When I Was Born For The 7th Time

Definition of a one hit wonder - the rest of the album was largely unmemorable

2.5

Variety can be a double-edged sword and When I Was Born for the 7th Time is a great example of that. On the one hand, Cornershop's refusal to put all their eggs in one basket led to me (at least, partially) enjoying a fair few cuts from the album. On the other hand, it's such a convoluted mess of different sounds that I can't see myself ever willingly listening to the whole thing again. I wish they would have just picked a lane and focused on really nailing that sound, but oh well – this is the album we're stuck with. Highlights: Butter the Soul, What Is Happening, Good Ships, Good to Be on the Road Back Home Again, It’s Indian Tobacco My Friend, Candyman

# Album Name: When I Was Born For The 7th Time # Artist: Cornershop # Rating: 2/5 # Comments: Starts well with the first two tracks. Then it goes wildly off track. Nothing wrong with that of course. But its almost like a psychedelic journey of someone smoking too much weed. The irony is their best song is actually a remix. That fatboy slim remix of brimful of asha is a absolute throwback to the 90s. Immense. Sadly its not on this album.... # Top Tunes: Sleep on the left side / Brimful of asha # Would I listen to it again? No

When I Was Born for the 7th Time definitely has its moments. Brimful of Asha alone captures the sound of the late 90s perfectly and remains a brilliant song. It is catchy, warm and full of character, and it easily stands out as the highlight of the album. One thing I do appreciate is the variety across the record. It moves between indie rock, Indian influenced sounds and spoken word style pieces, showing that the band were not afraid to experiment with different ideas and textures. The downside of that approach is that the album can feel a little unfocused. There are a lot of instrumental passages and more experimental tracks that do not really add much for me. Instead of building momentum, they slow the album down and make it feel longer than it needs to be. In the end it feels like an album with a couple of genuinely great songs surrounded by quite a bit of filler. Favourite song: Brimful of Asha and Good to Be on the Road Back Home Least favourite song: Chocolat and Butter the Soul Album artwork: Cool cover that fits the era well

on the 45 45 …fun nostalgic listen late 90’s sound

Sick and tired of Brimful of Asha; doesn't feel like an album I had to hear before I die :-(

So, revisiting this album, it's wild how much it screams 90s. It's this crazy mix of Britpop, indie rock, and Indian music, a total time capsule. I remember thinking it was kinda boring back then, but the biggest mark against this album is that it doesn't have the Fatboy Slim remix of "Brimful Of Asha." They just have a slower version, which is ok, I guess, but nowhere near as good as the single banger. Overall, it feels like a bit of a weird, psychedelic journey with funky sitar riffs, hip hop beats, and even a Punjabi "Norwegian Wood." It's rich, but definitely a bit strange to listen to. I'm still kinda on the fence. I get the cultural fusion and the band's background now, but some parts still feel like filler or just plain boring. It's all over the place, from Ginsberg readings to country tunes. But the lack of a good bassline and that remix? Yeah, that makes it hard to like for me...

Щось мені зовсім не сподобалось, навіть дослухати до кінця важко. Черговий британський альбом по британській квоті. Тут є цікаві моменти певні, пов'язані з індійською музикою. Але навіть головний хіт, brimful of asha, мені не сподобався.

Unusual selection of songs - retro & lo-fi at times.

Time locked. Not built to last

In theory this sounds like a really cool album but in practice I just did not enjoy listening to it that much :/

Starts off pretty strong, but falls away massively. Don't think this would be anywhere near this list were it not for the Norman Cook remix of Brimful of Asha.

First couple of songs into this and I was thinking this was going to be at least three stars maybe 4. Then it mostly just fell apart. There’s probably just about a decent EP in here. But certainly not a 54 minute album…

Indie x Electronica x Indian influence. All the ingredients to be something I love. First song was great, second is a classic. Then just fell away completely and was mostly dull. Even the Beatles cover manages to be uninteresting… the Punjabi translation is cool but musically it’s almost a note for note recreation instead of making it theirown. Feel like this sound could be so much better executed.

like i see the vision it's just not for me

Brimful of Asha // 2.5/5

More mediocre British rock from the 90s.

I've tried for 4 days to find what I was missing with this. Is Brimful enjoyable? Sure. Poppy? Sure. But the majority of the rest of this seems like less interesting Brimful OR experiments that just didn't land with me. Solid 2/5

I thought this was going to be quite a fun album after the opening two songs. I was wrong. The majority of this album is rather weird, and not in a good way. The song featuring the female singer was good, and I liked the rap part of Candyman. Other than that, and the first two songs, it's a pretty rubbish album.

Creo que lo escuché en su época, pero aparte del Brinful of Asha me suena la primera y poco más. Y por otra parte creo que de Brinful of Asha me suena más un mix con algo más de velocidad ¿el de Norman Cook (aka Fatboy Slim)?. En general lento y aburrido, supongo que fue un gran cambio escuchar a estos hijos nietos de origen indio o pakistaní hacer una música que fusionaba estilos y que inspiraron a futuros autores. Por lo menos se cierra con una versión de Norwegian wood interesante.

2.2 First listen I thought fine, yet another one hit wonder album on this list. Then I read the wiki. My god, what did I miss? 68th in the top British albums *of all time*? 3rd best album of 1997? Second listen.... Even worse than the first. There are more intermissions than there are actual songs? If the first two songs weren't on there I'd have understood, the album is meant to be repetitive boring segways, fair enough. But you can't rope people in with two songs, set out your stall, then mindlessly put us through 10 songs that sound as though you're in the shittest loading game screen ever. Thoughts and prayers to the kids who heard Brimful of Asha and then begged their parents for the CD. Think of the number of birthdays and christmasses ruined.

what an odd little album...Indian rock/electronic?? (some tracks bordering on trip hop i think but im not expert) Not something i think ill listen to again but I appreciated enough to listen to the whole thing.

It was weird but not terrible, but also was not that good.

Despite that famous song it was very uninspiring

Had a few entertaining songs but not my type.

Such a strange album. It was like a rollercoaster of me liking and then not liking each song, but not enough to make it a mid-tier album :/

Only about 4 real songs on this. Where they do sing, there are some garbage lyrics. It's too bad because brimful of asha has a nice groove.

2 guys in a basement with a Casio keyboard and time to make the blandest music they could think of. Why are the vocals so forward in the mix? I feel like he's right next to my ear singing. It's uncomfortable and off-putting..... like this album.

This was honestly headed to 1 star because back in the day I couldn't stand brimful of asha and everything sounded the same to me. But then side b happened and the album got slightly better. So I guess 2 stars since it got weirder.

This is an odd album where I actually thought the second half was stronger. I actually found that their songs ‘State Troopers’ and ‘Candyman’ to be quite enjoyable. Everything else, not so much

This album makes me think “what if there was an entire album of frontier psychiatrist, but all of it was bad?” - this was a mediocre collection of noises overall.

The most popular song on this album is aggravatingly repetitive and simplistic, which really sets the tone for the remaining songs on this album. The other songs of western cultural alignment are so basic that they offer nothing unique or of interest to the listener, and are essentially the same programmed bass line, drum track, and synthesizer notes repeating ad nauseum to accompany droll vocals that express no range whatsoever. In between actual songs are tracks of sampled noise and talking that offer frequent reminders that I was listening to music, but am now listening to something that is categorically not music. The songs of Indian musical influence are certainly an appropriation of another nation's culture, but the English have built their entire culture on this practice, anyway.

