The Stone Roses

[Mark Steels Stockbroker]

England doing well in the World Cup reminds me of when "One Love" went in the top ten, which was the very last time TSR were a truly great band. After that is the dreary decline in to Indie Dad Music.

What should they have done next, instead of years of litigation? Just run off, make the album, release it themselves and let Silvertone try to sue them. And it should have been Screamadelica before it came out, crossed with the Garage Flower sound.

[DrGreggles]

I like The Second Coming.
Not as much as the 1st album (because it's not as good), but there are some belting songs on there.

That comeback single they did was dogshit though.

[the ouch cube]

Loathsome band. Everything about them gives me the creeps.

[Custard]

That comeback single was amazingly bad.

ALL FOR ONE
AND ONE FOR AAAALLLL

I reckon they dropped the third album immediately after the response to that

[phantom_power]

I like The Second Coming.
Not as much as the 1st album (because it's not as good), but there are some belting songs on there.

That comeback single they did was dogshit though.

Christ I had forgotten that had even happened. I am not sure they would have ever done a Screamadelica (no Weatherall or equivalent) and I liked Second Coming but it should have been their fifth album or something, with 3 more albums of interesting stuff before they settled into dadrock. The problem with that big layoff is that they skipped their youthful inventive post debut album period.

Were they even prohibited from solo work during the legal battle?

[Custard]

The Stone Roses: War and Peace is currently 3.50 in Kindle, and is well worth a read

The 4/5 year sessions for Second Coming basically boil down to John Squire getting high, eating junk food, and locking himself in a room, alone, fret-wanking.

Ian Brown sits around, waiting for something, anything to happen.

Mani loses the plot a bit.

Reni gives up and fucks off.

The thing is, these days 5 years between albums isn't that much. But in the early 90's, and it being them, it must have felt like forever

[sevendaughters]

they should have sacked John Squire. he's the most overrated part of the group and the worst parts of the Roses all involved fretwanking. they should have smoked a lot of grass and listened to some late Talk Talk and dub and tried to make - not a comedown record - but a more 'spiritual' and peaceful record that keeps that ecstatic rhythm section intact. But then again: there's Bark Psychosis for that.

[wosl]

But then again: there's Bark Psychosis for that.

Or Dif Juz, who not only got there a good while before Bark Psychosis did, but did so while Talk Talk were still working to shuck the last vestiges of their synthy New Romantic leanings.

[greenman]

I like The Second Coming.
Not as much as the 1st album (because it's not as good), but there are some belting songs on there.

That comeback single they did was dogshit though.

Must admit I quite liked the second new single although really it was much more akin to Brown's solo career with an added Squire solo.

The main issue with Second Coming I'd say is simply too much similar solo heavy blues rock, if they'd say put Driving South and Good Times on the Love SPreads B-side for a Zepish EP and come up with 1-2 more tracks in the vein of How Do You Sleep At Night it would hold together better.

Breaking Into Heaven is IMHO up their with their best work and a natural progression from something like One Love.

[Shoulders?-Stomach!]

How Do You Sleep is a fantastic song that just about manages to remain tasteful. Same with Your Star Will Shine and Ten Story Love Song. I don't see the point in making these grand stanceist meaningless Look How Many Pieces of Music Journalism I've Read And Now Regurgitate In Your Face comments like 'the last time they were truly...' Moribund and irritating attempt to find an angle.

They are a very overrated band considering their small output and the relatively generic aspects of Second Coming but have some terrific high points.

Overall, of their contemporaries, James are an infinitely more interesting, varied and talented band, prove it over and over again, but then I would say that.

[Rolf Lundgren]

I liked Second Coming but it should have been their fifth album or something, with 3 more albums of interesting stuff before they settled into dadrock. The problem with that big layoff is that they skipped their youthful inventive post debut album period.

Agree with this. I like The Second Coming but it isn't a particularly interesting album. A couple more albums after their debut would have seen them go off in a different direction, possibly less guitar focused and more clubby along the lines of 'Begging You' and 'Golden Gaze'.

[The Culture Bunker]

The first album does mean a lot to me on the basis I spent a lot of time learning the basslines when I was 16 and had just taken it up. So, thanks Mani. And there's the best part of another album of material from the b-sides and non-album singles up to 1990. The whole 'Second Coming' stuff really isn't my bag, though, 'Ten Storey Love Song' aside, and when I think about it, I doubt I've willingly listened to anything of theirs for the best part of a decade. I read that part of the reason they picked Leckie to produce the debut was they liked what he'd done with the Dukes of Stratosphear, which makes sense, and I'd certainly much rather listen to 'Vanishing Girl' then any Stone Roses song.

But, yeah, when I was 16 they meant a lot to me and when I read of the links to Oasis, I did think 'bloody hell, if only Oasis were 10% as good as this'.

[Sebastian Cobb]

As much as I like The Stone Roses I think I prefer Sally Cinnamon and (non wah-wah) Elephant Stone.

[Famous Mortimer]

I really like The Second Coming, I played it to death as a student and think there's a heck of a lot to like in it. Obviously, their first album is better, but I think they're both decent. Anything after that, though...well, I wasn't even aware they'd done a comeback single.

