Search - Only Ones :: CBS Recordings: Only Ones / Even Serpents

Instrumental

K. H. Orton | New York, NY USA | 08/07/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Here's all you need from one of the best bands to have ever come on the scene between the years 1978-80. I suppose their sound could best be summed up as Post Punk Psychedelica, with darkly romantic lyrics that seem swiped from some lost notebook by Baudeliere. Sadly, outside the U.K. they're probably most well known to musicians. The likes of Keith Richards, Paul Westerberg, Gordon Gano & Yo La Tango are all flat out admirers.



It's that classic story---critical success not quite translating into commerical. Ofcourse, frontman Peter Perrett's drug problems didn't help & are the stuff of legend. You can read all about it in Nina Antonia's Le Homme Fatale. A dark prince to be sure & often less than charming.



This set includes all 3 CBS albums, plus some essential singles like "Peter & The Pets" & "Lovers Of Today". While I'd say their eponymous debut & Even Serpents Shine are great, their last effort, Baby's Got A Gun is less than exemplary. "Another Girl, Another Planet" however, has to be their signature tune. Armed with enough killer hooks to put it on the most wanted list, it's my vote for one of the best Pop singles of it's era.



Other gems here include, "Breaking Down" & "Miles From Nowhere". For bleak romanticism, "From Here To Eternity" is hard to top. Though I'm loathe to use the word, Perrett shows his "sweet" side on things like "Instrumental". An atmospheric instrumental track filled with acoustic strums & seagull squealing guitars that ends with a ghostly Perrett chiming, "Hey dear, you're just instrumental---instra-mental"... If that weren't enough, Perrett once boasted that "Alone In The Night" was written about his cat.



Vocally, Perrett sings with all the panache of someone who just jabbed a needle in his arm. Best described as sort of a congested, Cockney Lou Reed, his laconic whine is what one might call an acquired taste. But but don't that stand between you & the snide, barbed wit of his lyrics. Or some truely epic shredding courtesy of guitarist, John Perry. The only thing missing here is Remains---a great collection of outtakes & rarities that at times outshines their best studio work.



Also check out Perrett's solo effort, Woke Up Sticky. After a 10 year silence, it eerily picks right up where The Only Ones left off."

"Don't Do It, Come Down, We'll Talk...."

Paul Ess. | Holywell, N.Wales,UK. | 09/11/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It must've been heart-breaking for Pete Perrett and his excellent group the Only Ones to sit helplessly and watch as much lesser talents, again and again, zoomed past them on the debris-strewn and deeply unfair rocky road to stardom.



As good as the Clash, better than Buzzcocks, nearly as good as Magazine and Joy Division, the Only Ones displayed a much greater range of influences than any of these groups. And that gives their music longevity and a real sense of rock heritage, which is alarming but strongly relevant at the same time.

The obvious ancestry is Television, but this music is much more direct, more strident, and Perrett can say-what-he's-gotta-say in 3½ minutes, not take an hour like the erstwhile Verlaine.



It's a pity they'd split for years when they had a much deserved big hit, and even then it wasn't one of their better songs. 'Another Girl', included here, is good, but easily surpassed by the rest of the music on display.



'Even Serpents Shine' is my preferred Only Ones album, but it's shades of greatness really, and this 2 cd-set containing the 3 albums they did for CBS as well as some b-sides and out-takes, is a/ quite simply vital to anyone with an interest in rock music and b/ a bloody good deal.

Traditional, passionate, guitar driven rock 'n' roll,. Distinctive, intelligent and powerful.



Perrett was sometimes portrayed as a little slow (the drugs perhaps?) but here he proves you don't have to be a mastermind to deliver a master class."