Ой нет это прям плохо

Typical 90s one hit wonder album. 1 decent song I half remember and about 50 minutes of filler and garbage. They did a decent job with the Beatles cover so I give it a 2.

Kinda feel like brimful of Asha is the only particularly interesting song here, and the fatboy slim version is better 2

Some interesting things going on sonically, but not enough to overcome how irritating the songs are.

Did nothing for me

The first two songs being good can’t make up for the entire rest of the album being terrible

The British bias on this list is nutty, how is this an essential listen? The dudes seem chill enough

hmmm didnt love it

This is the brimful of Asha band? I think I knew the Norman Cook version, which is much boppier and going into my highlights playlist. This album is catchy, and blending indian music with brit rock is at least something different from every others 90s british album on here. I was digging the norwegian wood instrumentation until I went back to the Beatles original and realized they had already used sitar. There's also a lot of filler; this could have used some editing. Highlights: brimful of asha (norman cook version)

2.5 Loved half, hated half.

Only knowing “Brimful of Asha” (thanks to Fatboy Slim), I expected this album to be quite different from what it actually was. I’m still a bit confused about what it was trying to be. “Brimful of Asha” is a chill pop track, then you get some Indian influences (“We’re in Your Corner”), followed by a lot of trip-hop-sounding beats. I wasn’t really a fan of most of it, except for two tracks. I guess it keeps you guessing what will come next, but nothing really stood out. The best track was, of course, “Brimful of Asha,” though I also enjoyed “We’re in Your Corner.” Strong 2

Such a strangely eclectic mix of stuff here. I had high hopes at the beginning with some cool 90s Indie sounds, but by the time the Punjabi synth-pop set in I was ready to move on.

I believe Brimful of Asha's guitar riff sounds similar to that of Proud Mary. My ears could be deceiving me. There are quite a few instrumentals on here, which I did not expect. I had never heard of this group and never heard Brimful of Asha, which I hear was their biggest hit on this album. It is definitely the catchiest song on When I Was Born for the 7th Time. Is this essential listening though? I thought it was when I initially heard the first few songs, because this is an interesting mix of Indian, dance and Brit-pop sounds. After a while, it became slightly less interesting to me and I wondered if there was some fat that could have been cut. I thought the music was good enough but also wondered if perhaps there was so many different sounds here, they just didn't manage to grab me with any of the later songs. I'm probably not cultured enough to like this record and I'm the problem. It is a nice change of pace the "song of India" is being played by individuals with that actual heritage as opposed to acid-tripping hippies who spent two weeks in India and then decided to throw a sitar on a few songs to prove how cultured and brilliant they are. What I do know is if I have to hear this album before I die, then I would hope I am not born for the 7th time, because hearing it once and hearing the rapping (yep, rapping) in the middle of Candyman was sufficient for me. I'm sure this music has a place. The integration of sounds would be more interesting if I felt they did something consistently constructive within that sound. And no, having Allen Ginsberg does not count as something interesting for me. My favorite songs were: Sleep on the Left Side Brimful of Asha Funky Days are Here Again Good to be Home Back on the Road Again

Only giving it two stars instead of one because of Norwegian Wood

I like the merge of Punjabi sounds with UK 90s guitar and trip hip but there just weren't enough hooks for me.

So excited for Brimful of Asher, song ended and so did the excitement.

I wish I liked this more than I did. I love funk but I don't like lo-fi. Indian influences are cool but I didn't love the execution here.

Bit of a nothing burger.

Mostly boring. Also, not the version of Brimful of Asha I had in mind. During the last few tracks I just waited for the album to end

It was fine. Little TOO all over the place for my taste personally.

Me agarró en un día jodido y no pude escucharlo a fondo. Está bien, volado, pero no me llegó igualmente a atrapar. 4/10

Weird and interesting, but I felt it dragged on a bit besides brimful of asha

This album feels like the musical personification of random = funny. There are some cool psychedelic grooves that almost venture into Trip Hop territory, but they're padded out with a bunch of artsy bullshittery that I feel make the album less cohesive as a whole. The vocals seem uncertain of what they want to be, and the lyrics leave a lot to be desired. If it was cleaned up a little bit and had a couple more substantial tracks to replace the filler, the album would be a cool and trippy late-90s gem. As is, I only really got enjoyment out of Brimful of Asha and Good to Be on the Road Back Home, and found myself pretty bored with the rest. The record is certainly unique, but maybe hone it in a little for the sake of listenability?

Was not bad to listen to

Well, it wasn't horrible and there are a couple of tracks that are actually pretty good, but otherwise it is just about find a chord progression and beat it to death over and over. Quite forgettable overall...

Not sure what to think of this to be honest. Did some house chores while listening, was fine.

Meh. Cool vibe, but hard to enjoy the entire album.

Not bad but not my thing

Boring, sounds like music for a toy commercial, sparse moments of cool instrumentation however

The remix is better than the album track

I did not enjoy this. I actually winced when I saw this album come up; I remember "Brimful of Asha" when it came out 25 years ago and hating it back then. But I wanted to like this record..... unfortunately it has not aged well. First off, most of the songs on this record are barely songs - they are snippets, usually consisting of a sample of an Indian song or beat alongside a sample of someone talking. The "real" songs are incredibly repetitive, limited, and insipid. I think "insipid" is a great word for the whole album. There just isn't anything here, and what IS here completely lacks any kind of complexity. The lyrics are painfully dumb. The chord progressions, also painfully dumb. Oh it's all so dumb. However, marrying Indian musical sensibilities and rock music is cool. So while I'm tempted to give this a one, it has to be TWO STARS

There were some alright tracks on here. Nothing that is jaw dropping or even worth a titty flash but still a couple songs to drive to.

Author must be british this sucks

Couldn't wait for it to be over....

Sung partially in Punjabi. Sitar was nice but was there also an accordion? The lyric "Everybody needs a bosom for a pillow" is an interesting observation. Overall, the instrumentals were distortedly grating and noisy to me, though I suppose there was an artistic meaning therein that I just missed. "Norwegian Wood" was good 😊 Listened before? N Saved to library? N Favorite track(s): N/A ⭐⭐: Didn't like it, didn't hate it. Saved no tracks.

Amigo con todo respeto que álbumes mas decepcionantes están saliendo, ni me los puedo terminar loco dale necesito que el algoritmo colabore. Not a big fan of whatever this is.

Extraña mezcolanza de sonidos y ninguno me suena particularmente bien. Distingo britpop, rock psicodélico, samples hip-hop, toques de música india... un collage atractivo sobre el papel, pero desigual al oído, y por momentos, cacofónico. Se supone que Brimful of Asha es la highlight del álbum, pero me resultó bastante annoying. El resto sigue la tónica de la dispersión y la ausencia de identidad cohesiva. Es de esos discos que parecen más divertidos de grabar que de escuchar. Valoro el espíritu libre, pero me costó no mirar el reloj hacia el final. Escucha durilla.

I don’t know why I had to listen to a one hit wonder’s album. I knew Brimful of Asha. I never realized they were Indian before now.

this was a bit annoying to listen to

3.46

Eh, not bad but didn't find it that interesting either.

This starts out strong, but the quality decline sets in at the 3rd track and continues going, until we reach the absolute nadir with a Indian version of Norwegian Wood.

Beetje zeurderig.

