Search - Stories :: Walk Away From the Left Banke

Essential for Baroque and melodic pop fans

prangthebentley | 03/14/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Well, four and three quarter stars.. OK, the Left Banke it ain't, but after Montage you won't find a better manifestation of Mike Brown's compositional genius. But be warned - vocalist Lloyd can be a bit of a Rock and Roll screamer : ah but gentle reader you will come to live with it - if only to thereby swoon to harpsichord riffs and such sublime chord changes as to thrill your soul.... This CD contains the absolutely essential tracks from the significant first two records, bar the inexplicably excluded 'Winter Scenes', a Baroque gem from the eponymous first 'Stories' album [begin searching for it now - no really]: ergo the four and three quarter starz [remember them ? - gulp]....You also ought to know that the truth of the matter is that when Stories strayed from the Brownian Baroque they were pretty average and capable of comparatively embarrassing and by no means great 'trad' strutting rock, not really 'Powerpop' as such: so don't be misled on that score. And you'll find some here too - ignore it! Hear 'Kathleen', 'Darling' and when you track it down, 'Winter Scenes'...I can't imagine how any lover of Brown's music, not to say recent melodic pop such as Jellyfish or the Wondermints, couldn't adore such songs..."

60s/70s melodic pop music

Phil Anderson / KAOS2000 | 07/10/1999

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Anyone who likes The Left Banke, Badfinger, The Raspberries, Big Star, Honeybus........ should enjoy this CD from the band Michael Brown formed after leaving The Left Banke. All of it isn't as good as the best of the above list, but the best of it is. The music on it is a bridge from 60s melodic pop music to 70s melodic rock. Personally I prefer the earlier tracks involving Michael Brown but there's something for everyone who considers the term 'pop music' to be a compliment rather than an insult."

The band that should have taken the place of the Beatles

Greg Gates | Huntington Beach, California United States | 03/07/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I love this album! Before I bought it, I owned Stories' three records on vinyl as well as a few of lead singer Ian Lloyd's solo albums so I was familiar with the music. Stories' albums were a bit spotty so this a great compilation, selecting only their strongest songs(including the 1973 #1 hit "Brother Louie") produces an album that lovers of power pop and Beatlesque pop should enjoy. It dismays me greatly to think that Stories only had one hit and then faded away when, in my opinion, they should have been the deserving successors to the Beatles. Ian Lloyd, and especially keyboardist Michael Brown write just as good as Lennon or McCartney if not better and Lloyd has a uniquely wonderful voice that some may say reminds them of Rod Stewart in his earlier days. My favorite tracks on this album are "Brother Louie", "I'm Coming Home", "Hello People", "Mammy Blue", "If It Feels Good Do It" and "Darling" among others. All in all, this album proves what a great band Stories was and that all of their albums should be reissued in their entirety on compact disc so that the public can hear them again and see what a mistake people made almost 30 years ago when they rejected Stories and their music."