First and best.
bobby morrow | United Kingdom | 05/26/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Kim Wilde's self-titled debut album from 1981 remains her best work. Sure, she's done other great stuff too, 'Catch As Catch Can', 'Close' and 'Love Is' for example, but none quite have the spark of her first LP. Containing the worldwide smash 'Kids In America' along with 2 other big UK hits in the fab 'Chequered Love' and 'Water On Glass', the set is off to a winner straight away.
This 2009 remastered edition from Cherry Red is wonderful, featuring all the original artwork and even including the lyrics which weren't on the LP. The other two titles in the series, her slightly disappointing sophomore set 'Select' and the aforementioned classic 'Catch As Catch Can' are treated to similarly extravagant editions. Well worth your cash, then. Come on, Cherry Red, let's have the MCA albums now!"
One Of The Best
Bradley Jacobson | 08/18/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Kim Widle's debut album is a gem of a new wave masterpiece that is overlooked and so underappreciated, the album only caused a ripple here in America when the single "Kids In America" was released in 1982, but prior to that the single was released in the UK where it hit #3 and then when the album was finally released Kim found herself with a top ten album and two more hit singles - the chugging drama of "Chequered Love" and the rocking "Water On Glass."
For some reason Kim's new wave drama hiccupy hit didn't make a huge impression to most in the US, but to me it did. The album came out when I was quite young but how I loved "Kids In America" and I really didn't know that Kim had already been having hits in the UK for over a year, but I wanted this album and after much whining I got it.
Ever since that day Kim Wilde has rarely went two months without a spin on the cassette player and now finally an official remastered version on CD. The album itself is pure 1981/82 poppy new wave full of pounding drum lines, synth and keyboards and lyrics about teen angst, hookers, strange radio frequencies and the ever present love gone wrong.
Set to a trancy energetic beat there isn't a song to be missed; of course like most UK/US releases of the time, the tracks were arranged differently, only this time it was only a few songs, the original UK version (and this CD) opens with "Water On Glass" a fast rocking little ditty that would be released as a single while in America the single "Kids In America" opened the album. The re-release starts goes from "Water" to "Our Town", a tale of trying to break out but forced back into your small world before the reggae tinged "Everything We Know" and onto one of my all time fav songs "Young Heroes", a pumping little song about celebrating your differences, "We only wanna stay young/ we only wanna be free/ She doesn't want to be me/ he doesn't want to be you/ we're all young heroes/we only want to be free..."
Onto the big hit of the set with "Kids In America" which is such a great song I just can't get enough. Starting with synth waves and breaking into moody pop, this is a song that though it has that 80's feel still seems to fit perfectly in 2006, a true test of what a great pop song can be.
The album continues on in the same vein with the catchy and big UK hit "Chequered Love" followed by another reggae-ish tune only set to a much fuller and faster beat "26580", an ode to a prostitute and then the moody love song "You'll Never Be So Wrong", the power tranced rock of "Falling Out" a big kiss off song that is probably my favorite song on the whole album, "So now it's over and there's nothing more to say/ the flame that burned inside my heart now slowly fades away/ so don't you ever think of knocking at my door/ just turn the light, close your eyes and think of me no more/ and it's too late to say you're sorry/ you'll never change and there's nothing you can do about it/ faaaalllling ouuut/ cutting me up in pieces..." and ending with the spacey trance of "Tuning In, Tuning Out" - full of overdubbed spoken and sung vocals, it's a perfect way to end a new wavey masterpiece.
But thanks to the wonders of Cherry Pop Records, this version of Kim Wilde is far from over, as they have collected more of the first incarnation of Kim's recording career; the b-side of the UK "Chequered Love" single is here - "Shane" is a little love song about the film of the same name and then my favorite - the B side to "Water On Glass" - a fast paced rocker "Boys" which would've fit perfectly on the album.
Kim Wilde is one of my favorite albums ever and now everyone can relive it."
Track Listings (13) - Disc #1