[imitationleather]

I used to really love them, but as soon as they reformed and filled the live circuit niche that had been vacated by Oasis my interest completely evaporated and I don't think I've listened to either of their albums since. It wasn't a conscious "Oh, all the cunts who go to Oasis gigs like them, I can't listen to this band anymore" decision, but I think that their new status as constant arena fillers heading terrible line-ups of bands I detest probably did go some way to turning me off them. I guess I just see them as a very laddish band now, which they didn't seem like during the years they were defunct. I was too young to know them when they were actually originally together. Oh, that horrendous build a wall song didn't help either.

As an aside, when I listened to a recording of their infamous "final" gig at Reading it really didn't sound that awful to me. I was pretty disappointed. I was expecting something truly earth-shatteringly bad, but I've seen many bands at festivals put on worse performances than that. For instance, I remember I was at Glastonbury once and I thought some sound guys were tuning the instruments and making a really horrendous, tuneless, racket while they were doing it. I then realised it was Bloc Party in the middle of an actual song during their proper set. Did they do the decent thing and split up after that? Did they fuck.

[phantom_power]

I have a bootleg of the Spike Island gig and it sounds fucking atrocious

[Vodka Margarine]

Have they quietly folded again?  Unbelievably we're already seven years into the almighty 'Third Coming' and still... no album. A nation continues to frantically champ at the bit.

[sevendaughters]

Have they quietly folded again?  Unbelievably we're already seven years into the almighty 'Third Coming' and still... no album. A nation continues to frantically champ at the bit.

Ian Brown hinted it was done after the run of shows last year. But idk, coming up to 30 year anniversary of the debut and that, wouldn't be surprised to see them go around again.

[monolith]

Begging You is a fucking banger. Any album with that on gets a thumbs up from me.

[Harold Angryperson]

There's been a rumour doin the rounds for what seems like ages that a lot of the singing on the debut album isn't Ian Brown but Stephen Tin Tin Duffy. Anyone else heard that?

For what it's worth, Blinded by the Sun and You Can Talk To Me were a couple of good singles from Squire's much-maligned post-Roses band the Seahorses. Love is the Law was deffo shit though.

[sevendaughters]

You Can Talk To Me reminded me of Suede a bit except for Helme's realbloke struggling voice. Nice enough song tho.

[Phil_A]

There's been a rumour doin the rounds for what seems like ages that a lot of the singing on the debut album isn't Ian Brown but Stephen Tin Tin Duffy. Anyone else heard that?

What?? That's bonkers. Stephen Duffy doesn't sound anything like Brown for one thing. It would make sense if he'd done uncredited backing vocals, but not lead surely.

[buzby]

There's been a rumour doin the rounds for what seems like ages that a lot of the singing on the debut album isn't Ian Brown but Stephen Tin Tin Duffy. Anyone else heard that?

It's quite clearly the same voice that appears on the early singles though. If it was Duffy he would have had to have been subbing for Brown since 1985.

[Dr Rock]

I like the Stone Roses up until Fools Gold but I don't think they ever did anything as good as Kiss Me.

[greenman]

How Do You Sleep is a fantastic song that just about manages to remain tasteful. Same with Your Star Will Shine and Ten Story Love Song. I don't see the point in making these grand stanceist meaningless Look How Many Pieces of Music Journalism I've Read And Now Regurgitate In Your Face comments like 'the last time they were truly...' Moribund and irritating attempt to find an angle.

They are a very overrated band considering their small output and the relatively generic aspects of Second Coming but have some terrific high points.

Overall, of their contemporaries, James are an infinitely more interesting, varied and talented band, prove it over and over again, but then I would say that.

Would they really have been any better if you'd taken the material released around 87-90 and spread it over 3 albums with a little more filler? a lot of their reputation was really based on how consistent their output was, from Elephant Stone until One Love I don't think theirs a single average track on the albums or any of the B-sides. The Mondays whilst perhaps more popular on CaB weren't anywhere near as consistent for me even at their Bummed/Thrill Pills peak. Second Coming feels much more typical with some highspots and passable stuff inbetween.

Best thing Squire did after the Roses was I'd say his first solo album, vocals a bit questionable I spose but a handful of catchy tracks that would have been decent for a Roses comeback.

Honestly don't give a fuck whether there listened to by dingbats these days, still enjoy listening to the first album and Turns to Stone every few months, more than I can say for an aweful lot of indie I was into back in the day.

[thraxx]

Time has been very kind to Second Coming I think.  I hated it when it came out.  It's become in the last couple of years one of my most listened to records.  Half the album is terrible and half of it is brilliant.  I love the production and guitar arrangements, though it just reeks of COCAINE.  The album is a document of where the band where and most of the songs have some intrigue as to where the band were, from the wonderfully baffling jam that is Daybreak, to the weird mixing of tears where Ian Brown's voice suddenly drops right down in the mix in the chorus.  It's a heady mix of hugely expensive production, and 'this'll do'. 

Does that Stone Roses book deal with the recording of Second Coming?

As for Squire's first solo record (did he not play all the instruments?), there's a few lovely songs but some utter tripe.

[Custard]

War and Peace goes very in depth in regards to the recording of Second Coming. It's ace

[sevendaughters]

Daybreak just sounds like a warm-up jam, it's so frigging awful.

[thraxx]

Daybreak just sounds like a warm-up jam, it's so frigging awful.

I despised that song at first, unlistenable.  It just sounds like they were pissing around and no one was brave enough to say it was crap.  However, I have grown to adore it.  I'd love to work our how to sample the drum break bit.

[greenman]

It did become a bit more interesting live...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUNg4R94_eE