuinely freaked me out. I would leave the room or change the channel when I’d see the commercial come on.
Fine
Honestly, I'm mostly just stumped about why I wasn't able to come up with anything specific to say about this album. I mean, come on, it's is Eurythmics! And it's Annie Lennox! People love 'em! I should be able to come up with **something** to say about them! If nothing else, I should be able to find out where they fit into my ongoing "timeline of New Wave." This came out after Duran Duran's RIO, so what does that mean? What is this thing's place? I had options! Ideas! And yet... Nothing. I listened to this album **twice**, which is a luxury I rarely grant **any** album these days, and even though I quite liked what I heard both times... Gosh, I'unno. The specifics of **why** I liked this stuff just kept eluding me. Like, yeah, it's real fine New Wave, and Annie has a nice voice, and of course the title track is great, but... I mean, these are the worst kinds of 4's to get, aren't they? The kinds that are just so straight-forwardly good that you can't even really articulate why exactly. Jus', yep. If I was someone in the 80's who bought this album off of the strength of the title track... I mean, nothing else here hits as hard as that one — and, honestly, side two beyond it isn't all **that** exciting — but I think I'd be happy with my purchase. It'd get some spins. But even back then I don't know if I'd have much to think about it. (Honestly, there is some part of me that wanted to give this whole thing a 3 just because of how little I was able to specifically come up with about this album, but, like... That's not entirely fair to the album, I don't think, first of all. Second, I mean, come on, the presence of the title track alone keeps it from falling down there. So, like, if it wasn't here... Sure? But since it is, nah, I'm fine giving it a 4 and just movin' on. "Keep your head up, movin' on...")
Love me some Annie Lennox, so I definitely groove with this. Solid 5 Stars.
I’m at a 4.5 that I’ll bump up to a 5. This is my first time properly listening to a Eurythmics album, and while everyone on the planet knows the title track, I’m surprised that some of the other ones on here weren’t big hits too; “Love Is a Stranger” is a really solid opener that has some catchy vocal structures, & “Wrap It Up” is energetic as hell, feeling like a direct precursor to stuff like Pump Up The Jam or Get Ready for This. Annie Lennox’s vocals, which I only really know from the title track and her other all-timer in “Walking on Broken Glass”, really shine here, and capture the mood of each track nicely. If she was the primary songwriter on a lot of these, then she knows how to make a pretty solid chorus / hook too. This is obviously an extremely synth-driven album, which is sort of expected, but I was more surprised at how effectively some of the traditional instruments blended into these soundscapes, namely in the guitar, horns, & piano scattered throughout the album. They’re only used lightly, to compliment the lead synth melodies, but their presence feels important every time, so it works really well. This album also never really strays too far from its core of R&B / pop, which keeps everything just grounded enough to not feel overly futuristic or digital like a Kraftwerk album, or too reliant & gimmicky, ala “Temporary Secretary” (please don’t come at me, I don’t hate that song, but it *does* feel a bit gimmicky). Everything works together in a pretty strong harmony, and even though each track shares a general core of instruments, they all still feel decently distinct enough to not feel boring or homogeneous. I feel like this did pave the way for more experimental synth work over time, and there’s probably the earliest hints of Dubstep & EDM in here; maybe not in the most innovative or forward-thinking way, but with just enough of a spark to get the ball rolling. Honestly, it’s only at a 4.5 instead of a flat 5 because everything after “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” sort of felt like it was padding for time; they’re not bad tracks, but they all go about 2 times as long as they need to, even if they’re filled up decently well. “This City Never Sleeps” was pretty effective, but again, could’ve been like, 4 or 5 minutes instead of 7. However, I liked it too damn much to not bump it up – it’s a breezy 42 minutes, it’s a really good album, and it does honestly hold up. At worst, it’s a 3 if the more “boring” parts of the album nag at you that badly.
Niiice
Marvelous!
Its a fine album. 3 stars.
Yet another great voice.
mostly worth it for sweet dreams
Thought this was a pretty good synth pop album. Sweet Dreams is the obvious standout here, but there were a few other tracks that I really enjoyed
Una banda imprescindible, a un nivel excelso en un su segundo álbum y con una discografía llena de temas esenciales. Annie Lennox es una de las cantantes más importantes de la historia, por calidad, imagen y actitud. Love is a stranger y la titular son absolutas gemas. The Walk o Jennifer (abosultamente magistral y eterna, entre OMD, Glass o el mejor Bowie) o This city never sleeps (cierre frío, glacia, e industrial al que Lennox le insufla vida), también. Cierto es que algunos temas (Wrap it up, una versión soul en calve tecno pop, entonces toda una herejía ) han quedado anclado en los primeros 80 y que discos posteriores (uno al año durante toda la década y en todos ellos hay reconocidas gemas musicales) han aguantado mejor el paso del tiempo. Cualquier disco suyo es bienvenido.
Annie's voice is great. The sound is yesterday's, yet it is still fun to listen. Good pop.
An amazing range of synth sounds combined with a powerful vocal performance. The arpeggiator freak outs are cool as hell and the drum machine parts have a nice robotic groove to them. A bit uneven Favorites: Jennifer, sweet dreams, love is a stranger.
какой же все-таки ахуевший кавер на sweet dreams сделал старина Мэрлин Мэнсон. после прослушивания оригинала в очередной раз в этом убедился.
Good album, not only dancing songs, and some great vocals.
What a wonderfully weird sound the Eurythmics have. I had of course heard Sweet Dreams before, but never listened to the whole album. But the whole thing is really well done. Weirdly Sweet Dreams was one of my least favourite songs from the album.
2.5
I love Annie Lennox’s voice. Even tho it’s not my style, I listened to and enjoyed the whole album!
This album had a lot more flavor than I gave credit for. I never considered how important this album is sonically for the development of electronic music. A lot of hints to the duo being pretentious douches for a bit, as major artists can oft become
Propped up by the megahit title track, Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) features some perfectly fine synthpop. They're fine. Sometimes a song will do something interesting, like trumpet solo on The Walk or the funky bassline on This Is the House, but nothing ever quite reaches the intensity and richness of that title track. I'm not even that big of a fan of the single, it just stands heads and shoulders above the rest of the album. The biggest takeaway has to be Annie Lennox's vocals though, as her voice provides a foundational mystique that really defines the sound of Eurythmics. Everything else is just fine.
Not my favourite by Eurythmics, but ok.
could i write poetry to this? n
I loved this album so much. Female led synth pop is right in my wheelhouse. Love is a Stranger and Jennifer are the standouts.
I remember this as one of the first “new/used” CDs I ever bought — it was “remaindered”, a notch cut into the cardboard longbox (remember those?), so it could be returned by a retailer to a record company. It was only $9.99 vs. the usual early days of CDs where finding anything less than $15-$16 was rare. Thought I still had the longbox (of course I have a couple hundred in the basement) but alas, no. The early tracks here were just OK, but then after the classic title track hit, I quite liked Jennifer, This is the House and This City Never Sleeps. However, 3.5 rounded down to a 3.