Don’t really care for it…

Eh

I wish I could give it 3 for the interlude musical bits. I kind of find their lyrical composition to be noisome.

meh

I wanted to like this more! The description sounded cool but it didn't grab me. "Brimful of Asha" was way too repetitive for me, but the Fatboy Slim remix is okay. Did enjoy "We're In Yr Corner" though

Mado

I enjoyed the first 2 tracks, but didn’t care for much of the rest of the album. ‘Butter the Soul’ I hated enough that I wanted to stop listening, and my vow to listen all the way through (for this project) is the only thing that saved it. Few flashes in the pan were enjoyable enough but few and far between. 2/5

It was a nice idea, but like curry and chips, this doesn't really go together. One good song does not an album make and even that song (Brimful of Asha) gets tiresome. Norwegian Wood is particularly awful. Sorry.

Ok 2/5

Not bad! Not great.

Wasn't my favorite. Bland vocals trying and failing to be poppy didn't really do it for me. There were moments it dabbled in experimentation with sampling that half the time were kinda cool and the other half sounded like a kid discovering a soundboard. The Indian flair on some of the songs sounded good but for the most part was rather bland. Not a bad album, but it was boring. Was surprised to see that it was Allen Ginsberg doing the little beat poetry bit on When the Light Appears, so that's kinda cool, even though I didn't really find the lyrics that interesting. I fell asleep during the last quarter of the album :/

Not memorable

An intriguing concept—melding Brit-Pop, Indian music, and dance-pop—but the execution doesn't quite land. The vocals lack energy, and several tracks just don’t hold attention. That said, there are glimpses of promise, especially on “We’re in Your Corner.” & "Candyman". If you're into an Indian-tinged, danceable pop sound, give Peter Cat Recording Co.’s Memory Box a spin instead. 5/10.

Evil new age indie rock enjoyed by Satanists. Reminded me of bad Trip-Hop Actually kind of ahead of its time for '97 5/10

From the very start I knew this just wasn't for me.

Album 848 of 1089 Cornershop - When I Was Born For The 7th Time (1997) Rating : 2 / 5 This one didn’t land for me. The album felt a bit all over the place — some might praise it for genre-bending variety, but for me it just never came together in a way that felt cohesive or compelling. That said, I can see how others might find something to latch onto here. The standout for me was Brimful of Asha — a track I was already familiar with and still enjoy. Overall, though, this one sits just below “meh” in my book. Onward.

z cornershopem mam tylko skojarzenia jednego traka brimfuil of asha, ale nigdy nie przyesluchalem calego ich albumika, az do dzisiaj, okazalo sie ze to nie takie popowe rokowanie, ragowanie czy popowanie indyjskie jak na wspomnianym traku, ale bardziej instrumentalno eksperymentalne klimaty, no i okreslenie indyjskie tutaj odnosi sie nie tylko do podziemnosci brzmienia, ale takze od pochodzenia przynajmniej dwoch glownych czlonkow bandy, bo sporo ludzi bylo zlistowanych, a nie chcialo mi sie czekowac wszystkiego, no ale sama nazwa zespolu do tego pije, wiec w ich brzmieniu rowniez nie brakuje akcentow orientalnych jak brzmienia sitar, tabourow, egzotycznych bebenkow i tym podobnych dziwow, a laczac to z elementami elektroniki czy hip hopu, trak candyman ma nawet aktualne rapowanie, wychodzi nietypowe sluchowisko, na plejce mialem juz brimfula wspomnianego, a teraz dodam jeszcze candymana, no i jeszcze ciekawostka jest tu nawet cover norwegian woodsow beatlesowych prawdopodobnie w hindi, wiec orginalne 54 minuty

It's like the equivalent of the window tax in the 17th century. Just this time it's on lyrics, was the writer on commission for each unique verse so the band's saved money by just repeating them? Maybe that's why they turned to Indian in the middle. Nobody would have know it's the same words they already paid for? Honestly the Indian stuff and the lady singer gave them something to get a star behind bottom feeder. Loved the bit of Sitar rifting! Rest of it is soft mush. Secondly it's just so wimpy and rubbish.

This seems like another example of an album making the list on the basis of one very popular song and potentially a severe lack of decent music being made that year. This felt like forcing down fifty four minutes of rocky road ice cream: lots of random, sweet bits and bobs that don't actually taste very good.

Funky. I've never even heard of this before. Somehow feels a little nostalgic? Maybe it's the blend of 90's pop and the music that some of my Indian friends in elementary school listened to. Enjoyed it more at first, but less as it went on. Seems very repetitive. Not really for me.

Too quirky for repeated listens. Doesn’t speak to me. Production seems more important than the songwriting. Peeled the whole onion in one listen.

This felt so 90s in all the worst ways

One of the best songs of the 90’s is not on this album The original Brimful of Asha is just a plodding disappointment compared to the joyous Fatboy Slim remix. Good To Be On The Road… was quite good but rest was a bit hard to care much about sadly

Decent album. Didn't give it my full attention. Nothing really stood out.

“Everybody needs a bosom for a pillow, everybody needs a bosom” 38/100 Favorite: Coming Up Or the Norwegian Wood cover if that counts

I’ve been trying to decide whether this album is just boring (two stars) or affirmatively annoying (a single star). I’m rounding up and giving it two stars—on the strength(?) of Paula Frazer’s vocals on “Good to Be on the Road Back Home” and the Punjabi cover of “Norwegian Wood.” “Brimful of Asha” has *not* held up well over the last 25+ years…. There is no universe where this album is one you *must* hear before you die. Sheesh.

-this is certainly one of the more.. baffling releases i’ve seen on here. genuinely had no idea what to make of the genre or purpose most of the time -there was very little here that was memorable imo. Brimful Of Asha is a good song, the Indian influence is cool, but other than that… just no. couldn’t see myself listening again -Favorites are Brimful Of Asha and Butter The Soul

I love the one hit from the 90’s. The entire album feels kinda boring (at times).

Could be used as a drug test

Confusing.

Cute vibe, indie, very 90s early 2000s teenage movie soundtrack. Kinda boring? Not too special. Best songs: sleep on the left side, we’re in yr corner, good sh**

Interesting as a concept. Some of the songs were nice but many of the songs just pissed me of and were annoying. It would still be useful to have it on vinyl as background music when having friends over.

Some catchy tunes, but eh.

Boring

This was the same old boring britpop this list loves but with a different wrapper on top 4/10

incredible indian culture defiled.. petturit, kengänpohjaimijät. miten kehtaa sitaaria soittaa kuin ravi shankar konsanaan ja sitten heittää indierockkia kekoon ja luulee olevansa jotai.. ryhmän jäsenet olivat todellakin ylpeitä teknisen osaamisensa puutteesta, heh. cornershop hylättiin suurimmaksi osaksi epäpätevinä, heh. eiii eii tosi päteviä.. tehdään british indie rock albumi ja todistetaan pätevyys heh. vittu mitä kusetusta, vittu mitä puijjatusta, vitte ku vedetään vaan matto alta ja saatana petkutetaan kun ei olisi rehellisyyttä nähnykkää.. tomorroooow,,, neveeeer knooows... ding ding ding blang tomoorrroooowww neverknowsss... were in your cornerx§

Cornershop’s breakthrough album is a colorful blend of Britpop, Indian folk music, hip-hop, and lo-fi pop. It’s a playful and eclectic work, where everything from sitars and tablas to funky basslines and spoken word performances melt together in a warm, laid-back soundscape. The album has received widespread praise for its creative fusion of East and West, but personally, it didn’t grab me. The style feels too pop-oriented and polished, and the whole thing lacks the edge and grit I need to really get engaged. It’s undoubtedly an original and accessible album – it just doesn’t quite hit the mark for my taste.

