The Only Ones
The Only Ones
1978
Album Summary
The Only Ones is the debut studio album by English power pop band The Only Ones, released in 1978 by Columbia Records. It was produced by the Only Ones themselves, with the assistance of Robert Ash and was mixed at Basing St., Escape and CBS. The album was re-released in Europe in 2009 on Sony Music Entertainment, featuring rare bonus content. The reissue was a CD which comprises 13-tracks. It includes the original album digitally remastered from the original 1/2" mix tapes; alongside three bonus tracks.
WikipediaHalf of it sounded like credit music for a forgotten 90's sitcom, and the other half felt like a promising demo that was never worked on afterword. It felt like it was almost good a lot of times, but then just fell kind of flat.
Holy shit… that was awesome. This is exactly what I was looking for on 1001, bangers that were never on my radar. This album had a bit of Telivision, Roxy Music, Bowie, Violent Femmes and Of Montreal. First song was a good reforestation of the rest of the album, genre mashup, sounded like Roy Orbison mixed with Television. This album has everything I want, Proto punk, good breakdowns, solid recording and fidelity. What an impressive big sound and on top of that Horns and Keys, and in that way predicts and transcends punk and post punk. Loved it. Saved it. 5.
At start it seemed quite generic, but the later songs were interesting 3.5
There have been some great oblique paeans to heroin over the years (Golden Brown and There She Goes spring immediately to mind) but Another Girl, Another Planet is maybe the absolute best. I saw Peter Perrett live for the very first time only a few years ago and it gave me a warm glow to see that he'd not only survived his addictions but was also producing decent music in his bus pass years. Meanwhile, back in 1978, Perrett's New York nasal drawl belied his Camberwell roots and the Only Ones' blistering rockers aligned them with punk and new wave even though this is a real melting pot of an album with do-woopy and jazz-tinged flourishes and plenty of genuinely involving moments which sometimes bring Graham Parker and the Rumour to mind. I've never actually heard any of their other albums which is odd really because this one is enormously rewarding.
First saw this band on 3rd September 1977 supporting the Stranglers at the Cambridge Corn Exchange on the first date of the 'No More Heroes' Tour. Was impressed then, and grew to love this band.. What a great devut album, although their masterpiece in my opinion is 'Even Serpents Shine'.
Regular ass 70s music lmao idk what to tell you. Songs to play in the background for sound that won't distract you too much if you're doing work but you want lyrics.
I got excited when the opening track started... ooh this band's pretty solid, nice production, ooh tasty chord changes. THEN the dude started singing. Jesus H. Christ. I'd bet ya the members of his band thought he was total shite too, just learned to enjoy playing together and TRIED to turn his mic down bit by bit by bit by bit.
This was a great listen - like the Velvets after taking some happy pills. Excellent.
Very surprised I've never listened to this before. Reminds me of the Undertones, Buzzcocks, a little Television. Never knew The Whole of the Law was not a Yo La Tengo original (and I like the YLT version better).
Really good band, okay songs, but very off-putting vocals, unfortunately.
Not a bad album, just wasn’t my cup of tea. I still may have to give some of their other albums a listen.
Je pense que ce groupe a fabriqué cet album en visant le 3 étoiles sur le générateur et qu'il a plutôt réussi son pari. On peut citer dans ce sens le refrain du morceau "Another girl, another planet.": "♫ Nous tout ce qu'on veut c'est pas grand chose, qu'on nous donne la note de trois sur le générateur, on n'a pas tellement plus d'ambition, na-na-na-na-na-na, Hey Jude...♫"
Awesome blend of classic late 70s punk (NY Dolls-ish) and 2nd wave alt (Violent Femmes). Brand new band for me.
9/10, surprisingly great songs really diverse genres and very fun sounds great execution all around
Surprised with the Libertines vibes. I mean these are all bangers. Really good fun
Great debut album: 5*. The other two Only Ones albums are also 5* but not as good as their first one: nonstop classic guitar songs, several of which covered by other bands over the years. Favourite song: The Beast.
Love this big sprawling guitar rock - one of my favourite genres/styles of all time. Something distinctly late 70s Australian sounding about them too, assume that The Saints et al were influenced by these blokes/this sound.
"Another Girl, Another Planet" is one of those songs you've heard everywhere but always attributed to someone else (probably The Buzzcocks). It's a great tune and the rest of the album ain't bad either; I like its soporific, heroin-tinged take on punk rock.