The past couple weeks have had me feeling like a big softie, ratings-wise. Luckily this shitshow came along to remind me what it is to hate. Mostly “2” songs + “sweet dreams” = potential 3, then minus 1 point for “this city never sleeps” = back at 2
Great album! Not something I'd listen to regularly.
Daleko od toga da je ovo loše ali nevjerojatno je koliko ovaj bend ovisi o glasu annie lennox
The Voice The Synths Polymath
Cool
Thought I would like it more than I did. Sweet Dreams is from my youth and it was pretty good.
Sweet Dreams carried this album on its shoulders.
5/5 - way fun
Love her voice. Synth pop is trash.
Always thought it was a pop crap album as a kid. Whole different album today. Pretty wholesome and well produced can even say ground breaking at the time. Insane I only remember one single that its overplayed still when there are a few songs as good if not better. Really enjoyed but songs are too many and songs are long whoch is maybe why they didnt get airplay.
For me, the Eurythmics are more of a singles band. I love a lot of their singles, but a whole album just falls flat. That being said, they were a groundbreaking band and more than deserve to have an album on the list. While I didn’t love this, I did like it a fair amount and totally understand and respect why it’s here.
ASMR by way of pop music.
tricky to rate , the first 6 tracks are great, some all-time classic singles , then it just gives up. 3.5 overall, but 5 stars for the first half?
🎧Title track is the pièce de résistance. I also really liked Jennifer.
Pues me esperaba más, pero excepto Sweet Dreams me parece prescindible. El arranque ochentero me gustó, Dos estrellas y gracias.
Unexpectedly bland aside from the popular stuff.
I remember being in a Marstons pub with Len a while back. We used to do some open mic nights. Not as Houmous & Chutney but our alter egos ‘No Refunds For Swimwear’. Before we went on Len had the baked Camembert. He thought it’d be funny to do a take on Sweet Dreams but about cheese. The next day almost every pub and sandwich shop in the country had the lyrics on A-Boards outside their front doors. Incredible! 3.0
Early 80’ music and art! Great album
Excellent music. Beautiful voice.
Loved this album. Still giving a 2 though.... Kidding
I cannot stand funk. So the first half was brutal for me and I have trouble appreciating it. Second half was nice.
Not the best, but i do love Eurythmics
Very 80s, but still very modern. Sounds like a lot of your vibes-based 21st century indie pop. Tracks 1, 6 and 7 are quite good. The energy lags at other times. It’s really cool, Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart are super cool, and this is a decent album but not great.
Favorite tracks: Love Is A Stranger, Jennifer, This Is The House Such a cool band, and distinctive for its time. I wish more of the tracks had stood out to me, though.
hell yes. rounding up to a 5 - there were a few songs that dragged for me but overall, a very enjoyable treat of a listen!
neat little album. 3.5 stars for me. the individual songs are fairly distinct and the overall vibes are cool and weird, but somehow nothing other than the title track really sticks out to me after listening to it. i've listened to this three times but can't seem to figure out how i really feel about it... it's a tough nut to crack! favorites: love is a stranger, i could give you a mirror, sweet dreams are made of this, jennifer
Not a bad listen, probably won't come back.
Fun synth pop new wave from the early 1980. Some very good songs (Jennifer, title track, Love is a Stranger, etc.) but some filler too that likely sounds better on the dance floor after a couple drinks. For this kind of music, I like The Human League, Tubeaway Army, early Depeche Mode, OMD, Soft Cell, etc. better. Not my absolute favorite genre of music but I do like it from time to time, it never bored me & went well with my Sunday morning coffee.
Blind album, know the artist and title track. What a weird amalgamation of synth tracks and funkiness and beats. Very cool and interesting, and this is not something I see myself revisting, but I would totally recommend it to those looking for more synth 80s music.
title track is of course a classic. songs run out of steam after the one idea/chorus/hook they were built around loses novelty; when that novelty fades, the screws come apart, exposing how unremarkable a lot of the songwriting actually is: generic pop with some flashy coating. still, occasionally works—even if unevenly.
2/5. I do enjoy some dance-pop but not all of the songs on here make me to get up and moving. The title tracks and some of the hits slap but otherwise, it feels mostly like a filler album with the singles. Fortunately, the singles do stand out so it's an entirely terrible listen but it is not a great album overall. Best Song: Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This), The Walk, Jennifer
One truly memorable song. The rest is pleasant enough, but mostly pretty unremarkable.
Annie Lennox is cool and has a good voice, and there are a few fun ideas. However unfortunately I hate synths when not used judiciously bad maybe just hate the 80s?? Overall found this pretty boring.
they dont have much to say do they the hit is still a fun song atleast, and its a relatively early entry into the 80s synthpop universe
All I knew was the title track but wound up enjoying most of the album. Lots of wobbly synth, not terribly deep but still poppy fun!
Only knew the title track but loved how dated and corny a lot of it sounded. They wrote a lot of bangers though! And the best song about safe sex
Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) is not a bad album. When i went into this album, i thought it was going to be an overly-boring slog with weak vocals and weak instrumentation, but I'm glad to say that i was proven wrong for some of that. There were some pretty cool synthy sounds used for some of the songs and they made some pretty good melodies. The songs i also remember sounding boring were actually cooler and more interesting than i thought they would be. Granted, the production is a little iffy in places with some of the instruments greatly overpowering the vocals in some places but i still think that this is a pretty decent album. Best Song: I Could Give You (A Mirror) Worst Song: The Walk
Eurythmics' *Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)*, released in 1983, is a landmark album that solidified the duo's place in music history. Its blend of innovative electronic production, introspective lyrics, and Annie Lennox's commanding vocals made it a defining work of the synth-pop era. Below is an in-depth review focusing on its lyrics, music, production, themes, influence, and a balanced assessment of its strengths and weaknesses. ## **Lyrics** The album's lyrics explore themes of ambition, disillusionment, identity, and human desire. The title track, "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)," is particularly notable for its juxtaposition of seemingly optimistic lines like "Sweet dreams are made of this" with darker undertones. It reflects on the pursuit of dreams and the inherent struggles in achieving them. Annie Lennox described the song as a personal statement about vulnerability and nihilism during a challenging period in her life. The line "Some of them want to use you / Some of them want to be used by you" delves into power dynamics and human relationships, often misinterpreted as referencing S&M but actually addressing broader existential themes[1][2][6]. Other tracks like "Love Is a Stranger" examine the complexities of love, portraying it as both alluring and destructive. Songs such as "Jennifer" offer haunting narratives with melancholic undertones, while "This Is the House" uses abstract imagery to convey a sense of detachment. The lyrics throughout the album balance introspection with universal appeal, making them both thought-provoking and relatable. ## **Music** Musically, *Sweet Dreams* is a masterclass in synth-pop innovation. Dave Stewart's production is characterized by minimalistic yet