I wanted to like this because I think I was so I fair to Brimful of Asha when it came out and some of the tracks are very good and groovy but there were too many other tracks that were just noisy IMO. This is unfortunately going to be the first victim of my harsher grading system where you need to earn a 3+.

This was interesting. Brimful of Asha and We’re in your Corner were the standouts for me. The rest was a little scattered. Strong 2, weak 3. 2.5/5

I can appreciate the variety here, as there are a lot of styles colliding. And even though I recognized a few tracks, the overall lack of cohesion between the songs made for a messy listen. Almost as if the band couldn’t decide if they wanted to be an indie-pop band or a world beat trip-hop outfit.

Legit surprised to discover that Cornershop has a wee bit more to offer than their eternal one-hit-wonder, "Brimful of Asha." Not a terribly exciting album, but listenable enough. Short tracks, many of which are instrumentals vibing off of a spoken word sample. Solid bkgd music. Totally inoffensive. Can't decide if I'm gonna give this a 2 or a 3.

Interesting album to review. I really enjoyed the creativity of the music (Butter The Soul is so different and almost weird but good?), but anything with lyrics I did not enjoy. The singer has a boring monotonous voice that I can’t stand, and he definitely ruined the songs. If it was all instrumental I would probably listen to this on repeat. Listen again: probably not Purchase for my collection: no Favourite Song: Butter The Soul

Listens: 2 Standout tracks: Sleep on the Left Side, Candyman The music is all over the place. I initially misread the album date and thought this came out in 1987, to which I would be quite impressed. I would have said it was way before it's time, likening the music to a combination of electronica with soft trap elements. In 1997 this is so much less impressive. It's repetitive and not in a good way. It's funny, I definitely enjoy some definition of "electronic" music, but whenever an album comes up here, I usually rate it really poorly. :( Candyman features someone rapping, which is a nice change of pace, and Norwegian Wood being a cover (albeit in Hindi?) was also pleasant to listen to. I appreciate the spin they put on the track. I don't think these two positives qualities save it though. 2.5

As ok as it gets

What in the wide world is this?

Hark, gentle listener, upon the strange and winding road of the nineties musical tapestry. Cornershop remains but a fleeting phantom—a "one-hit wonder"—whose name vanished into the ether, even as their solitary anthem, Brimful of Asha, echoed loudly through the halls of thy 20s. These modern bards didst attempt a daring alchemy, blending the exotic, rich sitars of the far East with the distorted, clanging lutes of Western Indie rock. 'Tis a clever marriage of disparate worlds, a novelty that initially puckers the tongue and pleases the curious intellect. Yet, once this strange potion is swallowed, what substance remains? Truly, very little. Beyond the cleverness of its design, the feast grows barren. It is a grand experiment that, in the final accounting, leaves no lasting impression upon the heart.

Fun and goofy at times. Appreciated the sitar and rhythmic dynamics. Hard to understand how its on the list.

If a band's music consists of ultra-basic chord progressions and singsong melodies over simplistic, repetitive beats, they better have some secret sauce to compensate for that, but Cornershop doesn't deliver the goods. The album aims for a loose feel but comes across as unstructured, a hodgepodge of vocal and instrumental numbers with no rhyme or reason. There are a few decent tracks. "We're in Yr Corner" has muscle but overstays its welcome by a third. "It's Indian Tobacco My Friend" conjures up an eerie atmosphere with its vocal and strings samples over a beat laden with dub effects.

Started out strong, but I didn't enjoy most of it.

Okay after listening to my friends talk about this album I get it, but it reeeeeeally isn't for me. Except for candyman (and even indian tobacco), you can stay.

There was a big variety of songs, and unfortunately most of them were incredibly weird. I suppose I could get why someone would like it, especially considering my wife was vibing to it. But it wasn’t for me. Candyman slaps tho

If I were in a better mood this might have gotten a 3, but then I thought this list should be much better than this album and they ruined a great Beatle’s song on the last track, so a 2.

First song was decent but then as time progressed everything got odder and not necessarily confusing but disjointed

Brit indie rock-of course it is on the list (insert sarcasm here)

First listen. A few songs are catchy. Overall though, I found the album dated, uninspiring and in cohesive. It's just ok.

Oh so Cornershop is the "bosom for a pillow" people.

Der var helt sikkert noget af det der var fedt og fik det til at føles som sommer i mine ører, men også en hel del filler. Jeg synes remixet af Brimful of Asha er en del bedre end originalen.

Brimful of Asha was obviously very good, the rest of the album is just interludes and fillers.

Some cool stuff but the repetition gets really annoying and accomplishes the amazing effect of making something that starts as interesting…just dull. Was glad to get to know it, and might give it a listen again at some point, but was glad that it ended.

After hearing that Fatboy slim remix what seems like literally a million times, it's something of a relief to hear the stripped back original here. I thought I'd listened to the album before but it seems I haven't. No memory anyway, so if I have that's a bad sign. Listened to a Cornershop record from about 5 years back and thought it was absolutely terrible. Not sure I've got patience for an hour of meandering stuff like Butter the Soul. I enjoyed the musicality of We're in Your Corner. Then I'm hit with Funky Days - what is this shit? Is it a skit. Is it meant to be funny. Because it is a very bad song. The next tracks is literally called What is Happening? So that was appropriate. Ok. Now we've got Allen Ginsberg and tabla. I like this. As a soundscape. Similarly I enjoyed the soundscape of Indian Tobacco. But what is happening? Pretty funny the book said this was their most focussed effort. A so so track later, I'm now apparently listening to some sort of alt country with a random female vocalist. Now there's an extremely mediocre rapping man doing some rap. And now some more meandering, seemingly endless beats that apparently are only 3 minutes long. "Their most focussed effort." My mind starts to wander, and I get to thinking I wonder what this album might have been like had they made it AFTER the enormous success of Asha rather than before it. Probably still a mess I guess, but with better names attached. I just don't dig this album it seems, or Cornershop's music particularly, though they seem like a decent lot and obviously I support what they stand for.

Wasn't the worst but also wasn't doing it for me

The Brimful of Asha band?? This was a one-hit wonder that burned out in a month. It seems slower now. This whole thing is weak.

Was some quite unique music I will say that. When the music was playing it was pretty good, but the shit that was not music was pretty awful. Butter the Soul made me think I was having a seizure. Alright I changed my mind as the album went on, the music was not so good. Way too much random shit going on. Sounded like a much much worse Beck.

Noodly, under-written half songs that sound like demos to be finished later

Liked the second track. Not so much the others. Strong 2?

My first impression was this is a bit boring and then I realized hey I know this album it's boring.

Something was off about this. 2.

When “Brimful of Asha” was released it always annoyed me, perhaps it was over played, or perhaps it was the radio remixes they played. The album version is a little more tolerable, but the damage is done. The album just follows the same feel and theme, it’s a tad bland. I appreciate the fusion and creativity. It’s listenable, but I think I’ve had a brimful of this album and I don’t want more.

mmmmmm some interesting songs. nothing noteworthy imo.

