Tell Your Sister...and anyone else-this is a great record!
Johnny Bacardi | Horse Cave, KY United States | 04/27/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Lloyd was feeling his oats as a songwriter at about this time, so he decided to stretch a bit stylistically and the result was this somewhat schizo, but uniformly excellent album. The first six cuts are mostly Commotions-style Byrdsy pop songs, with the shoulda-been-a-hit Weeping Wine and the vaguely funky and ironic-in-a-Randy Newman-sorta-way She's A Girl And I'm A Man as the standouts. Then Cole takes a left turn onto Lonely Street right by the Heartbreak Hotel and serves up an astounding suite of songs that deal with a wide tapestry of dark feelings, vitriol and heartbreak. From the self-loathing tone of Butterfly, with its marvelous string arrangement, to There For Her, which could be a great lost Jimmy Webb song by Glen Campbell; down to the centerpiece of the album, the harrowing Man Enough, which sounds just personal enough to be discomforting; then finally he brings the album to a close with the calm after the storm serenity of What He Doesn't Know, probably the finest cut on the record and in my opinion Cole's finest hour. In no way is Don't Get Weird an entertaining happy fun record; I've heard Cole wrote a lot of these lyrics about a relationship that ended about this time, so make no mistake, this borders on uneasy listening to be sure. But it is also an album of stylistic chance-taking, excellent playing, and insightful writing...I think everybody should at least give this outstanding music a listen and decide for themselves."
Second Half is Stronger Than the First
Johnny Bacardi | 02/25/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Couldn't disagree with the first reviewer more. Far from filler, I found the second half of the CD to be stronger than the first half and to contain some of Cole's best solo work to date."
Smart, Melodic Rock 'n Roll for Grown-ups
Johnny Bacardi | 06/19/1998
(4 out of 5 stars)
""Don't Get Weird On Me Babe" is the second solo album by Lloyd Cole after he broke up the Commotions, his '80's Brit-rock band. Half the record is guitar and drum numbers, the other half orchestral-backed numbers. No smarm at all, in spite of the violins. His lyrics are intelligent on the subjects of relationships gone wrong, sometimes funny, never short on heart. Although I don't know many people who own this record, all that do count it among their favorites."
It's A Pleasure To Be Sad
Michael L. Parsons | Chicago | 04/05/2004
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I love this CD; especially the second half. In fact, oftentimes, late at night - either driving, or sitting at home - reflecting on lost loves, I'll play the last half of DGWOMB only, starting with Butterfly. Like Sinatra's In The Wee Small Hours of the Evening, it has the beautiful, tasty effect of allowing me to wallow in the pain of unrequited love. Or as Sinatra once put it, "I'm so unhappy, but oh so glad." I love it."
Exquisite pop with a punch
wm | ...onward....thru the fog! | 01/11/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Hard to believe it's been 22 years since Lloyd Cole burst upon the (then) college radio scene with "Rattlesnakes". On that album, he skillfully intertwined electric with acoustic and 12 string guitars to make a very subtle, yet powerful sound.
Both "Rattlesnakes" and his sophomore effort "Easy Pieces" are great albums. I noticed that "Easy Pieces" is fetching $75.00 and more, but I ain't selling my copy.
Tom Verlaine was asked in an interview once if he was offended when he heard Lloyd Cole, since at times, you'd think you're hearing Verlaine when listening to Cole. True to his icy cool style, Verlaine said something to the effect he didn't really care.
On "Don't get weird on me", Cole takes the Verlaine/Television connection one step further by recruiting Robert Quine on lead guitar. Quine, who sadly passed away recently, in turn brought Fred Maher onboard (also, like Quine, a Lou Reed alumnus).
Cole arguably gets a little too sugary at times, but manages to keep your attention even on the slower ballady tracks by letting Quine loose with some wicked guitar magic.
"Bad Vibes", where he veers more in a Beatles/Lennon direction, is also a great record.
I was disappointed in some of his later 90s material as well as "The negatives", but Lloyd Cole is still alive and well, and working on new material. It'll be interesting to see whether he can reach or surpass this and the two first albums."