hypnotic arrangements built around synthesizers and drum machines. The title track features a repetitive synth riff that is instantly recognizable and underpins the entire song. This simplicity creates a hypnotic effect that contrasts with Lennox's soulful and emotionally rich vocals[1][3][6]. Tracks like "Love Is a Stranger" and "I Could Give You (A Mirror)" showcase Eurythmics' ability to blend electronic textures with pop sensibilities. "The Walk" incorporates brass elements reminiscent of Motown influences, while "Wrap It Up" adds funk-inspired grooves with guest vocals from Green Gartside of Scritti Politti. The album also experiments with atmospheric soundscapes, as heard in the haunting "Jennifer" and the ambient closer "This City Never Sleeps." ## **Production** The production on *Sweet Dreams* was groundbreaking for its time. Recorded in their home studio with newly acquired synthesizers, Eurythmics embraced a DIY ethos that allowed them complete creative control. This freedom enabled them to experiment with unconventional song structures and sound design. For instance, many tracks lack traditional choruses but compensate with compelling hooks and layered arrangements[3][7]. Dave Stewart's engineering skills shine throughout the album. The meticulous attention to detail is evident in the crisp drum patterns, lush synth layers, and dynamic vocal treatments. Tracks like "This City Never Sleeps" even include backmasked messages and mixed sound effects that add depth to the listening experience[5]. The production not only defined Eurythmics' sound but also influenced countless artists in electronic music. ## **Themes** Thematically, *Sweet Dreams* is an exploration of human emotions and societal critique. The title track captures the tension between aspiration and reality, serving as an anthem for those grappling with life's contradictions. Other songs address themes such as love's duality ("Love Is a Stranger"), existential questioning ("I've Got an Angel"), and alienation ("Jennifer"). There’s also an undercurrent of satire aimed at the music industry's greed and superficiality[6][8]. The album's cold, European aesthetic—characterized by hard-edged synthesizers—contrasts sharply with Lennox's warm vocal delivery. This dichotomy mirrors the album's thematic exploration of contrasts: hope versus despair, connection versus isolation. ## **Influence** *Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)* was pivotal in shaping 1980s synth-pop and electronic music. The title track became an international hit, topping charts in both the US and UK. Its success helped popularize synthesizer-driven music at a time when rock still dominated mainstream tastes[1][5]. The album also had a significant cultural impact beyond music. Annie Lennox's gender-bending image in the "Sweet Dreams" music video challenged traditional notions of femininity and inspired discussions about gender identity. The video's surreal visuals became iconic, cementing Eurythmics' place in pop culture[5]. Artists across genres have cited *Sweet Dreams* as an influence. Its minimalist production techniques and emotional depth resonate with musicians exploring electronic music today. ## **Pros** - **Innovative Production**: The album’s use of synthesizers and drum machines was ahead of its time. - **Timeless Tracks**: Songs like "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" remain iconic decades later. - **Lyrical Depth**: Themes of ambition, love, and disillusionment are explored with nuance. - **Cultural Impact**: Annie Lennox’s image and the album’s success broke barriers in both music and fashion. - **Diverse Soundscapes**: From haunting ballads to upbeat dance tracks, the album offers variety. ## **Cons** - **Uneven Quality**: While standout tracks like "Sweet Dreams" are flawless, others like "Wrap It Up" feel dated or less impactful. - **Cold Aesthetic**: The stark electronic sound may feel impersonal to some listeners. - **Abstract Lyrics**: Certain songs lean heavily on abstraction, which might alienate listeners seeking straightforward narratives. ## **Conclusion** Eurythmics' *Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)* is more than just an album; it’s a cultural artifact that captures the spirit of 1980s experimentation while addressing timeless human concerns. Its innovative production techniques set new standards for electronic music, while its introspective lyrics provide emotional resonance. Despite minor flaws in consistency, *Sweet Dreams* remains a landmark achievement that continues to inspire artists and captivate audiences worldwide. It’s a testament to Eurythmics’ vision and their ability to blend technology with soul—a balance that few have achieved so effortlessly.
Cool album. I was a busy at work today, so it was background music for me, but I Could Give You (A Mirror) made me pause and look at what I was listening to. Anyhoo, great album. 4 rating from me.
Vocally somewhere between Tori Amos and Siouxsie Sioux, Annie Lennox delivers a calculated and loose performance on Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This). When progressive, it's interesting to hear synth music from the 80's whose goal is not to make you dance. There are plenty of songs here that are not dance songs although presented with dance instrumentation. However, most of these tracks are snoozers; the innovation lies not in the songwriting but the sounds they create with synth and voice. While each side starts strongly, the lack of variation creates an unnecessary drag and hum before the side completes. There is plenty of filler on here that is not too special. "Jennifer" is the widest, most actualized song here, stepping a bit into shoegaze. "This Is The House" has a fun Talking Heads vibe. And of course, the title track is the deserved single.
The best thing about this album is Annie's voice, and it's easy to see why she had the solo career. I felt like they were trying lots of things on this album and had many interesting moments and vibes throughout, but most of these I wouldn't consider to be strong, memorable songs, save the title track, of course. Still glad to have heard it.
This album sounds ahead of its time. I've always enjoyed Annie Lennox's voice. It's rich and soulful.
👉👈 Лучшая песня - Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This).
Apart from the singles unremarkable
Kind of exactly what I expected to hear. A lot of strange, kind of dark 80s synth. The darker edge of this makes it a little better for me than a bunch of the goofier 80s synth pop stuff. Almost premoniscient of Nine Inch Nails in some ways, though nowhere near that dark, obviously. Especially the sounds of tracks like "I Could Give You a Mirror." The song "Sweet Dreams" is obviously a pop masterpiece, but surprisingly that's the only one I've heard before. "This is the House" is a little cheesy, but that's about the only real 80s-style pop cheese on this album. I'm surprised to find this so palatable for an era and genre I typically don't like.
Отличный альбом, но последние песни уступают всему тому что было до них
Да, это хорошая музыка Дим
I was actually surprised there was one other track I enjoyed from this album aside from the obvious, main title track (which is the sole reason this one-hit-wonder of an album made this list, per usual). Still not worth the slog through the rest of this album though
Eurythmics brought the 80s into focus and outclassed all their imitators. This album was so weird and cool in 1983 and still sounds like nothing else. I got shit for having a crush on Annie Lennox, but come on!
A classic! Annie is great
Fun 80s synth pop.
Like this one surprisingly well, especially given that I really don't care for Sweet Dreams. The rest of the album was pretty funky/weird and could have almost been a modern indie/electric type sound. 4/5
Good tunes
Damn good album. For me it didn’t really have any weak tracks. Wow, This Is The House really is a Talking Heads track, isn’t it?
It's alright, it does scratch the electronic 80s itch in my brain, but nothing stand even close to the title track.