Trash

meh

I could not stand the single Brimful of Asha back when it came out, so I was prepared to not like this album at all. The album as a whole isn't bad though; was surprised at the variety of styles on it. Even Brimful didn't sound as bad as I remembered, it just reminds me of an overly polished and boring CCR tune. Probably still not one I'm going to return to, but it's off of my "can't stand it" list. 2.4/5

Some corny 90's tropes of the time. That being said, the blend of sunshine pop rock and rap with Indian music is a cool/worthwhile sound overall on a couple tracks. The album just doesn’t nail it as much as I’d like. They have a great compilation called corner shop and the double groove of that I think nails it in comparison

Another first time listen here. I went in not knowing what genre, what to expect, or anything about the artist...and TBH, I'm still not really sure. Is this Bollywood? Rock? Folk? Funk? Whatever genre it was, it didn't really land any of them for me. Felt like background music that just kind of stayed in the background, which is too bad because there's some unique influence in there. There were a few tracks that could have been edited out of the final track list, but I did appreciate the "Norwegian Wood" cover at the end.

There's a lot of undiscovered Britpop out there for Americans in their late 30s to stumble upon and this was an example of one such discovery. By me. There's a funky fusion of sounds in here that I didn't like or d̶i̶s̶l̶i̶k̶e̶. *Edit Upon a second listen I mostly DISLIKE this album. It feels derivative and lacks cohesion. The funky fusion of sounds I mentioned on my first listen feel messy the second go around and I found myself skipping tracks more frequently. I revise my rating to 2 stars!

..

1. left - 1 2. azha - 1 3. zoul - 1.5 4. chocolat - 1 5. corner - 1.5 6. funky - 1 7. happening - 1 8. boy - 1.5 9. coming - 1.5 10. zhipz - 1.5 11. good - 1.5 12. indian - 1.5 13. candyman - 1.5 14. ztate - 1.5 15. uuood - 1.5

Brimful of asha var ju en monsterhit men det övriga är ju sådär. Vill man ha inslag av indiskt så hade ju Kula Shaker varit ett mer givet val.

Another group I’ve never heard of so was eager to listen to something completely new. But two tracks in realised that they were not completely new to me as I instantly recognised Brimful of Asha. A track I had heard countless times but never bothered to find out who sung it. Thought at first it was a cover version but read that Fat Boy Slims version was the cover. Whilst this track was well known to me albeit more of an ear worm rather than a likeable song, the fact that it is the best track on the album does nothing for the rest of the music served up here. The version of Norwegian Wood is passable but more of a novelty track. So the music did nothing for me but reading about the origins of the bands name Cornershop did raise a titter. Made me think that if I had been lucky and made a career in music that I would have ended up in Sting’s band. 2/2 8/1/25

A Sublime clone that can’t decide if it wants to go all in on the Indian thing or not. The more it goes into Indian music, the worse it gets. The best track, “Candyman”, is the one that sounds the least like the rest of the album.

Eck. Leck. Tick. Look, I love Robert Christgau and he loves this album. He ranked it third in his 1997 albums of the year. He obviously has a soft spot for SE Asian-fused hip-hop and funk. His love for all things M.I.A. seems to highlight that. But this? I just can’t fully get behind it. It’s nice and boppy and finally gives a well-deserved nod to Asha Bhosle, the most-recorded human voice in history. It also contains probably the last contemporary recordings of Allen Ginsburg. So, for historical purposes, I’ll give it 2.5 stars but for artistic purposes it only scrummages up 2 stars from me.

# Playlist track - Brimful of Asha # Notes - The opening track, followed by "Brimful of Asha" filled me with hope. Could it be one of these treasure albums? Something new and interesting that you have missed somehow and are about to become a new obsession? - NOPE! Most of the tracks are incredibly boring. - I'll give credit for the Indian spice here and there. If it wasn't for that, the entire thing would be awful. - Still, there isn't enough curry in the world to make bland music be good. The overall experience is sluggish and uninteresting, much like Britain itself.

I feel like this album has an identity crisis it can't really save itself from: on one hand it's made up of cute but ultimately non descript indie pop whose biggest interesting part is maybe that it sometimes uses electronics or indian influences. On the other hand there's an electronic fusion of raga rock, trip hop, sampling and even guests (did you know that the She Wants Revenge guy is on this album and can rap? Well now you do!) which make the album all the more interesting and even unique among 90s british electronica. This bipolarity of sounds, coupled with the fact that this album is too long really doesn't do the album many favors, which sucks because there's legit great ideas here

It is amazing how many awesome bands were around during this time and Cornershop wasn't one of them.

I went into this having never heard of Cornershop. Then I realized I've heard Brimfull Of Asha and never liked it. Sadly that is the highppint of this album.

I had this on CD pre Fatboy remix and remember being underwhelmed. Sleep on Left Side/ Brimful of Asha are good tunes - but there is an awful lot of filler on the album that's not very good. I guess its due to repeated exposure but now much prefer the fatboy remix of Brimful of Asha. Fun fact lizzie is friends with Tjinders wife. Small world.

Something about this album makes me want to describe it as “cute”: it’s kind of charming in a way, especially the songs that have a strong Asian influence.

Just totally whatever

The song that's famous is good or I know it. The rest meh

Cheerful in vain, some feet tapping happend but end up being nothing unusual. And their drum is really not my favorite, both sounds and arrangments. maybe a 2.5...Butter The Soul is fun because of the scratching and sitar (is it sitar? i don't really know) sounds. Honestly, the only good thing in this album is the sitar and dholki and those indian features, but the singing and electronic arrangments kind of ruined them. I didn't enjoy it for the most of time so screw it, let's give it a 2.

eh. doesnt do that much. was probably more fun in the 90s

Weird

eh, its like Beck and I don't like Beck. Will I listen to again: 0%

Since the day I first heard it, Brimful of Asha still ends up stuck in my head for hours on end. It's a catchy song. The rest of the album however will not get stuck in my head the same way. It seems to go between multiple genres, with two of the more obvious ones being Beatles post-India visit and general late 90s Britpop/rock. The post-India Beatles is super obvious on the closing track of them covering Norwegian Wood. I wish I liked the rest of the album as much as the one song from it that will forever be stuck in my head.

Boy, this is a roller coaster, but, like only the first hill. Starts off on a high note (I’m being generous. The first two tracks are fine) and continuously descends into more and more boring folktronica or whatever. Here is yet another example of a one hit wonder that doesn’t deserve an entire album on the list.

Cada canción de su padre y de su madre. Le iba a poner un tres, porque alguna canción no sonaba mal, pero después de oir la versión de Norwegian Wood ...

Not very notable. Not bad, but not interesting. 2/5 Probably won’t listen again

Can’t say I liked it at all. Brimful of Asha is a good tune but apart from that it was pretty dull. Indian influence was obviously interesting but the constant hip hop beat was boring and the interlude songs didn’t add much to the narrative. Lyricism was poor too. 2/5

It was okay, interesting vibe

This is quite an interesting mixture of genres. It's something that I think could and maybe should work better than it does here, but somehow Cornershop manages to make it quite boring for a lot of the time. The three song run of 'Coming Up', 'Good Ships' and' Good To Be On The Road Back Home Again' are the best tracks. 'Coming Up' is an instrumental which combines Indian music with a cool slow funky beat. It goes straight into 'Good Ships' which is decent enough and the third is my favourite track on the album. It is definitely helped by the guest artist Paula Frazer who sounded really great, but it made me wish the whole album had her on vocals. It's quite a bittersweet sounding song and she adds a lot more emotion in six minutes than the actual singer does for the whole album. Listen to those and the original of 'Brimful of Asha' and the rest you can skip. Could maybe have been three stars if it was cut down by 15 minutes and wasn't as inconsistent.