Another one I've never even heard of! Fun. Right out the gate it doesn't sound like anything I expected at all. While associated with the punk scene the power pop and psychedelia elements are definitely much more prevalent so far. I'm pretty into this. I wonder if Gordon Gano was a fan of these guys. The vocals on "Breaking Down" definitely remind me of Violent Femmes. "City of Fun" too - which also feels the most punk anything has sounded thus far on the album as well. Oh yeah, the bit of freakout at the end of "City of Fun" also reminds me of the Femmes. These guys must be an influence. "I love my mother but I wouldn't wanna have sex with her!" = gold. The more I hear the more I'm convinced the Femmes are deeply influenced by these guys. Alright, I know I'll be listening to this one a bunch more - it's jumping up on the want-to-buy list now. This is fuggin' awesome!
Nice find! "Interesting funk" My favorites are the least-popular (according to Spotify)
This has some of those lazy sparkle-pop vibes that bands in the 2010s were going for, and it definitely works. I like this, sometimes low-fi lite, sometimes psychedelic and surf-rocky, always with that classic 70s feel that it just can't shake.
What a fun little gem I've never heard before. Adding this to the regular rotation.
I've always had a soft spot for So You Want To Be A Rock 'N Roll Star, with it's comically rolling bassline, Latin beat and sardonic lyrics. Have You Seen Her Face has a lovely vocal arrangement and is Beatlesque in the best sense. My Back Pages is a stellar Dylan cover. And the Byrd's harmonies are just gorgeous. At their best, the Byrds' combination of folk rock, country, psychedelia and pure pop is a delight. But I'm sorry to say that Younger Than Yesterday is not a very good album. The attempts at psychedelia here are amateurish and juvenile, ruining the otherwise fine C.T.A. - 102. Roger McGuin's attempts at lead guitar throughout are an embarrassment. And other than the first two songs and the Dylan cover, the songwriting is weak. Two stars for the three strong tunes mentioned, zero stars for the rest. 2/5
Never heard of this band before. Seemed pretty good after on listen. I didn’t realize that “The Whole of the Law” was their song; only familiar with Yo La Tengo’s version.
Me fue difícil, en momentos me pareció promedio, pero en momentos pensaba que para la época el disco es muy bueno. Lo tuve que escuchar varias veces, pero eso mismo fue lo que me orilló a darle 4 estrellas, si no hubiera pensado que valiera la pena no lo hubiera escuchado varias veces.
Good album I enjoyed all the tracks. Another discovery from this list. 4.3
Good voice It's good Sounds like Magazine Warrants repeat listens It's excellent
Pretty good! This the 8th album I've listened to for the 1001 Albums List, and it's the first one where I've just completely never heard of the band. I really enjoyed it though! Just some fun 70s punk music. I might end up going back to it sometime. Definitely glad I heard it, even though nothing completely blew me away.
Great album. I was only familiar with Another Girl, Another Planet Good punk music that doesn't make me feel too intimidated.
Great album. Can't believe I've never even heard of the band before. Nick Lowe vibes. Another Girl, Another Planet reminded me of something, but then I found out Blink182 covered it - seems right.
First time hearing of this band...enjoying the sound. Serious Television vibes. Seems like they would also have influence on future BritPop (Pulp esp.). 4/5
My heart and soul! Everything I love in rock in one album. Riffs, solos, fast tempos, punk, hard rock, and pop in one. Loved it. Great rock songs. Would only knock on the vocals, could have been more passionate.
Oh wow! Who turned up the drama to eleven?! That first track is terrible with those operetta voice and lovesick lyrics. Fortunately the balance of the album doesn't follow that first one "The Whole of the Law". I love the diversity of instruments used on the record, and the raw guitar with short breakouts like the one that opens City of Fun. However, please save us the 'my voice is awesome lemme show you my vibrao skills' crap. I don't care about any of that and I can't imagine any of your fans do either. I'm kind of a sucker for this era of intelligent lo-fi polished punk from the late 70s. I'd never heard of The Only Ones and happy to have been turned on to them.
Cool, a good find. Not all songs were great, but I enjoyed the punk vibes with good musicianship
Some really great songs, particularly of course Another Girl Another Planet
Really good album, with a few brilliant songs. Another girl, another planet was the stand out for me, with The whole of the law, Creature of doom, and As my wife says, all very enjoyable. Not sure it's quite a five 🌟, but a solid 4 🌟 effort. I loved it
Nice pink vibes. Overall pleasant to listen to but missing an x factor
I'm used to the phenomenon where you can't really perceive any accent in (English-language) singing so it's always feels a little weird when someone sounds super British. Enjoyed the album tho
This is good, from a band iv never heard of. Recognised the song another girl another planet from the blink 182 cover. Good mix of punk and pop can see me coming back to this and having the potential to make my wider rotation.