I know Eurythmics from their hit songs, but have never actually listened to a full album before. This is a good album. It seems a bit of a let down on first listen when you go in expecting the strength of the title track throughout, but it really grows on you with subsequent listens. Normally I would rate this a 4, but I was a child in the 80's. It's hard to imagine now but when Sweet Dreams hit the airwaves there was nothing like it. Adding to that was the video with Annie looking and acting androgynous, which was shocking at the time. I would love to know how many people found the image of of a suited Annie smacking the pointer into her gloved hand a gateway to bdsm lol. This is a band that carved their own path, echos of which can still be heard in music today. It's because of that that I'm bumping this up to a 5.
Middle of the road 80s pop for me. Not a huge fan of the vocals but some of the tracks are catchy.
Production is absolutely fire on this. Liked it more than I thought. Synth pop greatness.
Another one of these classic albums that is actually just a classic song. You could say one or two nice things about the other tracks, especially accounting for the fact they're doing something new at the time, but it's all done way better on Sweet Dreams.
i believe in short cutted women supremacy (альбом вроде веселый, флексить можно)
Altijd al willen weten hoe een synthesiser op 16 verschillende manieren kan worden ingezet, dan is dit album voor jou. Sweet dreams are made of this is de perfecte combinatie van alle technieken die vaak herhaald worden op dit album.
pretty good.
It took me a couple of listens for it to click but the sound is addictive, especially the bass. It really captures what I now think of as that 80s dystopian retrofuture vibe. Other than the big title track (which still connects) I especially liked Wrap It Up, The Walk and the perfect relaxed closer, This City Never Sleeps. It's not all hits but they've achieved a real consistency here and I will go back to it sooner than later.
It's fine, but the rest of the album really can't compare next to maybe the greatest synth-pop song of all time. Tough competition.
Figured this might be one of those One hit Wonder albums where everything else is bland, but it's a little better than that. Some pretty fun other songs beyond the title track, although it is still a straight banger. 7/10
Not bad just not very interesting. The title track is of course amazing.
Other than the hit, this left me cold.
Not bad, but nothing to write home about and maybe the classics on this one are overplayed
Anyone who hasn't at least heard the title track has been living under a rock for the last 40 years... and given the current state of affairs I might want to get some real estate under that same rock. Anyway, it's a good synthpop record that manages to sound varied. They were not afraid to push the boundaries of the style.
Some of this was better than the title track. It mixed bright pop sounds with darker themes in an interesting way. It has some misses here and there, but I get it.
One classic and a lot of stuff that hasn’t stood the test of time
4/5
Pretty good, very unique, a few bangers but wouldn't listen to repeatedly
Sweet Dream é demais né?! Mas não vi nenhuma música que chegasse no mesmo nível. Gostei de This City Never Sleeps e This Is The House também.
I feel like I could have rated this higher but I was in a shitty mood yesterday
It's exactly what you'd expect the band behind "sweet dreams are made of these" to sound like
i’m not going to listen to this, i don’t give a shit, it’s probably fine. going through this list has made me realize there are barely 100 albums i need to listen to before i die, let alone 1000
Precioso disco! Es curioso lo oscuro que es, en música y letras, para ser un disco de los años 80.
Well, only the song "Sweet Dreams are made of this" is really good. The rest is more or less shrapnel...
Fun tunes
Honestly, probably the biggest surprise. I love "Sweet Dreams" but didn't realize the rest of this album is also pretty fucking solid. Sooo...80s. Weird at times (like the sax in The Walk) but it all seems to work so well. That hook in the song Sweet Dreams is absolutely incredible.
Maso
Decent, high twos for me.
It’s a synth pop record masquerading as new wave. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s definitely not my thing. Everyone knows the title track, it’s a classic, as an aside though, I think the Marilyn Manson cover is better. But the rest of the album is almost entirely unknown, and I think there’s probably a reason for that. My hypothesis is that it’s because most of the rest of the album is just boring. Regarding the title track, who the fuck pronounced the word “this” as “these” they’re two totally different words and frankly I think the title and lyrics should be revised to read “these”. I probably won’t ever listen to this again. 2*
Damn. This list has so far only really subjected us to the dregs of British new wave, so I didn’t expect much from this album beyond the title track, but this album is super good. It’s moody and mysterious and cool and goes a lot of interesting places. It was interesting to me that Annie Lennox — at least in my mind and I think more broadly this is also true — is associated with the deeper voice she employs on their more well-known songs including “Sweet Dreams”, but on many tracks on this album she sings with a lovely softer voice in a higher register, like the opening “Love is a Stranger”. That song also has an awesome synth track and is just all-around exceptional. “I Could Give You” and “Jennifer” also stand out. When “This is the House” started, I had to check to make sure the album hadn’t ended and something else started playing - it was a pleasant surprise leading in to a really fun track. The closer, “This City Never Sleeps”, is an ultra-cool exercise in restraint and slow burns. I enjoyed this a lot and would/will definitely listen again. I’m torn between 4 ⭐️ and 5 ⭐️ because “I’ve Got An Angel” and “Wrap It Up” are kind of duds for me, but I think the good parts of this album are so good I’ve got to go 5 ⭐️.
It was pleasant to listen but nothing remarkable.
# 391 : They've done a pretty decent job, good album, it’s enjoyable and fun overall. Everybody loves this, but to me it is better then ok, but not 5 star material. Honourable mention : Love Is A Stranger
Wasn't expecting the Sweet Dreams song to warrant a full album's worth of inspection. It's pretty good! GPT and Wikipedia tells me why this album is important and that's great context but I'd say it's an very danceable, pretty pleasant album. I don't know how much I'll revisit, but I enjoyed the once-through nevertheless.
Juhui: Eurythmics. Ich liebe d Annie Lennox als Type. Nur scho wäge Sweet Dreams - a de Familiefäschter muess das immer Gsunge wärde. S Album isch sehr villsiitig. Gfalle tuet mer nüd alles. Im übrige isch 1983 de 1. 3-D-Drucker, s 1. Microsoft-Word-Programm und de 1. Nintendo uf de Märt choo. Atari hät hunderti vo nüd verchaufte Videospiel, Konsole und Computer in Mexiko vergrabe (git ä mega spannendi Doku dezue). Pioneer 10 hät euses Sunnesystem verlaa..he, was für ä Ziit
love is a stranger tönt irgendwie mega dünn, aber de song a sich isch suuper geil wechslet meh oder weniger zwüsched zwei akkörd hi und her mega simpel aber funktioniert mega. wrap it up slappt au heerrtt. i could give you seehr cooli melodie sehr coole bass. alles isch uhuere simpel aber s brucht au nöd meh. the walk isch ehner chli langwiliger, ihri stimm und d synths immerno cool. uuuh trompet?? jennifer findi mega schön mega athmosphärisch. this is my house slappt heert. bass suuuper d annie singt sehr cool und d arpeggios ohlesgo somebody told me au seeehr geil. super melodie mega catchy bass riff. lieb au d slide gitarre. this city never sleeps findi chli meh lame.
ui de chönnt voll id hose oder cool sii love is a stranger isch na fun? aber s stöhne(?) nervt hahaha I could give you kenni??? glaub?? ja es isch so mega völlig ok aber für die ziit halt scho sehr crazy hahaha the walk lauft eifach echli sweet dreams isch halt en insane bop. jz so zum am morge lose ischs chli en pain aber jo find s passt au erstunlich guet is album inne jennifer seehr cool this is the house au cool KEI AHNGI BIN MÜED s oh well oh well oh well bi somebody told me sehr fun GITARRE city never sleeps passt mega als titel? joo für mich es 3, bin froh hanis mal.glost aber glaub nöd megaa min fall
The title track elevates this to a 4.