Groupe totalement inconnu. L'instrumentation est originale et inattendue (+1), par contre le premier morceau ouvre assez mal l'album (trop répétitif). Les morceaux suivants ne sont pas beaucoup mieux, le résultat est assez ennuyeux. Je n'y revendrais pas. =>2/5

That was pretty terrible

another OK album, nothing (apart from Brimful of Asha) really grabs me

There’s a famous quote from Thomas Edison about not failing 10,000 times, but instead finding 10,000 ways of not making a lightbulb. In that light, I’d like to thank Cornershop for adding to the very long list of ways to not make an album. Brimful of Asha and the Norwegian Wood cover are ok, but not worth slogging through the rest of the album

Wow, slog really is the word for getting through this album. How is it under an hour? Seemed to go on forever.

It was a bit of a slogger. There is nothing on here worth coming back for. also, it had a couple of instrumental tracks that don't go anywhere. when I read that there was a ' lot of smoking going on ' whilst the album was recorded it all made sense. I'm not sure if it would be better or worse if there was no smoking whilst they made it.

Meh

this felt like if jar ferrar made british indian more rock inspired music. Should be up my alley, but isn’t as much. remix of brimful of asha is better than anything actually on here

It’s just not very interesting. I didn’t dislike this, but I probably won’t ever listen to it again.

Cada canción de su padre y de su madre. Le iba a poner un tres, porque alguna canción no sonaba mal, pero después de oir la versión de Norwegian Wood ...

Mediocre compared with its ambition and reputation

This is curiously interesting... A bit weird but not enough weird to totally hook me. I'll share 2 stars

Meh.

mi sono sentita colta alla sprovvista con queste vibes orientali, ma non so se in bene o in male. all'inizio era tutto molto interessante, nonostante la seconda canzone parta con uno che sembra stia facendo un annuncio radiofonico e prosegua dicendo che tutti hanno bisogno di un seno (per essere PG-13) su cui poggiare la testa. poi però purtroppo per me perde tutto ciò che è interessante e diventa un'accozzaglia di elementi che non mi sembra funzionino così bene insieme. peccato, perchè l'idea di fondo era carina.

Another that made me think there might not actually be 1000 albums I need to hear before I die.

Interesting 90s fare especially when the eastern music influences permeate.

It’s like one half good song and a lot of filler. I don’t get it.

you limeys really lost all sense of taste the moment they put a sitar over a breakbeat, huh

Started off OK to be fair. But seemed to be struggling for ideas after that. Seemed to be a case of, "What shall we do now? Well can't think of anything to say so.... let's do an instrumental" or "let's chuck a rap in". Not very inspiring.

I bought this back in the day, I always preferred The Fatboy Slim remix of 'Brimful of Asha' at the time, but revisiting it, I did enjoy the original more now. Some of the rest was pretty good, some awful. 2 stars.

Got half way through and didn’t want to listen anymore.

What is with this list and these British 90s one hit wonders getting whole ass albums on the list? Why is this band here? They have one popular song and it's not even the version from the album that got popular! It was the remix by Fatboy Slim, an artist that I have gone on record saying that I don't give a crap about, that got popular! So that did not make me excited for this album at all. So, after listening to the album, how do I feel about it? I mean, it's fine, I guess. I don't really care about it that much. I'll give it this, it was different than what I expected, and by extension, different from the rest of the obscure 90s British indie albums on the list. This album's big song, "Brimful of Asha" is alright. It's not my favorite "one-hit" to show up on this list, but it's probably not the worst. The rest of the songs are whatever. Some are okay, but others are kind of interlude type things that just pad out the runtime. This album kind of dragged a bit. At least it ended on somewhat of a high note, but I don't think the final song is good because of what Cornershop did. I think it's good because it's Norwegian Wood. It's kind of hard to make a song like that sound bad. The sound is fine. It's got elements of Indian music to make things a bit interesting. But then again, speaking of the Beatles, that was something George Harrison had done 30 years prior to this album's release. Whatever, it's at least something I can respect about this album. The writing is fine, I guess. I just don't really see why this needs to be on the list. There's better albums with this kind of vibe that do it better. High 2/5.

Started strong and then went downhill

Sounds like a group of guys who went to India on a college trip and decided to start a band

I had never heard of Cornerstone before, but from the beginning of the first track, I instantly knew what hit song they had released. Almost as if they had written the same song twice. Lo and behold: second is indeed 'Brimful of Asha'. Perhaps there's a reason why that's the only song that broke the mainstream barrier. And a reason why this Indian-blend of big beat indie rock was never copied by any other artists.

No idea why this album is on the list. It's nice to listen to, but not more than that.

++: Brimful of Asha, Good Shit +: Sleep on the Left Side, Butter the Soul, We're in Your Corner, We're in Yr Corner, Funky Days Are Back Again, What is Happening?, When the Light Appears Boy, It's Indian Tobacco My Friend, Coming Up, Candyman, Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown) +-: Chocolate, Good to Be on the Road Back Home, State Troopers 6,7/10

I could not enjoy this album. Nothing about it grabbed me, the songs felt way too repetitive, the vocals aren't impressive, the instrumentals were just fine. I can't give it a 1 because it didn't assault my ears but it wasn't enjoyable.

nah

2.5

Lots of skips. One or two good songs

Nothing special

It could have been good, but something was a little off.

If the album had continued in the same vein as the first three tracks, it could’ve easily been a five star venture. As it was, it did not continue that way. It meandered into odd instrumental tracks and middling filler that became repetitive and boring after a while. At nearly an hour long, they could’ve easily cut this album down to maybe 45 minutes. Disappointing, as it had such potential early on. The good stuff isn’t enough to elevate it to 3 stars. 2 stars. Standout tracks: Sleep on the Left Side, Brim Full of Asha, Butter the Soul, Good Shit

Sleep on the Left Side is awesome and left me really excited for more. What the hell happened to the rest of the album.

2.5 maybe, OK - very 90s. I lived through peak "Brimful of Asha" times where the Norman Cook remix was played everywhere constantly and I'd happily never hear it again

Few good songs

There are some interesting sounds on here, but no instrumentation of note, writing or interest, and a great deal of repetitive nonsense punctuated with sudden bright spots.

sorry to say, i didn't really care for this one. i thought the sound they crafter here was interesting and on track for something i could see myself liking, but i think the songwriting here and particularly the vocal performances here were lackluster in an amateurish way. sounds like i'm listening to a local bar band at points, and not in a good way.

Some songs are really awesome, but this album has WAY TOO MUCH fillers

How is this one of the best 1001 albums ? "Everybody needs a bosom for a pillow" is a great line but other than that I dont see any appeal on this.

A couple bangers but most of it didn't really do anything for me, respect the more experimental side of it but it didn't result in many bangers

India vibes by way of a Brit pop band that just went on way too long

Wanted to be a chicken korma, ended up more like custard mixed with curry sauce.

Kinda odd. Electronica, indian music, rock, folk. Idk. 2.5/5.

I like the fusion of western and Indian music. But I think with a little bit more editing and mixing this could've been something more special. A little long for the psychedelic era.

The remix of Brimful of Asha really made me have high hopes for this, but ultimately it was a bit of a snooze fest.

