Track Listing

1. That's No Way To Tell A Lie
2. English Gentleman
3. Bad Boys And Painkillers
4. On Saturday Morning We Will Rule The World
5. Run Romeo Run
6. Still A Long Way To Go
7. Emigre
8. To See A Friend In Tears
9. Say Hello To The Pope
10. Wrong Beginning
11. Which Way To Kyffin

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #35320 in Music
• Released on: 2006-07-24
• Number of discs: 1

CD Description
The highly anticipated debut solo album from the Manic Street Preachers star neatly combines the best aspects of the Welsh rockers' past efforts into a single recording. Produced in Wales, Berlin and London, 'The Great Western' draws inspiration from artists such as John Cale and Todd Rundgren whilst retaining the unique sound that has served the Manics so well. Includes the single 'That's No Way To Tell A Lie'.

Customer Reviews

Great, great album - much better than 'Lifeblood'
I find it difficult to believe how anyone can think that there is only one good song on this album - unless you had some serious hearing impairment! 'The Great Western' is a finely balanced production, with shades of earlier Manics' albums such as 'This is my Truth' and 'Everything Must Go.' There are some absolute crackers apart from the first track - including the stirring 'Bad Boys and Pain Killers,' the anthemic 'On Saturday Morning We Will Rule The World' and the thumping 'Run Romeo Run.' Beats me how anyone can level such a blatantly unfair criticism at it!

This is My Truth...
I'm only giving this album 4 stars out of 5, because I know the next solo effort will be beyond spectacular. The Truth? Well, on first hearing I was only immediately taken with 4 of the songs: ''No way to tell a lie'', ''Emigre'' ''English Gentleman''and the heart-wrenchingly stunning ''Still a long way to go''. But after several months of intermittent playing, it's certainly been one of my wiser purchases.

The complete truth?... OK, I had the pleasure of seeing JDB perform live earlier this week, - and although I'm fully aware this is a man who can never escape his past,(or the comparisons of Nicky Wire, who more or less brought out his solo effort at the same time)- James is an artist in his own right. Witnessing him carry his own tunes with the passion, ferocity and integrity that he always performs & records with, I was pleasantly surprised to find myself wishing for these solo offerings rather than hearing the tired old songs from ''Everything Must Go.''

'The Great Western' is a majestic euphony, full of enchanting melodies from a soulful, modest individual. The man has been blessed with THE most glorious vocal chords on the planet; aggressive, yet vulnerable, refreshing, yet somber. But always, always drenched with beauty. Pure class.

A beautiful album
This is a fantastic album, another review said the first song was the best and that was it, I find it the other way I liked the first song, but I love the rest of the album. This is a must for any manics fan and if you are considering buying this then do it is very enjoyable. There are many different styles on this album so something for everyone.