Kinda fun.
I loved this as a kid.
Better than I expected!
Honestly, not a bad song on the album. Sure, some were far bigger than others (such as the title track having 1.5 billion more plays than the second biggest track on this album), but they're all great and I seriously feel they still stand up. Thanks to the solid production and recent 80s rehash from a few years ago, these songs actually sound fairly modern with the only real thing that makes them sound 40+ years old is surprisingly Annie Lennox's voice, which is by no means a negative criticism, you just don't hear singers like her anymore.
I’ve only heard this bands’ singles over the years, and was never that wild about them. After listening to this album, my opinion hasn’t changed. This just isn’t my thing, I’ll give it two stars.
Love Is A Stranger and Sweet Dreams are great songs. Rest ok 3/5
This is unfortunately one of those albums where one song (in this case the title track) kind of overshadows the rest of the album. That being said, I still enjoyed it overall. Probably a 7
Never really listened to Eurythmics aside from SDAMoT, sad to say the rest of the album is not as good as that song, but it's still pretty decent.
A good album, loved the classic Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This).
Pretty bland 80s techno/pop album aside from the title track.
prime 'dance around the room like you're a professional ribbon performer' music. Annie Lennox ~ What a legendary and instantly recognizable voice
Title track is good. The rest had good ideas at their core, but never really developed into anything memorable - just more 80s sounds. Meh.
Ugh. Love the synths. Cannot stand annie’s voice.
Albumi #132, 12.12.2024 Eurythmicsin kakkosalbumi vuodelta 1983. Hieno aikansa kuva.
Love it! Car family friendly. What's not to love
Sweet Dreams is great. The rest is synth rock that simply doesn’t hold up.
Ever heard of a one hit wonder? I just don’t like rock synth. They all kind of sound the same and it’s outdated at this point.
There's some padding on the album & some decent 30 second riffs that have been painfully stretched into a whole track but 3 superb tracks (Sweet Dreams, Jennifer & Everything) is enough to squeak 4 stars
Did not like. Just annoyed me.
Another one of the Kraftwerk-influenced UK synth-pop groups. Nice combo. Love is a Stranger and Sweet Dreams as favourites. Nothing too innovative here but easy to listen to.
real enjoyable
fínt rafpopp með dramatískum saungvi.
Funsies
I like the high at the beginning and half way in it shows the blues influence. His Smokey voice is really whiskey/ cigar vibe
80s montage.
The title track completely carries this album. A few others are ok, but not much else to it.
Huh. Listening to the first track, Love is a Stranger, I only heard this on the radio and have no recollection of the strange male grunting sounds that kept popping up. Were these not on the radio edit or was the sound quality so bad that they weren't noticeable, or is this just selective memory. TBH, they didn't seem to fit and the track would be better without them, I think, so maybe I just blocked them out? I've Got an Angel sounded like a cross between Prince and Robert Palmer. Anyway, this was a fun album. I wasn't a fan of hers when this was released, but she has grown on me over the years.
2.5
Banger
Esta bueno, pero nada realmente destacable que no sea Sweet Dreams(canción). Total del álbum: 68
3.5 stars. Nice hooks, entertaining pop album Title track a smash hit and as catchy as it gets.
Worse than I imagined.
Very playful electronic pop. Enjoyable, but most songs are quite mid.
3.5
Sweet Dreams brings a smile to my face. Great arrangement too. I read about the origin of the song and creation of songs in general (per Annie Lenox). Starts with a sound/riff, in this case the very beginning of personal sound studios/home computer. Illustrating! Great dance tune too. And that face/eyes in the MTV video (Annie, not the cows though they’re sweet too.) Not fond of many other songs but this was their beginning so…
3/5 Not bad but album carryed by sweer dreams (song)
Remember that feeling when you’d buy an album and it only had one good song on it
I love this genre/period in music, but Eurythmics do it in a unique and original way; the clean, crisp synths complement the purity of Lennox's voice. The way she moves from note to note is like autotune without the autotune. I knew and loved the obvious ones already, but Jennifer was a great new discovery. I also like the Talking Heads-esque lyrics of This Is The House. Somebody Told Me made me look up when PiL released Rise (it was three years after this) - the intro is very similar! If you enjoyed Annie Lennox, try her early 90s album 'Diva'.
Sweet Dreams has a lot of uniqueness, good lyrics, and great vocals that sets it apart from many of the synth-pop albums in the 80s that were largely unimaginative.
Great album, enjoyed it!
listened to before it's a classic
4.5!
Strong use of synths, maybe not every song has aged that well, but the importance and influence are undeniable.
Who am I to disagree?
who am I to disagree
A sublime 80s enjoyment when playing with gender appearance wasn't already old hat. Annie's pipes are legendary. I was introduced to this album when they performed at the 1984 Grammys which I happened to watch with my parents. I was captivated by Dave Stewart's performance on the electric violin (an instrument I had never seen at a rock concert before) and Annie's Elvis Presley outfit, complete with sideburns. Features great synth and electronic production at time when it was not easy to both before MIDI became a thing. MIDI had only been introduced in the early part of 1983 before Stewart and Lennox put to work later that same year, meshing the sounds of Kraftwerk with soul and R&B that contributed to the formation of a new genre of artists that would become Romanticism 80s pop. This album would inspire many of the band and genres to come in the 809s and all the way to present.
Annie Lennox is a goddess who blows away the vocals.
p512. 1983. 2 stars. Not their best work by any means - see "be Yourself Tonight", "Revenge" and "Savage" for that - and outside of the singles there's a lot of filler and half baked songs that outstay their welcome. Set against that, we've got excellent production and THAT voice.
a classic. also much more psychedelic than I expected at the end
undeniable
Eighties synth-pop with a couple of hits making up the filling, sandwiched between some more experimental tracks that mainly fall flat. I can't bear the title track, but I know mostly because it has been played to death for the last forty years. I think 2 stars is fair here, as there's not really much I like about this album, but it does have a tiny bit of artistic merit, and it wasn't too long.
Always gonna rock out to Sweet Dreams. Enjoyed some other songs I had not heard before. Classic 80s pop
Classic 80s album - loved it for that alone!
there are some classics on here
80s cool might be the coolest cool in the corniest way
3.5
Enjoyed this a lot
I didn't know this was the name of the album too. I remember when this song came out it was a smash. This is my first time listening to a Eurythmics album. I always thought Annie Lennox's voice was great. If Sweet Dreams was released today it would still be a hit.
Mostly not my style but too cool not to love.
