The Pooh Sticks are the perfect pop band. Forever young, vibrant, and fun, offering a virtual encyclopedia of the rock and roll era. Hue, the star lead singer, is a Welsh stud in the Tom Jones tradition with natural gifts ... more »for both pop melody and rock 'tude. Guitarist Paul picked up his endless repertoire of licks from the piles of LPs in his bedroom--everything from the MC5 to the Bay City Rollers, Alex Chilton to Todd Rundgren. Then there's the all-female rhythm section: Cool and quiet Alison on bass, tough and beautiful Stephanie on drums, and the sunny, sumptuous Trudi shaking out the beat on the tambourine (and plunking keys when necessary). If you've never seen any of Hue's back-up Pooh Sticks in the same room at the same time as the band's multi-talented producer/ songwriter Steve Gregory, you may start to wonder whether this cartoon wonderband really exists. Rest assured they do: The Pooh Sticks' spirit soars through their third American release, Optimistic Fool. Though the record isn't nearly as fun as 1991's Great White Wonder or '93's Million Seller, Optimistic Fool ably continues the backwards trek through the heart of classic sugarpop and candyrock. The guitars crunch, the harmonies hit the spot--even the handclaps are just right. And if pop is ever to be as bright and shiny as it once was, you too must believe in the existence of the Pooh Sticks. --Roni Sarig« less
The Pooh Sticks are the perfect pop band. Forever young, vibrant, and fun, offering a virtual encyclopedia of the rock and roll era. Hue, the star lead singer, is a Welsh stud in the Tom Jones tradition with natural gifts for both pop melody and rock 'tude. Guitarist Paul picked up his endless repertoire of licks from the piles of LPs in his bedroom--everything from the MC5 to the Bay City Rollers, Alex Chilton to Todd Rundgren. Then there's the all-female rhythm section: Cool and quiet Alison on bass, tough and beautiful Stephanie on drums, and the sunny, sumptuous Trudi shaking out the beat on the tambourine (and plunking keys when necessary). If you've never seen any of Hue's back-up Pooh Sticks in the same room at the same time as the band's multi-talented producer/ songwriter Steve Gregory, you may start to wonder whether this cartoon wonderband really exists. Rest assured they do: The Pooh Sticks' spirit soars through their third American release, Optimistic Fool. Though the record isn't nearly as fun as 1991's Great White Wonder or '93's Million Seller, Optimistic Fool ably continues the backwards trek through the heart of classic sugarpop and candyrock. The guitars crunch, the harmonies hit the spot--even the handclaps are just right. And if pop is ever to be as bright and shiny as it once was, you too must believe in the existence of the Pooh Sticks. --Roni Sarig
"If you like pooh, you'll love this album. It's full of pooh."
Best Pop Album Of The 90's
Peter | North America | 07/27/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Having been a Pooh Sticks fan for 10 years,this album is by far their greatest.You will find some of the most brilliant 3 chord pop gems on this album.Songs like Cool in a Crisis,Miss Me,and Starfishing rank alongside the best pop guitar tunes you will ever hear.Start to finish Optimistic Fool is a masterpiece.You will be singing these songs in your head constantly.Do yourself a favor and buy this album.Then spread the word.It is a lot better than having to endure Hanson every 10 minutes on the radio."
Sunny, fresh and proud in a same-only-better kind of way
Peter | 04/15/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is a truly extroardinary Pooh Sticks release, the sweet, exciting and sunny melodies present from the opening track appropriately titled 'Opening Night'. The deadpan, minimal liner notes are more satisfying and explainatory of the content of the record than the song-for-song anecdotes you'd usaually recieve from Trudi Tangerine and co. This is their most mainstream-sounding album yet, in that the let's-cover-G.G Allin-with-different-lyrics carefree attitude has been scrapped in favour of a more 45-minute 'proper' record sound. Not that it's major label (god forbid). They thankfully haven't lost their sense of fun (or melody), and presumably their loathing for the record industry is still intact. I'm sure that they've accepted that a song from 'Optimistic Fool' is more likely to acheive (gasp) 'hit status' than one form, say, 'Formula One Generation', as the praise they have recieved from the critics proves. But, as anyone who has listend to 'Million Seller' will tell you, the Pooh Sticks have no immediate desire to appear on Top of the Pops. Utterly essential. (P.S The best tracks (in my opinion) are Opening Night, Who was it? and Working on a beautiful thing)"
The Pooh Sticks were one of the....
Peter | 11/10/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)
"coolest band but as songwriters they are not the best but still ear candy. Start off buying The Great White Wonder first. Too bad they are not around anymore. Best tracks: Cool in a crisis, optimistic fool, All Things Must Pass,Song Cycle. As you can see there are alot of good songs on the cd. So kick back inhale and listen to the pooh sticks soothing sounds. (they do rock out also). Favorite all time tune is Panodra's Box! that rocks :)"