band history: THE CARS

[Dominic]

[ QUOTE ]
Bear in mind I am no musician and I have never pretended to be one.

Just had a listen to the first 2 albums. Turns out it was the first one that I had heard a lot of. I was familiar with at least half the songs on that one. Liked Candy-O a lot better. The title track stood out. I hadn't heard that before.

Problem I had with a lot of the tracks on both albums is that the first 16 seconds of intro promised so much and then when the vocals began it all went downhill fast.

Listening to them now they kind of remind me of Blondie but without the songwriting talent.

Songs like 'You Can't Hold on Too Long' and 'Lust for Kicks' I could do without hearing again.

Still liked your review. I guess our musical tastes just differ. My favourite musician was Frank Zappa.

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that's really cool you went and listened to them...glad I inspired that whether or not you felt it worthwhile! Was it the vocals themselves or the lyrics that let you down?

For me, The Cars have always been about the sound they make...the lyrics could be funny or clever or completely nonsensical and I wouldn't care...almost irrelevant to what makes the songs so great to me. Hard to explain...

[fyodor]

Not the lyrics. Mostly on first listens I don't even get what the lyrics are to most songs. The vocals I felt were definitely weak but that wasn't the real problem. I felt keyboards/synthesizer sounds were misused/overused on pretty much every track. A thought that come to mind while I was listening was 'over produced'.

The beginning of so many of the songs felt like they were going to be great. I was expecting them to amp it up and instead the songs mostly seemed to run out of ideas immediately. It seemed to me they tried to cover this up with the keyboards.

Again I can't play an instrument myself and of all the people who have heard me sing, I'm the only one who thinks I'm any good. I know little about music except what appeals to me and what doesn't. My explanation may make no sense at all to someone who understands music.

Also I would like to partially recant something from my first review. [ QUOTE ]
Listening to them now they kind of remind me of Blondie but without as much songwriting talent

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[OrigamiSensei]

Like Dominic I think it's cool you took the time to listen. Likewise, I did some re-listening last night myself with fresh ears and reminded myself why I love the group so much.

One of the things that stood out to me was the guitar work, particularly Elliot Easton's leads. While I don't see him as a Page/Hendrix/Van Halen virtuoso-level player I still think his playing works really well in the context of the group sound. His solos are punchy, energetic and to the point. Meanwhile, Ocasek's rhythm guitar work continues to propel the music.

Regarding the concerns about synthesizer use and production, groups work with what they have at the time and within the styles of the era. For instance, even knowing what I do about the Beatles and the revolutionary aspects of the production and studio work I still find aspects of their work quite dated. It doesn't minimize their brilliance, though. In the case of The Cars synthesizers were still pretty much in their infancy and it's no surprise that sometimes the new toy was used in a way that sticks out a little to our current day ears. "Got a Lot On My Head" is a good example where the cutesy synth touches detract a bit from what should be a punkish, guitar-dominated tune. Even so, touches like the 50s/60s "rock and roll" organ in the second verse of "Best Friend's Girlfriend" or the sinister, propulsive keyboards in "Candy-O" really work.

It's important to remember that The Cars were focused primarily on making popular music. They weren't Yes or King Crimson trying to do art rock, they weren't U2 trying to change the world, they weren't the Ramones or Sex Pistols in rebellion mode, they were trying to sell records. They weren't shy about their intentions so trying to judge their work on artistic or social or revolutionary merits isn't going to fly. Rather, judge them on their ability to create catchy, memorable rock tunes that sound great 30 years after release. It's about riding along on a summer night with the windows open and a Cars tune cranked to the max - if you're not feeling it then there's no explaining it.

[Dominic]

[ QUOTE ]
Not the lyrics. Mostly on first listens I don't even get what the lyrics are to most songs. The vocals I felt were definitely weak but that wasn't the real problem. I felt keyboards/synthesizer sounds were misused/overused on pretty much every track. A thought that come to mind while I was listening was 'over produced'.