While the music itself isn't bad, I found the lyrics to be very repetitive. Standout track: Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)
Chat am I a jaded hater? I’m just getting this feeling that I won’t remember anything off this record other than the title track - which does deserve its props. Sweet Dreams (the song) seems like the type of song you write/record and instantly know you’ve got something big on your hands. I must also recognize it’s staying power, zedd just recently played it at his show. It’s still recognizable and sleek. But outside of that…there’s nothing new to grasp onto. It’s just 80’s music with nothing more than a slightly dark facade to it all. Carried by the title track, if there even is anything to carry here
Eff yeah. First half better than second.
kinda nice with it actually. not a lot of filler either!
i actually quite liked this lol. i don’t really think i would listen to it again as a full album but i enjoyed listening to it. i like annie lennox’s voice! side note how come the name “jennifer” and its variants get used so frequently in songs…doesn’t anybody want to write about an EMILIA… favorite tracks: jennifer
Idk that just wasn’t hitting for me. Kinda monotonous and not as interesting as I’d expected. Sometimes there’s only one big song from an album for a reason….
5 stars
Classic
Yes. This was good.
Shits all over anything TS could produce. Above average pop album
It's about a 3 as you can get
Had a hard time going through the album, not my kind of music.
Love the hits but the album was just ok. New wave often feels dated
I listened to their debut before this one and think it was much better overall. This one of course has the big hits and probably represent the sound of the group better than their debut but I would still rate the debut much higher in terms of enjoyment than this one. Rating: 3.3
Excellent!
I guess you had to be there. Poor man’s Pet Shop Boys.
Aside from the main song, which is incredible jn many ways, this record was good. It didn't blow me away by any means, but musically it was very interesting. But none of the other songs can stand up to Sweet Dreams.
80s synth-pop made timeless by Lennox's incredible vocal talents.
Annie Lennox is the undisputed Queen of white soul. This is another example of the fact that we're living in a post-Eurythmics world. When this came out, it was a karate chop through the typical pop of its day. A classic.
还可以吧
Title track is a classic, and Annie Lennox is an incredible vocalist. The rest is fine, funky synths and enjoyed it a bit but not hugely engaging to me because some tracks get a bit repetitive. It's decent but not one of my favourites.
Other than the title track, I'd say this album is fairly forgettable 80's synth-pop. The Eurythmics, in my opinion, are a singles/best of band, not a 'listen to the whole album' band.
One hit wonder, rest is shit
Rating: 5/10 Meh.
Not sure how to rate this stuff that I would normally only listen to while high. For consistency will give a “sober rating” as that’s how I am while listening to these albums
This is OK. It's got the title track, which is a great tune. The rest of the stuff is a bit too artsy for me to want to go back to. Unfortunately it does not have my favorite song of theirs: Here Comes the Rain Again. Good nostalgia hit though.
Listened to it once and it was meh. Listened after i got high and it was great.
Eighties classic. Some bits feel a bit dated.
Would never have thought to seek out an album by the Eurythmics; they are a singles band in my view. The experience of listening to this hasn't changed my mind. It's pleasant but instead of this I'd rather listen to an 80ies station for an hour or a Best of Synthpop compilation. I'd probably also hear the title track but also all kinds of stuff that kind of sounds like the rest of this album but is better. You know, Smalltown Boy for instance.
I loved the album I had not heard all of the tracks before but I am glad I had the opportunity now
I feel silly I’ve gone so long not listening to a full album of theirs.
Eurythmics were a key part of the mid 1980s UK synth-pop scene. I really loved their chart singles, and have one of their albums (Touch). That said, and despite their importance to that genre, I think this album doesn't really match the quality of the singles - these are the best tracks on this album. The title track in particular is particularly strong.
surprisingly enjoyable
Hard to rate this objectively. The title track and "Love is a Stranger" are such iconic songs that they could lift almost any album to 3 stars. This is the case here. Nothing else is memorable, nothing else stands out.
Fine background noise, but, I wouldn't seek it out
fajne dźwięki przyjazne wesolutkie spoko
Pop perfection from early 80s. Lenox’s vocals shine and Stewart’s electronic confection musically is a Synth pop dream. A sweet one at that.
I know the popular song but didn't like the rest as much as I thought I would.
Makes me wanna dance. Some tracks are just so-so and I don’t think this really warrants any deep analysis, but on the whole, quite enjoyable. 4/5 Highlights: Love is a Stranger I Could Give You (A Mirror) Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) Jennifer This Is the House
One of the greatest of time. Every song is art.
I was really looking forward to the Eurythmics album. The track Sweet Dreams in particular is still great. Unfortunately, I wasn't particularly interested in the rest of the album. It's too 80s, and they weren't always nice.
The Good: Annie Lennox's vocals and lyrics! Superb The Bad: aside from These Dreams, the songs are too "experimental" in the sense of "look how high falutin we are using ambient sounds" without really drawing the listener in The Ugly: one too many tracks should have been cut down to under 3 minutes Still, it is an all-in-all '80s classic, and it merits 3* for production value alone
I was there for this music at the start, but, despite Annie Lennox’s luscious vocal tone, I’m not sure I’m there for it now.
This is such a weird album to review. All I hear when I listen to it is my 13 year old self thinking about strange electronic futures under the shadow of nuclear war, feeling strange lusts for Annie Lennox's shaved head and deep, powerful voice, and remembering music through the medium of music videos from now on. This album has aged. I have aged. My hearing is memory mixed with the knowledge of now that shrinks the strange innovations of this album into a small smile as I shake my head. But Lennox is still a goddess thst I'd submit.to. Dave Stewart shaped so much of the music that poured into my ears during this decade.... But listening to it now? It doesn't have the hooks to keep my attention and my curiosity has moved.on. it will always symbolize that edge between innocence and the unknown for me...but in an anachronistic, quaint kind of way
Saai
Love them.
I love, love Annie Lennox! This album is not my favorite; I prefer her solo albums. 3
I get it was great at the time just doesn't hit for me right now
Verwarren jullie dit ook altijd Roxette? Beide maken elektronisch getinte jaren tachtig-pop, beide bestaan uit een mannelijke producer en een vrouw met kort blond haar, beide hebben een X in de naam (Lennox / Roxette). Het verschil is dat de ene uit Zweden komt, en de ander een hit had met Candy Dulfer. Maar wie was ook alweer wie? Hoe dan ook, Eurythmics waren eerder. Voor die tijd een fris en strak geluid, niet zo koud als Kraftwerk, niet zo rommelig als al die punkers, een tikje commercieel maar dat mag wel een keer.
Dit zit prima in elkaar. Het is natuurlijk heel erg jaren '80. Toch stoor ik mij er wat minder aan dan gebruikelijk. Er wordt op zich voldoende mee of omheen gedaan aan om het album toch aardig te maken. Met nadruk op 'aardig'. Want meer dan 3 sterren kan ik er ook weer niet van maken.