Cornershop’s When I was Born For The First Time is really just a boring listen. I didn’t enjoy every track, although some were better than the rest. It was mostly jumbled, I thought the Indian influence was kinda cool, but thats pretty much it. All in all, When I Was Born For The 7th Time is a bad album. best Song: State Troopers, Pt. 1 Worst Song: Funky Days Are Back Again

Unieke blend stijlen, waarvan ik best kan genieten. De eerste twee songs zijn echt lekker, maar alles wat er na komt doet me te weinig. Ik hou het lekker kort: voldoende, maar niet 54 minuten mijn aandacht waard. Highlights: Sleep On The Left Side, Brimful of Asha Rating: 6/10

Een fusie van Indian tribal music, britpop en house, waarvan we niet wisten dat we het absoluut níét nodig hadden. De eerste twee nummers zijn niet weg te denken uit 90s UK indie lijstjes, en zijn goed te vertoeven. Daarna is het één lange kwellende delier, een fever dream in een dorpje ergens tussen Leicester en Bangalore. Bollywoodmuziek in beats van Madlib - bijvoorbeeld - zijn tot in de perfectie uitgevoerd, maar bij dit album voelt het na een nummer of 2 al afgezaagd. Een aantal keer pakt het wél lekker uit, vooral doordat producer Dan the Automator (bekend van zijn wek met Del The Funky Homosapien en producent van het eerste Gorillaz album) zich met een aantal songs bemoeide. Het tempo ligt er constant uit door de weinig intrigerende instrumentals, en ik hoopte op wat meer van die verrassende momenten waarin we opeens een Amerikaanse country zangeres de microfoon zagen grijpen zoals in 'Good to Be on the Road Back Home Again'. Een saaie Britse Beck is het resultaat. Ik begrijp dat de zanger/creator van Cornershop van Indiase komaf is, maar hou het lekker voor jezelf. Zo kon hij het niet laten om het toch al Indiaas getinte 'Norwegian Wood' nog Indiaser te maken, wat op zich wel geinig is om te horen. Tuurlijk, dit album presenteert een unieke mix aan genres, en daarvoor wel props, maar ik laat hem voortaan links liggen. 5/10 Highlights: Brimful of Asha

2.5

Hated it. Sorry.

Nope

Though the big hits failed to garner my attention, there was a lot of unique eastern influence heard especially through some of the odd instrumental songs that I really enjoyed. Helped bring diversity to the scene and influence other UK artists. Seems a good precursor to Noah and the Whale 2.5/5

This is so 90s it hurts

I made it like 3 songs in, saw the length, ahd dipped. Aint no way bruh

Cada canción de su padre y de su madre. Le iba a poner un tres, porque alguna canción no sonaba mal, pero después de oir la versión de Norwegian Wood ...

What a weird mixed bag. I liked the first 3 songs, then it veered into skit territory, straight Indian music, and some droning bullshit, then a woman took over, thank God for that, and then they started rapping. Wrap it up with a cover of Norwegian Wood. 4/10

Konstigt på ett dåligt sätt. Kan dock va jag som inte fattar grejen. Låtarna med fler streams tenderar ändå att va rätt bra. Däremot lite för mycket filler på plattan.

I didn’t need to listen to the whole album to know it wasn’t going to get a high score. Quite samey sound and I can’t stand A Brimful of Asher ( overplayed at the time) so a lowly 2*

1996-97 were good years for pretentious British-Indian one hit wonders from the Midlands. You had Babylon Zoo, White Town, and these guys. Mind you the credit goes to Norman Cook for, ironically, spicing up Brimful Of Asha and making it popular. As for the album, pretty boring, sitars weren't enough to make it interesting.

it's kind of an album, doesn't really come together for me. reminds me of the talvin singh album from a month or so ago, except not as fully fleshed out a concept.

Bit rough for my liking but fun to listen to

Had high expectations when going in but was let down, too many odd choices when it came to the music

This is okay, but honestly, what is up with all this Brit pop and electronic stuff. Some is fine, but it feels like I am getting this everyday. And, this was not one of the 1001 best albums I have ever heard or anything that interesting. It would be nice to get some context on why these albums are included because a link to a Wikipedia entry is not that informative.

Todella outo kuuntelukokemus? En tiedä, sopiko kaikki palat oikeesti yhteen. Kai. Nuo interludet olivat aika tylsiä, olisivat lisänneet mieluummin itse biiseihin tuota Intia-meininkiä lisää, koska nyt ne olivat isoksi osaksi vain reggaehkoa (?!) keskitason brittipoppia. Melko mielenkiintoista kyllä.

Onnessaan keksimästään sekoituksesta bändi ei ole kokenut tarpeelliseksi säveltää biiseihin B-osia. Harmi - musiikki on vetävän kuuloista, mutta sen pitäisi tehdä enemmän.

"Brimful of Ashsa" is a three-chord earworm. The rest of it was pretty forgettable.

Bien

Wtf was this boomer shit

Carried heavily by it's earworm hit Brimful of Asha, When I Was Born For The 7th Time is an album that does little to establish itself beyond a few quaint ideas. Turntablism trip hop, spacey raga rock, beat poetry with some sort of south Asian percussion, all explored within the hour. Nothing truly feels consistent with Cornershop and it likely stems from an urge to experiment. Nothing wrong with experimentation, but execution can come off as half-baked.

I don’t know. I actually liked the first song and thought I was discovering a hidden gem. But the more it went in the more I wanted it to stop. 2/5

I'm lost for words. And not because this is any good. 1.5/5

Radio Nova meets Oasis meets India

необычненько, но вряд ли кому-то посоветую

We’re in yr corner prolly my fave. It’s not bad it’s just not something I’d prolly go back to except a couple song I saved. 2.5

Good.

I didn’t like this. Some of the songs were OK but several were in a foreign language and I didn’t like that. 2 stars.

Reading the "Reception" section of the Wikipedia page for this album, my jaw went all the way down to the floor. It's not that this album is utterly bad, apart from one truly awful cut (more on that later)--it's just that it's so... innocuous overall. The heaps and heaps of praise given to it sound unwarranted today, very honestly. The record starts with a lethargic 'British indie" cut, whose name I have already forgotten. Hit "Brimful Of Asha" follows, but likewise, its overall energy pales to the Fat Boy Slim remix made out of it, as other reviewers suggested. Two uninteresting dated hip hop instrumentals with pointless DJ scratches are then delivered--not '"dated" in 2024, I mean, but already far beyond their peremption date in *1997*, the year *When I Was Born The 7th Time* was actually released. Dan The Automator produced far more enticing and effective tracks in the same genre. Why the hell did he help produce this thing? So it's a very inauspicious beginning for this album, to say the least. Sitar-enhanced "We're In Your Corner" fares far better than any of the four first tracks, fortunately--the instrumental bridge is even incredibly pretty, a piece of evidence that if Cornershop had given a little more thought to their plans when writing this album, they could have pulled off more interesting compositions like this, at least. Too bad that the track after, "Funky Days Are Back Again" sounds like a parody and nothing else. I know a lot of pot was smoked during the making of this LP (one sound engineer even ended up at the hospital because of it!). But for chrissake, the pile of turd that this "song" is is so self-indulgent, and its lyrics are so horrible, that normally, even the most potheaded freak out there should more or less quickly realize on the next day that this track was better off being erased for the dignity of all concerned parties. Alas, it was not erased. More pointless scratches ensue, and then comes a spoken-word interlude over field recordings of oriental traditional music. By the way, the guy talking to us on that interlude is... Allen Ginsberg. Er... OK. Doesn't save the track from being a footnote written in tiny-ass letters on both the books of music AND poetry. Bummer. Tablas and sitars are sampled for the next one-minute instrumental cut. Uh-huh. What's the point, once again? Some sort of big-beat-meets-indie-rock follows thanks to "Big Ships". Thanks but no thanks. I like most styles from the nineties, but here is simply the *worst* example of what this decade offered from time to time. All style no substance. At that point, you pretty much know this record is either a one-star or a two-star album. "Good to Be on the Road Back Home", featuring alt-country singer Paula Frazer, gives you a little hope this is at gonna be a two-star album, given that it's a *proper song* at last (and quite a good one at that)... Except that everything after is, for the most part, minor or rather banal hip hop doodles, once again. Plus a grating cover of a once great Beatles song. If really I had to follow the initial requirements of Dimery's original list, I would give a rare 1.5/5 grade to this thing (rounded up to 2). Which translates to a 6.5/10 grade for more general purposes. There are only *three* tracks on this thing that are worth listening to (one famous hit, plus two good tunes). Clearly, an "essential album", this doesn't have the makings of. Number of albums left to review: 284 Number of albums from the list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 317 Albums from the list I *might* include in mine later on: 175 Albums from the list I won't include in mine (many other records are more important to me): 232 (including this one)

You’d never know this was a British list.