The beginning of so many of the songs felt like they were going to be great. I was expecting them to amp it up and instead the songs mostly seemed to run out of ideas immediately. It seemed to me they tried to cover this up with the keyboards.

Again I can't play an instrument myself and of all the people who have heard me sing, I'm the only one who thinks I'm any good. I know little about music except what appeals to me and what doesn't. My explanation may make no sense at all to someone who understands music.

Also I would like to partially recant something from my first review. [ QUOTE ]
Listening to them now they kind of remind me of Blondie but without as much songwriting talent

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well i'm not going to try and convince you to like something you don't, but just try and remember those first few times you listened to something new by Frank Zappa...it definitely takes you a few listens to hear what's going on, doesn't it? I always felt that way about The Cars...my first listen of a new Cars album was almost exactly as you described...but the more I listened to it the more it opened up and surprised me.

Anyway...it's all subjective in the end, isn't it? [img]/images/graemlins/cool.gif[/img]

[fyodor]

Music for me is for sure subjective. I can't explain why I like some stuff and don't like others. Zappa however, I liked from the very first listen. 'Trouble Every Day' from his first album hooked me big time. The further Frank went the more I liked him. His music for me is complex and never boring.

[Dominic]

[ QUOTE ]
Like Dominic I think it's cool you took the time to listen. Likewise, I did some re-listening last night myself with fresh ears and reminded myself why I love the group so much.

One of the things that stood out to me was the guitar work, particularly Elliot Easton's leads. While I don't see him as a Page/Hendrix/Van Halen virtuoso-level player I still think his playing works really well in the context of the group sound. His solos are punchy, energetic and to the point. Meanwhile, Ocasek's rhythm guitar work continues to propel the music.

Regarding the concerns about synthesizer use and production, groups work with what they have at the time and within the styles of the era. For instance, even knowing what I do about the Beatles and the revolutionary aspects of the production and studio work I still find aspects of their work quite dated. It doesn't minimize their brilliance, though. In the case of The Cars synthesizers were still pretty much in their infancy and it's no surprise that sometimes the new toy was used in a way that sticks out a little to our current day ears. "Got a Lot On My Head" is a good example where the cutesy synth touches detract a bit from what should be a punkish, guitar-dominated tune. Even so, touches like the 50s/60s "rock and roll" organ in the second verse of "Best Friend's Girlfriend" or the sinister, propulsive keyboards in "Candy-O" really work.

It's important to remember that The Cars were focused primarily on making popular music. They weren't Yes or King Crimson trying to do art rock, they weren't U2 trying to change the world, they weren't the Ramones or Sex Pistols in rebellion mode, they were trying to sell records. They weren't shy about their intentions so trying to judge their work on artistic or social or revolutionary merits isn't going to fly. Rather, judge them on their ability to create catchy, memorable rock tunes that sound great 30 years after release. It's about riding along on a summer night with the windows open and a Cars tune cranked to the max - if you're not feeling it then there's no explaining it.

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very nice...I always thought Easton and the rest were quite underrated as musicians...and Hawke's keyboard playing was quite brilliant at the time - the way his playing melded perfectly with the rhythm section and the two guitars was amazing, especially on songs like It's All I Can Do and Dangerous Type. The way the keyboards compliment and run underneath the melody, sometimes rising to the top and switching with the guitars for the lead and then diving back underneath again is simply breath-taking.

If you check out that Cars Live DVD it's pretty funny to watch Hawkes play all those goofy sound effect noises on I'm in Touch With Your World. Because they aren't all on the synthesizer but actual objects he's banging on, rustling and just generally making a racket. Sort of reminds you of a one-man band!

[Acein8ter]

I really liked the Cars growing up... (shows my age,,,,,ha) Great 70's/80's progressive/new wave band...

[DrewDevil]

I still remember the first time I heard Just What I Needed, at camp in the summer of '78 (or maybe '79, not sure). I was 9 or 10 years old and it's the moment I said to myself, "Wow, I like rock music."

I died a little inside when I heard it as the Circuit City theme song.