Het zal ongetwijfeld muzikaal prima in elkaar zitten en Annie Lennox kan aardig zingen, veel beter althans dan haar al zeurende collegazangers. Maar ik vind dit helemaal niks en kan me er moeilijk overheen zetten. Het is theatraal, de drumcomputer stoort me en af en toe komen er mokerschelle toeters je trommelvliezen doorboren. En dan hebben we bovendien nog die verschrikkelijke oorwurm van Sweet Dreams. En toch is dit wel precies een plaat die ik vooraf had verwacht bij de 1001 albums die je moet horen. En ben ik blij om hem te mogen luisteren. Ook al is het niet mijn muziek.
Quirky 80s synth pop. I can hear the influence of Talking Heads and Kate Bush. It's a lot and gets kind of messy at times. Still some interesting ideas, though, even if whole songs don't necessarily work. Highlights: "Love is a Stranger" (good opener that sets the tone of the album), "I Could Give You (A Mirror)" (springy but dramatic soundscape), "Sweet Dreams..." Notable: "Jennifer" and "The City Never Sleeps" (both are very dramatic, almost goth in its sound)
A classical pop-album.
I really enjoyed this. It starts off so strong with Love Is a Stranger. Those high harmonies on "so it's an obsession" surprised me in the best way. Love that track. And Sweet Dreams really is one of the greats. Though none of the other songs hit the same highs for me, it was still a good listen.
Very good. Annie is amazing as always.
Cool sounds on this one. Probably not something I'll come back to.
1) Before listening to this album, I'd only heard Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This). I was surprised how consistent the rest of the album is to Sweet Dreams. 2) This feels incredibly obtuse, but I never knew Eurythmics was 50% Annie Lennox. 3) If this isn't an 80's time capsule, I don't know what is.
Completely listenable, much of the album feels like side pieces to the main event which is the title track. Eurotrash, I don't need it. Possibly sounded better at the time.
This is uhhh...very much not the style of music I listen to. It's produced extremely well and Annie Lennox's singing has a ton of range but it's just so goddamn 80's all I can think of is a John Hughes movie. Gary Numan's album the other day had the same sort of "stuck in a time period" sound but somehow this is less engaging. Fine for background music but that's it for me.
I was surprised how little the rest of the album sounds like the title track. The music belongs in an 80's fever dream. Maybe accompanied by a dwarf in a David Lynch vehicle. This proto edm is fairly forgettable after listening but I can understand it's impact on the musical landscape. Probably won't revisit this.
This is as synth pop as synth pop gets. I mean, the title track is probably the flagship song of its genre. Lennox's vocals and image paired with Stewart's production made for a powerful musical duo. As for the album, "Love Is a Stranger" and "The Walk" stood out as the other fun and standout synth-pop hits (especially if you're me and hadn't heard much outside of "Sweet Dreams"). But I thought the album noticeably slowed down and changed tone after the title track. This almost feels like a mini double album as a result. Not awful, but just took me out of the listening experience a bit.
Nice
The title track is amazing. Hands down 5 stars. If this were a list of 1,001 songs to listen to before you die, then its inclusion is a given. Jennifer is also good. But what is up with the rest of this boring album? I was expecting something great but was left with meh. The album gets a 1 for the disappointment, but the title track bumps it up to 2.
Annie Lennox - One of the best pop vocalists of all time. Great album.
Is it just me — a chronically neurodivergent high school student — or does the title track's baseline sound like the Kahoot theme song? (I don't know the band, by the way.)
Pop ochentero pasado de moda. Gran canción sweet dreams y poco más.
Amazing album for working, cleaning or just generally doing boring tasks - it's groovy, engaging and light, like a good 80's synth pop album should be.
Thought I would like this more than i did. Still a good album though.
I could go about this band and Annie Lennox, but I'll abbreviate my review: •Annie Lennox live (solo) was the best show of my entire life. I saw her at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium, and she could fill the venue with her voice at least three times over. That show was powerful. •I think Lennox is the best female vocalist due to her range, strength, and her ability to sing multiple genres. •Eurythmics are not so much pop as they are alt-new wave. I think that's why they were never really popular. •Lennox is Scottish and Stewart is English •Dave Stewart co-wrote Don't Come Around Here No More with Tom Petty. The Heartbreakers didn't want Stewart on the album (after all, he was British and the album was called Southern Accents, but the single was a huge success). •Lennox and Stewart were a great match and pushed electronic music to another level, and they were MTv video pioneers. •Lennox was gender bending before it was a thing. She wore men's suits and cross dressed more than once on MTv. No other female had done that before consistently on TV. •As a kid, I stopped in my tracks with mouth agape when I first saw Sweet Dreams on MTv. My little kid mind was blown to smithereens. My favorites from this album are Love Is a Stranger, I Could Give You (A Mirror), and Jennifer. Jennifer sounds like it could be in an 80s thriller-mystery movie, specifically Michael Mann's Manhunter. That film has neon hues, dark shadows, and ominous synth. I highly recommend it. (Plus, it's the first time we see the character Hannibal Lector on screen). I know this album and band aren't for everyone, but if you like 80s or modern synth, this album is definitely worth multiple listens. And as a side note, I absolutely adore Annie. She's a humanitarian and cares about the world. 5 stars.
I must admit I was more impressed by this one than I initially expected. I have never listened to this album before, nor did I even know it existed. But I was already familiar with one song (you all know which one), so when I saw the album title I was filled with dread. I don't *hate* that song, but my God is it overplayed. And I fully expected this to be just that for 40 minutes straight, just typical oversaturated 80s pop. But you know what, this is a surprisingly diverse album. It really represents this era of 80s pop really well, and even the title track doesn't feel out of place or stick out like a sore thumb.
Hadn't drawn a parallel in my mind before, between Annie Lennox and Grace Jones. Giving similar synth-funk ice-queen vibes. The production on this is just so sharp and shiny. It's good. I still probably won't want listen to it again but it is good.
The '80's, defined. Annie Lennox is great.
Love Is A Stranger, Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This), and Jennifer were my favorite tracks, but didn't really get into the rest
This is the House is the only track on the album that actually attempts anything different, and it is the only good song on the album. 50 minutes of the same synthesizer riff otherwise
Hyvä että discobailumeno pysyy läpi levyn. Eihän tästä voi olla tykkäämättä. Dramatiikkaa ei puutu. Tarttuvia melodioita. Vika biisikin sopi vaikka olisin siellä toivonut pituuden mittaan yllätyksiä eikä samaa rytmiä.
Laulajan tavassa eläytyä on jotain vaikeasti sulatettavaa. Kuulen levyllä ainakin yhden miellyttävän tunnelmapalan ja hitin, joka jää soimaan päähän, mutta joka on niin ikään vaikeasti sulatettava. Aineksia on johonkin toimivampaan.
Not horrible, just okay.
This album right here is why I'm doing this challenge. One of my favorite songs is Annie Lennox's Why, but I have never heard anything else from her. This album is unique, the lyricism interesting, and both of their voices are just awesome.