This surprised me, if only because I was unfamiliar with this group until yesterday. But this is solid punk with a power rock tinge, and I could see this being a solid gap between the Ramones and Cheap Trick back in the day. I don’t think they got a chance in the states, though. B
Quite good album. Reminds me of something like T. Rex but with more punk feel. 3.75/5
Good power pop from an obscure band. Only so much could be done with the genre at the time, since bands like Jellyfish and the Posies were still several years away.
First listen. Never heard of the band and was pleasantly surprised. Add d the album to my library.
Suena a todo y a nada. A ratos se escucha muy viejo, punk promedio y luego parece una banda que salió hace 3-4 años. Creo que sin saberlo muchas bandas actuales tienen influencia de otras bandas que fueron insipiradas por The Only Ones. 3.5 que subo a 4 porque en realidad está bueno, aunque ninguna sobresalga.
Is it new wave? Is it punk? Is it pop? I don't know and I honestly don't care if the product is as fun as The Only Ones. Peter Perrett is terribly British and half the time it sounds like he's only half invested in recording the songs - but somehow it only adds to the experience. Songs like "Another Girl, Another Planet" and "Language Problem" are especially fun with Perrett really showing off on the latter. On the other hand I'm not quite as interested when they go for a more straight on punk(ish) approach like on "City Of Fun". Huge praise for keeping this at a length of barely more than half an hour. Thight and with absolutely no time for bullshit.
Previously unfamiliar with both artist and album, I felt this was a very accesable introduction to The Only Ones. The melodies are on point and unlike many punk and new wave bands of their era, the musicianship is top notch. The standout track is 'Another Girl, Another Planet' which is insanely catchy while still carrying a lo-fi garage sound. No wonder it apparently became their signature song. 'City of Fun' is another catchy one, and 'Breaking Down' sees the group going full jazz with groovy 70s keys. The Only Ones might have been long forgotten along with the vast majority of their contemporaries if not for their capabilities behind their instruments. Moments like the tight 'Creature of Doom' and THAT GUITAR on 'Language Problems' make this album a very nice acquaintance indeed.
I’d never heard of this band, another hole in my U.S.-centric knowledge of pop music culture. I liked this a lot, though the vocal delivery bordered on a territory of affectation I dislike, and struck me as the weakest component of the music. I’d like to spend more time with this band and get to know the lyrics, which I wasn’t giving much concentration.
Love this album. I see this band get lumped in frequently with punk, but The Only Ones were really on their own track in a lot of ways. Some songs are raucous and energetic like the best English punk. But the band is also surprisingly nuanced as well, with strong melodies and alternating jagged-to-jangling guitars. They also played around with more complex uses of keyboards and horns than you might expect in this type of band. Peter Perrett's splendidly insouciant vocals make him sound a bit like an English Lou Reed, but it's a style that also probably influenced numerous post-punk era singers. Fave Songs: Another Girl, Another Planet; The Whole of the Law; No Peace for the Wicked; City of Fun; The Immortal Story
This is about as grunge as the 1970’s would get, from what I’ve heard. Honestly a solid listen.
This is fun! I'd call it proto-punk, proto-Brit pop from the late 70s. The lead singer has a very distinctive, almost drawling voice which I think you either love or hate (I like it). The opening track is great. It has some Velvet Underground vibes for me. I would definitely listen again.
Wasn't too sure about this with the first few songs, but it really went off in the right direction imo. Interesting mix of punk, psychedelia and other things I'm not quite educated to name. Good stuff. Saved songs: Breaking Down, Creature Of Doom, It's The Truth, As My Wife Says
First punk rock I listened to, very enjoyed. Nice continuity between pieces.
I like this but (compared to other punk bands) this isn’t quite as good 4/5 though still brilliant!
good power pop sound good songs and what’s with the jazzy breakdown on breaking down?
Started off a bit rubbish, then "another girl another planet" is an all time great, then some really good and interesting tunes throughout 3.8
This album really won me over! At first I was like, oh great another BritPop band. And in many ways it is, but it's a really nice blend of punk, power pop, new wave, psychedelia, and more. Some great songs and some awesome guitar playing. My only complaint is the lead singer's voice. Maybe it will grow on me with further listens, but it's not super appealing. Overall though, good stuff! 4 stars.
There are just enough songs on here that are just a bit meh for me to give it 4 stars, but it's damn close. This is fun.