Funny album. Sounds strange, I liked some songs. In the end, it was too strange

Dull as dishwater.

This cover of Jerry St Clair's 'Brimfull od Asha' isn't a patch on the original. More authentic than Kula Shaker. Not as good as Kula Shaker.

Meh

It’s ok. Extra star for 90s nostalgia. Sub-Lightning Seeds ditties enlivened by interesting instrumentation

A couple of OK songs but the rest are quite poor

I considered giving this a 1, but I’ll say 2 because these some innovation here in terms of blending styles. A lot of this is repetitive and maybe even slightly annoying to listen to, but the mix of Indian music, English pop, and hip hop is a big swing.

It feels like they don't know what they wanted to make. Indie rock, triphop, hiphop, world music. An incoherent and too long result that drags on.

Nop...

Some nice work but a bit dull in parts

Do you know, it wasn’t bad. Would have got an extra star had it not been for the utter murdering of Norwegian Wood at the end… Unforgivable.

I know this is classified as britpop/indie because I read the wiki but, as far as I'm concerned, it sounds just like every other jam band from the 90s and naughts. Aside from the odd Indian instrumentals, there's nothing standout here. One star for unexpected the Indian twists, though.

I have never heard of this band or this album before. I only recognized the Beatles' at the end. It was a bad album and it was kind of long. No need to relisten. I do not even know how to describe the music. I will round up to a two, but do not listen to it.

Interesting fusion of Indian instruments and vocal style, but fused with 1990s British Alternative Rock, which I'm not a fan of.

Not a whole lot going on here, but I did enjoy a few tracks. I like the variety, but not the whole picture. Norwegian Wood was a nice surprise.

Brimful was a major hit and is a great song but not quite sure if the other tracks qualify the whole album for inclusion in the 1001?

A real uneven record. A Brimful of Rasha brought me back to the mid-90s. But most of this felt disconnected and trying to do too much.

some good, some bad, but overall there were more songs i disliked than liked

I’m not sure why this one is on the list. I liked the songs Brimful of Asha and Candyman, but was about it. Felt like a lot of filler.

Bad

We own this album (Marianne's contribution when we merged our CD collection — a BIG moment in the relationship), and I remember giving it a spin all those many years ago and not relating. So color me intrigued when it appeared as the day's album. I couldn't remember anything about it, so this would be a test to see if I've evolved in my acceptance of music. First tune... sounded like Eels with a little more energy. OK. Then, song by song, I was getting ever more agitated. Whatever the combination of genres and influences, the sonic aesthetic actively grates on me. The repetitive melodies agitate. The whole package makes me antsy. I was not able to make it through the last few songs without skipping through. So, no evolution here. I do not relate. Sorry, my love.

I was looking forward to this one. I knew Brimful of Asha but had never heard anything else by them. Overall: I kept waiting for the album to kick in. This is one of the most disjointed records I've ever heard. Seems like a bunch of outtakes and backing tracks. The few "actual songs" were OK, I guess, though I found his singing more distracting than charming. Bummer.

Nothing great here. The instrumentals were good, decent beats. Then the singing, talking whatever started.

This started very 90s and fine, but got worse as it went on. Nothing really jumped out at me; well... except for the part where I had to skip over all the Indian music. 4/10.

ok

Tried really hard to find something good to say about this album, but it seems like they just discovered the concept of sampling other music. Any kid in the 80's/90's with a MPC does this in a more complex manner though. 2 stars for the choice of the samples, but thats about it

So this won a Mercury Prize? Hey, we all make mistakes.

2.8. Some love brim full of asha but the rest felt a little bland

Kind of enjoyable, interesting enough to start with Prefer the Norman Cook version of Brimful Lost interest with the cover songs at the end which took the album from a 3 to a 2/5

I can picture some of these songs being on the soundtracks for early 2000s romcoms. But this album is not for me.

So "Brimful of Asha" wasn't the fruit of a one hit wonder Cornershop? Who knew! Much of "Butter the Soul" sounds like when the battery started to die in your Walkman, so the cassette would play at varying speeds, generating noises that sound like something melting. "Chocolat" had potential but it kind of died on the boring, repetitive vine. I would like to have heard more like "We're in Yr Corner", "Coming up", "Candy Man" and "Good Shit". These were fun. In sum, a little over half of this record was throwaway noise, so for that reason, I'd like to give it 2.5 stars but since we need to round to the nearest star, 2 it is.

It’s a fun spin on the indie scene of the time, but too many songs are just underdeveloped and it makes it a quite unfulfilling listen

I remember this. It’s catchy and somewhat silly. I don’t know if it belongs on a list like this but I enjoy it as a novelty compared to some of the more serious options we’ve had over time. 2/5

I'm sad to say this one didn't really work for me. I liked a few of the early tracks that sounded like classic 90s pop-rock, but for whatever reason I didn't dig most of the rest of the album.

I expected a little more electronica by judging Cornershop's When I Was Born For The 7th Time's album cover. And this is why they say not to judge. But I was quite happy to be taken on the journey of this album from pseudo Indian with electronic sitar sounds to hip-hop/trip-hop vibes and a whole lot more inbetween. Didn't really enjoy the sitar style sounds, but it was interesting to hear once and likely never again. Best: Candyman Worst: Norwegian Wood

Ziemlich langweilig. Was zwischen 2 und 3. Eher 2

Lots of two chord stoner jams. The FBS remix of 'Brim Full of Asha' obliterates the album version. I like the singer's voice, but the whole album just isn't adventurous enough to hold my interest.

Only one famous song but the original is dirge like. The good version is down to fat boy slim.

To be honest, other than recognizing "Brimful of Asha", this album did nothing for me. Was that "Norwegian Wood" in Gaelic? I'll pass.

Pretty bad. Kind of like a UK Sugar Ray with no hits. Every song feels like it’s stretching 30s of good ideas into 5/6min. And all those boring instrumental cuts? Half this thing is like Britpop elevator music, what a snooze!

Ok so this is a perfect 2 star. It doesn’t make me want to listen to it, but I don’t want to give myself a lobotomy to put me out of my misery. I can turn this on and ignore it. Will never be something I actively choose to listen to but not the most offensive thing I’ve heard.

Not for me

So the hit, "Brimful of Asha", was just flat out annoying to listen to. "Sleep On the Left Side" was a good start to the album. The rest of the songs were pleasant to listen to, but nothing memorable.

Typical one hit wonder with the pretty solid song and a lot of other bland songs.