Never heard this before! Really never paid a lot of attention to Annie Lennox. My first memory of Annie Lennox - again, very casually informed - is of a fine songwriter but vocally not very impressive. A little like Sinead O’Connor. But these first few tracks are changing my mind about that! Love her phrasing and use of harmony. There is an element of sameness quickly creeping in. Each track pretty well feels like the last one. “The Walk” - Love the saxophone. Musically this track was something special. So I’m sad the vocal was so underwhelming. “Sweet Dreams” - I figured I’d be bored to tears by this. I’ve heard it incidentally off the radio so many times. But now listening to it intentionally… Wow. Everything about this track is excellent. “Jennifer” - at first the bass line made it seem like a redux of “Sweet Dreams”, but the song quickly set itself apart with a catchy but haunting vocal. “This is the House” - I actively dislike this song. It’s the vocal melody that’s killing the song. Everything about it screams “I wrote a poem and then tried to spontaneously sing it over music”. “Somebody Told Me” - love the intensity on the vocal. Finally she’s bringing some heat! Album closer “This City Never Sleeps” gave me a real Peter Gabriel vibe. Never a bad thing! Everything about this album SCREAMS the 80s. It sounds dated, but not in an off putting way. If someone wanted to know what the big deal was about 80s pop music, this would be a great album to point people to. They might not like it, but they will get it.
Too much 80's cheesy synth. not a fan. Does have "wrap it up" which made me laugh. DNF
This was so hit and miss for me. I was only familiar with the title track, and that more as the Marilyn Manson version tbh.. Some tracks were absolute bangers and others definitely felt their age and suffered for it.
À part le titre éponyme bof 2,5/5
A monster title track, some decent songs and Annie Lennox's haunting voice are enough to earn a passing grade for me.
I expected this to be as cool and line filled as the title track. But it ended up being boring as hell. Had it not been for Sweet Dreams it would be a one star.
Synth pop. I thought I would like it a lot more than I did. Even the title track fell flat for me.
Not my favourite style of music, and one song cannot carry an entire album. so 2 stars or D+.
Sweet dreams is really the stand out. It sounds completely different to the rest of the album
love the title track didnt listen to much else
Absolutely killer album that I need to listen to more often in my life
A decade before its time. Better than I would expect for a one hit wonder.
Definitely a tale of two sides wit this album. I didn't enjoy the A side at all, and was honestly ready to hate this album. But the B side was significantly more compelling and interesting in pretty much every way. So a decent listen overall. Top tracks: Sweet Dreams (Are Made of These), Jennifer, This City Never Sleeps
Wasn't my thing back in the day and haven't changed my mind
strong meh from me!
Two great songs but I did not really like the rest of the album.
Very good 80s vibe
Outside of the title track nothing grabbed me. I was distracted today so admittedly didn’t give this my full attention.
Classic
When it's tea time in our house Google Assistant says Sweet dreams are made of tea. At one stage we even had it play the song but that was a bit too much. Anyway, good to listen to this whole album. It kicks off strong with Love Is a Stranger but kind of loses its way until The Walk, and Sweet Dreams. Jennifer seems to begin the more electro sessions. Other notable mentions for me would be This City Never Sleeps
My rehabilitation to 80s music continues! To be fair, I've always thought the title track from this album slaps - and it's gotta be one of the main inspirations for the whole electroclash genre too, right? I'm torn between a 4 and 5 on this one - there are some undeniably 5 star tracks, but there are some super dated sounding filler tracks too, and while they're maybe fun, they bring the average down. 🤔 Fave tracks - "Love Is A Stranger" is fantastic! "The Walk" is great. "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" is obviously still iconic. "Jennifer" sounds like it could be dropped into OMD's "Architecture & Morality" fairly seamlessly. There's a fun cover of "Satellite of Love" in the bonus tracks of the edition I listened to, too... 🛰️
Aside from the obvious single this is like off brand Talking Heads. I enjoy the Talking Heads quite a bit, so this is a good replacement when they're all out David Byrne
Really great album. Hear the influence they had on future acts like Florence + the Machine. Sweet Dreams is a standout song and there are other really good ones as well.
Has it moments but this music isn’t for me really
They definitely are
Pulsing synth pop. Often bouncy. Annie Lennox has something unique about her vocal style that I can’t really identify, and it doesn’t quite move me. Certianly not displeasurable and some catchy songs and interesting synthy parts, but it doesn’t excite or inspire me. It just didn’t leave much of an impression.
Spooky, ethereal, shallow.
More chops than I was really expecting, but still unquestionably a one-hit-wonder entry
This City Never Sleeps is an amazing track.
Title track is a classic, but the rest is just droning vocals with cliche 80’s synths.
Warning, hot take incoming, but lord have mercy “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” - the song - is straight fire. A song that has been played at you eight billion times is hard to really appreciate, but that song still hits even after all that repetition. The rest of the album has some good moments but mostly fades into the background next to the title track. I think this is an album worth hearing though. But also, I like to imagine this scene playing out during the recording of basically every 80’s synth pop album: Producer: “Hey [every 80’s synth pop artist], Terry is here” Every 80’s synth pop artist: “Oh, cool, I love Terry” Producer: “. . . and he brought his horn” Every 80’s synth pop artist: “Oh no” Producer: “Yeah, he keeps listening to the demos and mentioning that a horn would go great during a bunch of parts” Every 80’s synth pop artist: “He can’t think . . .” Producer: “He says he’s got to get some work soon or he’ll lose his union healthcare and he needs to have that surgery . . .” Every 80’s synth pop artist: “Look, I like Terry, but there is just no place for horns on this record. This is straight synth pop. We just can’t have a random horn section on these songs. It would sound totally out of place and cheesy. Can we just let Terry hit a key on a synth or play a tambourine on a song and give him a credit?” Producer: “He’s wearing sunglasses and keeps slicking back his hair and smiling and asking if anyone is ‘feeling horn-y’ while fingering the little buttons on his trumpet, but it looks like he is crying a little too” Every 80’s synth pop artist: “. . . okay, geez. Find a song to have him play on” Terry, popping his head around the corner, hair super-slicked back with a mixture of gel and tears: “BWHAAAAAHH BABABAAAAAHHHH!!!!!!”
Hmm genuinely thought I would like this more. Much like in the 80's though, I found myself wanting to skip over the filler to the main songs.
YEEEEEES This is what pop should do! Only one I got a bit sick of the singular verse thing was Jennifer - she sounds resplendent but that didn't help after 5 minutes of it
A clear foray into the electronic sampling world. Annie Lennox is her own right. It’s a scene. Not my all in but obviously noteworthy for so many reasons.
Sweet albums are made of this
There were some great songs on here, but New Wave has always been a hit or miss genre for me. I hear the Talking Heads and Oingo Boingo and I can't get enough, but then there's groups like the Eurythmics and the Human League and I just can't find myself getting excited about their music. Overall, this was sound, but it just wasn't for me.
Sweet Dreams is still a classic. The rest is pretty solid synth-pop. Not five star material, but entertaining.